Who do you think had the best Joker?
IMO, Leto got shafted by the edit room, I think his take on the character felt incomplete from what we've seen, or maybe he wasn't that good.
It comes down to Nicholson vs Ledger.
Both are about equal in greatness, but Ledger did more unexpected things, and the writing of the charater in the movie helped him immensely.
Very good post unopened door. I agree with all Ledger's subtleties in his performance. He nailed it.
shareI'm just gonna rank all Jokers...
1 - Phoenix - This is a dizzying performance, even if it's not comic book accurate.
2 - Hamill - Got the goofy and the grim in a great balance.
3 - Ledger - Every re-watch of The Dark Knight results in finding more nuance to Ledger's work here.
4 - Nicholson - Fourth in a line of geniuses still makes you a genius. Nicholson had the balance right, too.
5 - Romero - Cartoony fun, just what the '60s series needed, although it just isn't as comedically deep as the others were dramatically satisfying.
6 - Leto - This whole movie didn't really work, but this take on the Joker felt like it was trying to be Ledger. It was going for that "intense, unpredictable" thing that Ledger had, but it just felt desperate.
Those are the ones I've seen, anyway. Frankly, I liked everybody but Leto. They were right for their projects, and did what each film or TV show needed them to do. They all owe the writers and directors a debt, too (or, in Leto's case, blame).
it's not really the actor it's the writer and director.
1. Ledger was horrible as the Joker.
He was doing a voice from this western from the 70s I can't recall. It was some pervert character.
He sounded like some kind of pedo, smacking his lips, and mumbling, and had nothing in common with Joker. Joker is a manic crazy person who things terrible things are funny. He like's terrible "slapstick" but instead of slipping on a banana people die.
The writing was terrible because Joker is insane. Ledger's character had a sensible yet grim philosophy and wasn't crazy.
2. Leto, also not his fault. He was clearly patterned after Frank Miller's All Star Batman and Robin series where joker looked like a heroin white guy thug with a skinny body and tats. In that one, he showed no signs of being insane and was mean, rather than having manic giggles.
That's like Ledger's version of the character where the writer had not idea what the character was about. Also, Leto had no real part in the story. He didn't do or say anything.
Nicholson: He was the best as he got disfigured, which is important to the character, and he was insane in a mean, wacky, and whimsical manner. That makes Joker's crimes sick and twisted. Ledger didn't have sick and twisted crimes that were weird.
The problem with Nicholson is that the character was a mobster. So, his transformation wasn't tragic. And, there was no sign that he was a genius and Joker is an inventive genius, just like Batman is supposed to be. So, that was screwed up.
Current Joker: That could be the best one of all because his back story is good. However, if he got disfigured, thus forcing him to laugh at the world, that would be great. It would also be good if he was smarter. There's a lot of potential there.
First you say that Ledger's Joker was " terrible because Joker is insane. Ledger's character had a sensible yet grim philosophy and wasn't crazy."And then you say the current Joker is the best.
The problem with this? Ledger's And Phoenix's Joker are both equally insane and sensible. In fact, it's one of the essential elements of Joker as a character since the Ledger that he's a Jester who occasionally drops some hard truths about The Society™. The only difference is in presentation, where The Dark Knight was centered mostly around Batman and Joker's brilliant plot against him while Joker 2019 gave us a more personal insight into his mind and life as a failed comedian who lives with his mom.
I honestly did not care for Jared Leto as the Joker but I do love him as an actor!
Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger were both fantastic in their roles as the Joker but I think what people are forgetting is that they portrayed different "types" of Jokers. Jack's was the more comedic, silly Joker based on the old television series with Adam West, whereas Heath's Joker was more dark and driven by genius and sociopath behavior. Then of course we now have Joaquin Phoenix's take which was incredible as well for what was represented as a beaten down man who just became fed up with assaults on his mental and physical being.
Personally, my absolute favorite is definitely Heath Ledger's role. He portrayed it the way I always felt the Joker should be portrayed :)
letos joker wasnt just cut bad in the editing room he was soooo lame to start with. had the words damaged tattooed on his forehead like some lame hipster poser. looked more like some gay humble rapper than a crime villian
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