Critical Investigation- Draft 1
Q: To what extent are on-screen Hollywood
villains, such as ‘The Dark Knight’s 'Joker', having an impact on the audience?
 |
"...some men aren't looking for anything
logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated
with. Some men just want to watch the world burn- Alfred Pennyworth" [1].
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Despite the world's fandom for the critically acclaimed Dark Knight
trilogy, there is a mega shift in the tone and feel of Hollywood characters
especially those in the superhero genre. This is particularly apparent in
Christopher Nolan's highly commended Dark Knight Trilogy where the character of
the Joker does just that. In Nolan's film, the Joker has seemed to be one of
the best performances ever made by Heath Leger. It has been praised as one of
the best acting portrayals in cinema history, and this is very much influenced
by the fans reaction. Fans and film viewers in general were very pleased with
the portrayal of the Joker they demanded more of it, unfortunately the actor
Heath Ledger had died shortly after the film’s release. Conspiracy had
generated after the passing of Ledger where it was believed that the actor
couldn't tell the difference between being a psychopath like the Joker; and
being a normal man. A moral panic had launched in the media which got people
including parents concerned whether this type of portrayals are really suitable
for a younger demographic especially when it is for a 12A
certificate. What also was controversial is the fact that an incident had
taken place where a member of the audience (who was watching the final
instalment of the franchise), had got up and killed many viewers who were
watching the last Dark Knight movie in Aurora cinema. What is so fascinating is
that an on screen character- The Joker had influenced this man to go out and
mimic his actions that occurred on screen. The fact that “portrayals of violence in various media (e.g.
television, movies and video games are linked to actual are linked to actual
violent behaviour for children and teenagers... has placed the topic of
aggression at the fore of much social discourse” [2]
is something not to ignore as it is a fact. When "The Dark Knight became the fourth highest
grossing film of all time. Clearly something about the film appeals to viewers…
" [3]. This is precisely the aim of what the essay is trying
to argue, if there is a correlation of
content seen on screen and the viewers who consume it. The Joker is no ordinary
Hollywood character, “he exhibits no interest in our cultural values, be
they by material or moral" [4], showing the shear difference that
this character has against many others that have come before him.
The most prominent movie out of the Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy
was The Dark Knight, simply due to the long wait for another actor to reprise
the role of Batman’s greatest foes; The Joker- played by Heath Ledger. The
character of Joker is known for his psychopathic and disturbing comic book
moments, everything to skinning a man alive to ripping someone to shreds is the
norm of every Joker fan. There was no doubt that this was the direction that
the film wanted to take the character on in The Dark Knight theatrical film. After
the release of the film, it was critically acclaimed for the legendary
performance Heath Leger had while playing the Joker. Fans believe it to be the
perfect portrayal of the character since Jack Nicholson’s adaptation. However,
shortly after the film’s release it was announced that the actor Heath Ledger
died and there was a lot of conspiracy surrounding his death. Like William H. Macy said, “people have demons. Sometimes it’s
hard to see them” [5],
this quote says it all. What made the film so controversial were the clues left
behind by Ledger himself. Clues that showed that the character of the Joker had
created an influence in to his daily life and caused him to commit suicide. This
form of ‘influence’ had also occurred with previous actors who were in line to
playing the role, such as Jared Leto for the upcoming Suicide Squad movie,
where it was said that he was showing off some form of off psychopathic
behaviour which made one colleague of his think if he were actually “crazy” [6]. This shows how
much of an impact that the character of the Joker had on actors who were trying
to give the best portrayal yet. In addition to this, during the release of the
final instalment in the Dark Knight trilogy- The Dark Knight Rises, a shooting
had taken place where a young man had gone out of his way to shoot audience
members stating that he ‘was the Joker’. He even mimicked the characters portrayal
in his real life by boobie trapping his room similar to how the Joker would
trap his victims. Furthermore, after the gun shooting “gun sales in America rose by 43%” [7], and it was because of all these events that a
“moral panic” [8] was created because citizens were concerned
that such characters and content to be allowed for public audience members.
Nolan’s Batman trilogy is known to be one of the greatest
and prominent trilogies of all time in cinema history, but what made The Dark Knight
so special that the other films didn’t have? Despite it being the first film
out of the two to have received “$1 billion at the box office” and an “Oscar
for best supporting actor” [9], it was the
portrayal of the Joker that really blew people away, especially the fans. The fans
were eager to see his big screen debut after so long and were blown away with
what Ledger had achieved in that film, making it one of the most prominent
theatrical acting of all time. But what made it so controversial was the fact
that an on screen character; the Joker had, had an influence on an audience
member and had caused him to go out and mimic his on screen actions in the real
world. The film was said to connote "images of the 2001 attracts and their capacity to elicit emotional
effect and incite trauma in viewers, and second, The Dark Knight's potential to
revoke such effects through flashbulb memory, the arresting image, or a
simulation of traumatic memory" [10]. The reason
why such a moral panic emerged was because of one of the most infamous cases
ever to have created a moral panic for films which was the James Bulger case.
This case is very much similar to the Joker case where audience members were
influenced by what they watched on screen and mimicked it in real life to harm
other people. The Aurora shooting had resurrected that moral panic and had been
brought back once more. The media played a large part in forming forcing that
the media is injecting information in to the consumers mind, like a hypodermic
needle model [11]. Furthermore,
a more recent event similar to this had occurred late 2016, where it was proven
that the cause of the infamous ‘killer clown craze’ had originated from the new
poster for the upcoming it remake [12]. These examples as well as the main text itself are
proof that there is some capacity of films and characters having an influence
on audience members, whether that is good deeds or bad. The reason why good
deeds can be originated from moving text is because incident have occurred
where audience members mimic the on-screen actions for the greater good. For
example, “people dressed up as batman and went hunting for clowns in order to
deter people from ding such hideous acts” [13].
The problem
that these occurrences had on society was it made people especially parents
question whether or not such content and characters should be allowed to viewed
by children especially if it is related to iconic superhero characters which
are largely associated with the children demographic. Over the years, films
(especially) superhero movies had begun taking a darker approach as a theme for
these movies. DC films in particular were best known and were quite successful
in delivering great dark themed superhero movies, batman being the most
prominent. Dark themed superhero movies have become the norm, allowing for more
darker and graphical stories (and characters) to be brought to the big screen,
because it is said to be ‘acceptable’. As a result of this dark and gritty
theme the superhero genre adopted characters like the Joker made their way to
be more violent and dark for young viewers which also resulted in the age certification for such films to be 12 [14] and over;
way above the traditional superhero certification rating. Moral panics are
generated as a form of concern from audience members as such characters may
have an influence on their children similar to the way the children who watched
Chucky mimicked what they watched on an innocent child- James Bulger.
There have been many different portrayals of the Joker on
both the big screen and on TV, however none come close (not even Jack
Nicholson) to how Heath Ledger portrayed his Joker. The character subverts the
audiences expectations in a way no villain in superhero history has done till
date. The way in which the audience praise and side with the villain is
something very unusual and very unique. The twist of course, “is that this
is a new breed of criminal (and not just because he shoots his fellow thieves),
one who dislocates himself from the narratives sterilised notion evil that
characterises the mobsters" [15]. What audience don’t know is that there is more than just
the portrayal audience enjoy, they enjoy the characters mind-set and how he
detaches himself from other characters. The psychology of the Joker presented
in the film gives off a horror feel to the character and a very menacing
character is presented before the audience. Scenes where the Joker tortures
Rachel by talking about how he
got his scars [16] really brings out
this psychopathic approach to the character. The more the Joker speaks
through-out the text, the more the audience begin to feel a bit unease with the
character as if he is more than just a ‘typical’ villain. There is more than
just dialogue that comes in to play when an audience can feel influenced by a
characters on-screen actions, and one of the major things that had an impact on
the audience, was the mise-en-scene and camera presentation to capture these
horrific moments. “The Jokers make-up,
his purple suit, and his absurdity can still seduce the objectivity-minded
guardians of good” [17] which all present him in a rather unusual and
comedic way, similar to his natural counter part of being a ‘funny’ character;
like in the comics. However these props and make-up seem to juxtapose the idea
of comedy and bring out a more scary and horror-like tone which give the
character more seriousness and creates intimidation towards the audience
members. Furthermore, the shots used to capture the moments the Joker had on
screen also played a part in building this theme of dark humour, for example,
when Gambit is being tortured with having a knife in his mouth and the Joker
tells his story about how he gets his scars, the shots used were selected very
carefully. This scene used a lot of close-ups especially when the Joker was
intimidating Gimbal, the intention was to make the audience feel as if they
were the ones being intimidated, and Gimbal is essentially the audience in the
movie, whatever Gimbal was feeling and facial expressions, the audience was the
feel the same way. This effect in turn would create this sense of fear within
the audience. They feel as if they were interrogated by the character despite
the fact that they are just watching it passively. It shows how the pros and
camera shots used were carefully selected to bring forth a powerful, yet intimidating
scene out of every Joker appearance. One thing that the “Joker makes clear in The Dark Knight
is the success evil can enjoy when we naively ignore the presence of evil"
[18] which is true to a large extent. Audience members are blinded by the
shear horror that the character holds and enjoys the scenes he is in, despite
how evil his actions are. And finally,
"The Dark
Knight's cinematography and mise-en-scene continually operate to slightly
aspects of 9/11" [19] which plays a key factor with
every character within the films, especially the Joker. The Dark Knight uses
this ideology of 9/11 through-out the film, and uses characters to portray
certain aspects of this. The scene where a hospital is blown up by the Joker is
very reminiscent of the twin towers explosion, and the Joker is presented as
the terrorist in the story. This links deeply in to the narrative of the film
where there is a link between the 9/11 event and how this film tries to
reinvigorate it as a core story element within this film. The Joker playing the
terrorist, he is the one who uses persuasion to get his way, for example when
he tries to brainwash Harvey Dent in the hospital. This scene above all else
was what really connected with the audience. This is when the Joker justifies
his actions by essentially manipulating and hallucinating the viewers in to
falling in to his trap of being an ‘honest guy’ a man who isn’t like others,
who wants people to show their inner-self. It really splits the audience in two
minds, whether to hate the Joker or agree with him, and this can have affect
with the way audience members view their real lives. An example of another real
life copy-cat crime that was influenced by the Joker would be Christopher
Clancy who allegedly committed arson by setting fire to his school while having
the Joker make-up applied to his face. His reasoning for committing such a
crime is similar to that of the Joker stating that the school ‘is run by hypocrites’ [20] which
is similar to the ideological thinking the Joker had towards society when
talking to Batman face to face in the prison cell. Another act of this crime
that mimicked the Jokers on screen portrayal was that in the film the Joker is
seen to be burning money, which is evident when the young boy is burning his
school. There are many more crimes and influences that the character of Joker
has had on audiences and it may not be the end of Hollywood’s influential
characters; like the Joker.
The
historical text chosen to compare against The Dark Knight text would be the
1960’s Batman TV show starring staring Adam West [21]. The reason why this is the perfect text to
compare with The Dark Knight is because of the vast difference in time, of
where these two texts have been created as they both are based off of the
original DC comic characters, but presented in a much different way. What makes
this text so different is that it is built up of the ideologies and popular
culture of the time period the shows was created in- the 1960’s. During the “late 1940’s, censorship
became a prominent way of trying to stop certain information being consumed by
the public” [22],
and comic books were no exception. This in turn had a major impact on the 1966
TV show as censorship had to be a key role within this show. Batman was known
to be quite dark than its Marvel comic counterpart, that being more in line
with kids. Batman was a character more suited and relatable to adults than
children’s as the topics that the comics dealt with were real life situations
such as losing parents etc. Obviously, showing such crude content on TV
(especially during the 1960’s) would be deemed unforgivable and would create
major anger amongst society. Such censorship had forced publishers like DC
comics to tone down their content which resulted in the “disappearance of horror and gritty
books from the mainstream” [23]. So
in turn, the 1966 Batman TV show captured the zeitgeist of that era, by dealing
with the issues of censorship at that time. Alongside “nostalgic currents there
was an emphasis on escapism in the post-9/11 American popular culture. For
instance, the ratings for the long-running New York-based sitcoms Friends increased
by 17 percent in the wake of the terrorist attacks” [24]
showing how people want a form of escapism who are not much interested in the
story, but just want a visual source to escape to. What has made this Batman
(1966) so unique and interesting is the fact that there is such a vast
difference between the two time periods. This is largely to do with society’s
expectations and ideologies of such content at the time. This is because since
the since world war two was the major shock to the world and the world was in
the process of recovering, to read or watch any particular content that would
reinvigorate that sense of horror or stress would be deemed unfit for society. People
wanted a source of escapism, to watch content and forget about their real life
issues. Batman 1966 was one of many shows (at the time) that aimed to be ‘just
another’ TV show to act as a form of audience pleasure. The 1966 interpretation
of the Batman is camp and rather more comedic to fit in with society’s popular
culture and ideologies at the time. Furthermore, the way the Joker was presented in the show is
completely different to that of Ledger’s Joker. The Joker (played by Cesar Romero [25]) too was more
suited for the audience of that time period, acting more camp and comedic
rather than the intimidating Joker we know of the modern era. Furthermore, the
key theme that is played-out through all three seasons would be the sense of
comedy and campiness and the less serious approach that the show takes. It’s as
if it deliberately is trying to be less about the story and more about the
visual entertainment that audience members can enjoy. It really shows the vast
difference in culture and audience mainstream between the two texts time period
(zeitgeist).
What makes these two texts so different from
each other is the perception of the source; superhero’s. Since the birth of
superheroes stereotypes [26] of this content has been largely associated
with children, and wasn’t until there was major changes in audience
expectations and change in society where something largely associated with
kids, will soon be an attraction for adults. This shows how much audience
demands and expectations have changed over time. The norm and mainstream can be
common for so little time, until it becomes something hated upon rather than
loved. This all changed when Tim Burton revived the Batman and superhero genre
as a whole by providing audience with a new and unique twist on the genre by
giving a more serious and gritty approach to the character. And it wasn’t until
Christopher Nolan took directing duties to deliver the very best of what the
real batman truly was. It is said that a film supervises “both their construction by the film maker,
and their reading by an audience” [27] which shows how the auteur effect gives plays a major part
when telling a vast and immersive story like this where characters who are
meant to be hated- are actually loved and enjoyed defeating the entire purpose
of a villain. This opened doors to fans and non-superhero viewers for
something more than just a kiddy action-packed film. Then from that moment on,
superhero films has been dominating the box office with large amount of success
and carry different themes along with them, some with dark humour (Batman V
Superman) and some more humorous (Captain America Civil War).
To conclude, although
this investigation may not prove one hundred percent that audience members are affected
by what they see, there is an extent to where they feel influenced, or even
emotionally connected to what they have viewed and is something they will not
forget. It surely shows that "...Nolan's nightmarish version of the Joker
persistently suggests his capacity as an agent of chaos" [28] and this is implied both on screen and off
screen. The fact that the director can try and aim for a specific take on a
character can really create something innovative and iconic, similar to the way
that Joker was presented. There have been past encounters with on screen violence
being re-enacted off screen including other media outlets such as video games,
and therefore show that there is some degree of influence upon audience
members. As Frances Pheasant said, “Nolan's nightmarish version of the Joker persistently suggests his
capacity as an agent of chaos" [29]
which is what the Joker truly is.
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Footnotes:
1 Cain M, 2008, The Dark Knight movie
2 Rosenberg R, 2008, P 135
3 Heit, J, 2011, P 177
4 ibid P176
5 Macy W, 2008, https://www.accesshollywood.com/articles/updated-stars-react-to-heath-ledgers-death-62175/
6 Wakeman G, 2016, http://www.cinemablend.com/new/How-Jared-Leto-Dead-Pig-Stunt-Affected-Viola-Davis-Suicide-Squad-Performance-113127.html
8 Stanley C , 1973, P 9
9 IMDB, 2012, The Dark Knight Box Office
10 Ibid
Batman 1966
11 Pheasant F, 2013, P 132
12 Communication Theory, http://communicationtheory.org/magic-bullet-or-hypodermic-needle-theory-of-communication/
13 London Evening Standard, Davenport J, 2016, P 5
14 Horton H, 2016, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/12/man-dressed-as-batman-chases-killer-clowns-in-cumbria/
16 Heit J, 2011, P 175
17 Ledger H, 2008, The Dark Knight movie
18 Heit J, 2011, P 186
19 What Culture, 2014, whatculture.com/comics/9-horrifying-real-crimes-inspired-joker
21 Ibid, same
page
22 IMDB, 1966, Batman
23 Russel S, 2002, pp 1-15
24 Burke L, 2015, P 30
25 Pheasant F, 2013, P 132
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Works cited:
Moving
Text-
·
Burton T, 1989, Batman
·
Finger B, 1966, Batman
·
Holland T, 1988, Child’s Play
·
Nolan C, 2008, The Dark Knight
Books-
Burke L (2015). The Comic Book Film Adaptation
Heit Jamey (2011). Essays on Evil in Popular Media:
Vader, Voldemort and other villains by
Pheasant Frances
(2013). Fantasy Film Post 911
Rosenberg R (
2008). The Psychology of Superheroes an unauthorized exploration
Quotes-
Essays on Evil in Popular Media: Vader, Voldemort and other
villains. Heit Jamey. Page 174. “The
twist, of course, is that this is a new breed of criminal (and not just because
he shoots his fellow thieves), one who dislocates himself from the narratives
sterilised notion evil that characterises the mobsters"
Essays on Evil in Popular Media: Vader, Voldemort and other
villains. Heit Jamey. Page 177. “ The Dark Knight became the fourth
highest grossing film of all time. Clearly something about the film appeals to
viewers, despite its subversive narrative structure".
Essays on Evil in Popular Media: Vader, Voldemort and other
villains. Heit Jamey. Page 186. "Objectively,
one can label the Joker as evil, but his make-up, his purple suit, and his
absurdity can still seduce the objectivity-minded guardians of good".
Fantasy Film Post 911. Pheasant
Frances. Page 132. "...Nolan's nightmarish
version of the Joker persistently suggests his capacity as an agent of
chaos".
Fantasy Film Post 911. Pheasant
Frances. Page 132. "The Dark Knight's
cinematography and mise-en-scene continually operate to slightly aspects of
9/11".
Fantasy Film Post 911. Pheasant
Frances. Page 133. "Centres on the exploits
of the Joker, a terrorist who generates chaos and trauma".
Online
Article
about Jared Leto sending gifts to fellow cast members of Suicide Squad: http://www.cinemablend.com/new/How-Jared-Leto-Dead-Pig-Stunt-Affected-Viola-Davis-Suicide-Squad-Performance-113127.html
A tweet
from a highly acclaimed person regarding Ledger’s death: https://www.accesshollywood.com/articles/updated-stars-react-to-heath-ledgers-death-62175/
Ledger’s
notebook conspiracy: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3193027/Documentary-Heath-Ledger-s-father-reveals-journal-actor-kept-prepared-role-Joker-resurfaces.html
News
link (Gun sales going up after theatre shootings): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18981769
Jared
Leto’s psychopathic off-screen acting: http://www.metronews.ca/views/in-focus-richard-crouse/2016/08/04/how-jared-leto-freaked-out-his-suicide-squad-costars.html
Man
dressed as Batman to fight clown craze: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/12/man-dressed-as-batman-chases-killer-clowns-in-cumbria/
Heath
Ledger death conspiracy: http://www.hindustantimes.com/hollywood/what-killed-heath-ledger-documentary-reveals-chilling-details/story-INYcak19qwQOeYeLuuwyGN.html
Joker
influences in real life- whatculture.com/comics/9-horrifying-real-crimes-inspired-joker
Print
texts
News-paper
article on IT (film remake) and its influence on the killer clown craze
influence: London Evening Standard (broadsheet) - Page 5
Word Count (excluding quotes): 2,894
Word Count (with quotes): 3,469
