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FILM REVIEW: My two cents on Heath Ledger
Film Opinion: Let’s face it, I am not the first voice in the wilderness to declare just how unforgettable the late Heath Ledger was as the chaotic Joker in The Dark Knight.
Let’s face it, I am not the first voice in the wilderness to declare just how unforgettable the late Heath Ledger was as the chaotic Joker in The Dark Knight. I hope I will not be the last for in my ever-so humble opinion it was a performance the stuff of legend is born of. He deserved to receive the Oscar for best supporting actor because of it, and not just because he died under tragic circumstances.
It is true that The Dark Knight had an excellent script, great direction and a stellar cast. It was a terrific, if not classic work of cinema by any standard. (And it should have been nominated for Best Picture.) Yet while Christopher Nolan’s film successfully captured the essence of the masked vigilante, you could not help but grow impatient with each passing scene to witness what Ledger was going to do next. His brilliance was mesmerizing to say the least as he transcended his craft. (Jack Nicholson who?) I certainly was not the only one to have that opinion as The Dark Knight has thus far grossed over $533 million domestically.
Now because of their young age and the tragic circumstances surrounding their deaths, it has been easy for some to make a comparison between Ledger and the late James Dean, which is somewhat unfair to Dean since he only had three films under his belt when he was killed. What would have been even more unfair is if Ledger’s receiving of a Best Supporting Actor nod had turned out to be simply nothing more than a sentimental tip of the cap so that the Academy could have felt good about themselves after having done “the right thing.”
If you look back across Oscar history you will discover that the odds were not in favor of Ledger winning a posthumous award. During its 80 years, there have been seven individuals who have received posthumous acting nominations, but only Peter Finch in 1976 won.
1922 - Jeanne Eagels for Best Actress in The Letter
1955 - James Dean for Best Actor in East of Eden
1956 - James Dean for Best Actor in Giant
1967 - Spencer Tracy for Best Actor in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
1976 - Peter Finch for Best Actor in Network
1983 - Ralph Richardson for Best Supporting Actor in
Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes
1994 - Massimo Troisi for Best Actor in Il Postino
Long before he achieved critically acclaimed success for his Oscar-nominated performance in the 2005 cowboy drama Brokeback Mountain, I had the opportunity to interview Ledger in 2001 when he was promoting his turn in the rock n’ roll jousting flick, A Knight’s Tale. American audiences back then only knew him from his work as Mel Gibson’s son in The Patriot and his role on the all-too-brief TV series Roar. I found him to be articulate, friendly, and open to questions, yet he was a little on the reserved if not shy side at the time.
It is nothing less than tragic that Ledger is not here to enjoy the much-deserved praise that’s been directed at him over the past several months. From a purely cinematic viewpoint, it is even more tragic that we will never be able to see just how far up into the stratosphere his acting would have traveled.
Indie Film Editor
Michael D. Smith earned a Bachelor of Arts in history at College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri followed by a Master of Arts in history at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Inspired by such critics as Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, Michael started reviewing films in 1992 for College of the Ozarks's student-run newspaper. After returning to the Kansas City area in 1994, he continued film reviewing by writing for the Cass County Democrat Missourian in Harrisonville.
In 2000 Michael joined Sun Publications in Overland Park, Kansas where he served as its film critic and Arts and Entertainment Editor. During his tenure there, he was also the film critic for the "Fine Arts Radio Hour" and "Celebrity Scoop" radio shows on KXTR. After leaving the Sun in late 2002, he became the A&E writer for the Olathe News in Olathe, Kansas. He also worked as a freelance writer for The Squire in Leawood, Showcase Publishing in Lake Ozark, Missouri and the Kansas City Star.
Michael is currently a member of the Kansas City Film Critics Circle, a professional film critic organization established in 1966 by the late Dr. James Loutzenhiser.
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