Why The Dark Knight’s Joker 2 Biggest Scenes Are Still Misunderstood Even 16 Years Later

Heath Ledger’s Joker from The Dark Knight is probably the most celebrated live-action Joker, yet he is also one of the most misunderstood. Since the film’s release, the Joker seems to have earned a reputation as a very serious, lofty character that should be the center of grand narratives like Joker, or should be dark and tortured like the DCEU version. This reputation is a little ironic, considering Ledger’s version of the character was famous for asking, “why so serious?“

One important aspect of Ledger’s Joker that is often misinterpreted or forgotten is just how much fun the character has throughout The Dark Knight. Set in Nolan’s gritty Batman world – and responsible for several heinous acts throughout his time in it – it’s easy to focus on how warped the character is, especially with this version of the Joker being regarded as one of the edgier live-action iterations. However, the Nolan Joker’s sense of humor is what sets him apart from other Batman movie adaptations, and a crucial part of what makes this performance so electric in the first place.

Related

Heath Ledger’s Unused Joker Design Is Even More Terrifying Than What We Got

New concept art for the Joker from Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy has been revealed, and it’s much scarier than Heath Ledger’s final villain.

Joker’s The Dark Knight Scenes Show How Unserious He Is About His Master Plan

It’s apparent that the Joker puts a lot of thought into his plans in The Dark Knight, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t having fun with it, though this is often overshadowed by the plot itself. A key example is when Joker goes to visit Harvey Dent in the hospital. Earlier, the film shows Joker removes his makeup when trying to actually go undercover, so him leaving it on with his shoddy nurse disguise implies that he isn’t really too concerned about getting caught. Joker also pulls exaggerated faces and makes fun of Dent during their conversation in The Dark Knight hospital scene, clearly thrilled about this new development in his plan.

This isn’t the only time the Joker is clearly having a lot of fun. During his interrogation, Joker enjoys getting a rise out of everyone who questions him, smiling and making mocking faces and one liners at them. Both of these scenes are often primarily recalled for their intense reveals – as Batman violently assaults Joker to try and get him to reveal his secrets, and the hospital explodes after Joker exits it – but also contain some of the Joker’s best comedic moments in the entire film at the same time.

Why Joker’s Plan In The Dark Knight Is Misunderstood

The main reason Joker’s more comedic side isn’t as well-remembered is because of The Dark Knight‘s overall tone. The movie is played very seriously, so when looking at it as a big picture, the film’s tone gets grafted onto the Joker even when it doesn’t belong in the moment, especially since his iteration is a grittier version of the villain. As such, all of Joker’s actions have been assigned a sometimes undeserved weight due to the lofty nature of the film he’s in. When thinking about The Dark Knight, audiences tend to remember its big ideas, not the moments of humor that come from some of the Joker’s lines and actions.

Of course, Ledger’s Joker performance wasn’t completely devoid of heavier moments. It was the mixture of levity and gravitas that made his Joker stand out as unique. Subsequent Jokers have failed to fully capture that same sense of delight, with Jared Leto skewing a little too edgy and Joaquin Phoenix being so detached from the Batman mythos that he’s essentially a different character. It is worth revisiting The Dark Knight and keeping an eye out for the little moments that proved Ledger’s Joker wasn’t always so serious.