Judgment Day for the Joker

What do you think of Heath Ledger? Your answer to this question may be a simple ‘nothing’ … the fact is, your answer will be as subjective as mine because we actually have no right to judge Heath in life, or in death – we don’t even have the right to question the cause of his death… was it a drug overdose, or an accidental misuse of prescribed medication? Or are these essentially the same thing?  What do you think is worse… accidental death – so he wanted to live? Or intentional death, meaning life had become unbearable?  Whatever the truth, it will not escape the walls of that New York apartment where the young actor breathed his last breath – and we, as the general public will never know, nor do we have the right to know the actually truth behind Heaths death.

So while you may remain apathetic with your answer to my initial question, my answer is ‘he was a great actor that died prematurely!’

Although my opinion stands, who the darn am I to state that he ‘died prematurely’ – I am now doing exactly what I said you shouldn’t!  I am judging him.  His family can judge him, his friends can even judge him and his now father-less daughter, Matilda Rose and her mother, Michelle Williams, (whom he met on the set of Brokebrook Mountain) – can both judge him!  Even higher powers that be can judge him – but you, or me?  The only judging we can do is of his acting ability… his input into the world of our entertainment.  Surely as soon as he stepped into the acting arena he knew he would be judged!

Therefore I am not being disrespectful when I judge him as he melted the hearts of many a teenager while playing the lovable rogue Patrick Verona in ‘10 things I hate about you’.  There is no mistaking that he was going to be a universal hit when he sung the Andy Williams classic ‘I can’t take my eyes off of you’ in a very public show of affection to his co-star Julia Stiles.  We saw him play a convincingly meek homosexual cowboy in the critically acclaimed ‘Brokeback Mountain’, although I am far from homophobic, parts of the movie made me feel uneasy but no more or less than other explicit scenes in non-Ledger films.

The long awaited sequel to Batman Begins, ‘The Dark Knight’, was the one Heath flick I was waiting to see, and not because of some sick curiosity due to it being the last film he completed before his death on January 22nd 2008, but because I knew it would be good viewing.  I didn’t watch it in cinema, but was lucky enough to receive the two disk special edition as a Christmas gift – I opened it early and watched it the night before Christmas Eve.  The story, action, visual effects and actors were worth every second of viewing, not to mention having the added bonus of Katie Holmes being replaced by (again in my opinion) the less annoying, non-wonky mouthed actress Maggie Gyllenhaal (sister of Jack Gyllenhaal – Heaths Brokeback Mountain co-star).  I digress, as I am not focusing on the task at hand – which is to judge The Joker. 

Heath stepped into a ragged suit and sported smudged makeup and greasy green hair that would make Alice Cooper enviably impressed, all to encompass the persona of the psychotic villainous prankster.  He manages to balance sinister behaviour with a misunderstood tortured soul, especially dressed as a nurse to manipulate Harvey Two-Face, played by Aaron Eckhart.  Heath embraces the irony of The Joker in a less contrived portrayal than by Jack Nicholson in Tim Burton’s 1989 adaptation of Batman.  The young actor allegedly sought advice from Jack before stepping into his purple suit, and after hearing of his death Jack was reported to have responded with an ambiguous ‘I warned him!’  Although in sad circumstance, whatever the bitterness shared, it is likely that Heath will be the actor synonymous with the role of The Joker.  So warning or no warning, Heath is infamous.  Some cynics would say that Heath has been knighted with brilliance by default of death – but I am no such cynic…  After all in his twenty eight years that he graced this planet, he has been an influential acting talent, showing versatility, style and accuracy, and is he has joined the likes of Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman as one of the few successful Australian actors to become Hollywood stars – and so dare I be so bold to say it again, but in my very humble opinion if asked the question ‘what do you think of Heath Ledger?’ my answer would be ‘he was a great actor that died prematurely’ and I am sure that those who knew the young man would believe him to be a great person who’s memory lives in their hearts forever.