Is The Joker the Main Character in The Dark Knight?? 

"a leader can unite a side in a conflict, but a villain can unite a people" Mikey, that's profound!

We gotta be clear about a couple things: Heath talked to actors on set. Gambol's actor (Michael Jai White, a real life ninja) emphatically stated that Heath was joking around between takes. The other thing is that Heath didn't die because of this role, but because of a lethal mix of medications that he was prescribed legally.

"Heath Ledger's performance in this film is the greatest performance in cinema history" *Definitely a shared opinion*

Wholeheartedly agree that Heath did the best acting in cinematic history. Aaron Eckhart told a funny story on Larry King about acting with Heath. He recalls the famous hospital scene in which Heath who always stayed in character on set wandered around acting like the Joker and never conversated with Eckhart. Then at the end of the day when the scene was done, Heath and Eckhart would walk up to their trailers, Heath then put his hand on Eckharts shoulder and said "That's what acting's all about." Rest in peace Heath Ledger.

Your videos are proof that positive reviews are more entertaining than curse ridden click bait negative ones. Never stop being you. You are as artful and possibly more articulate than the artists you discuss the works of.

Fantastic. I wish I had the ability to communicate about art with such clarity and precision.

I can't believe Mikey agrees with me that Heath Ledger did the best job acting, well, ever.

Agreed. Heath Ledger as Joker is best performance of all time. Exquisite. Also, I still want to see you do Wall-E. :)

At first I thought your declaration at the end about Heath Ledgers performance being the GOAT was absurd but I'm struggling to come up with something that tops it. Pretty crazy. Imma think on that some more. Great work as usual.

Hot damn! "And here...we... go-" Hard cut to Midnight City. Beautiful work, man.

Complete agreement re: Heath Ledger's performance. I've never once, in my life, seen another performance that has stuck with me the way that one has. Just pure, phenomenal brilliance. Think about what a talent like that could have accomplished over a full career. What an utterly tragic loss, to say nothing of how it affected his family and those close to him. :(

This homage to Heath Ledger and the ONLY REAL Joker performance (that's not a cartoon, Hamill fans) deserves an Oscar.

The Force Awakens review lit the fuse, but this one was the sky it brilliantly illuminated. This guy and his channel is without a doubt the best thing on youtube, and his examination of Heath Ledger's performance choked me up. Not just because it mirrored my own thoughts precisely, but because it reminded me that a genuine artist and gentle soul was taken from us so prematurely. Yeah, you know I just didn't get something in my eye... shut up...

Cinemawins sent me here and all I can say is, I'm not disappointed keep up the great work.

One thing I would like to say is that the hospital scene was supposed to go like that, all explosions went off as planned and the jokers reaction was scripted. The whole "it wasent supposed to be like that" is a myth that keeps getting told

I really liked your point on corporate money entering politics, I'd never thought about it that way. Good job as a whole, just subbed.

[X] Get teary eyed while someone talks about a literal comic book clown.

This video is incredible! So so funny, inspiring and informative! I just came here to watch one video, and I think i'm going to watch all the videos I can til the morning

Man, this is my new favorite review of any movie ever.

I never thought of "the Dark Knight" referencing the Joker before, and I think it's because we are always reminded that it's a Batman movie. I love your essays and this needs to be one if my favorite so far. Nice work, Mikey!

Hot damn, Mikey. Quality as usual.

I think the *only* performance I've ever seen that reaches Ledger's performance as The Joker in this film is Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer in Fire Walk With Me. And she never got an award for her work in that film. That movie transcends her - in my mind, at least - into being *THE* singular most tragic character in all of American media. She sells every second of every scene, it's bone-chilling.

[m] IF YOU LIKE CAUSIN TROUBLE UP IN HOTEL ROOMS

I'm so confused by the Jon Risinger shout out

Didn't think I'd see the Risemonger here

And suddenly, Jon Risinger. What!?

A couple of corrections, if I may. Heath licked the edges of his lips to help keep the prosthetic scars adhered to the corners of his mouth, and the "botched" hospital scene was actually meticulously planned out with the pause in the explosions, where the joker fumbles around with the detonator, for safety reasons, the proof is on the dark knight blu-ray features where Christopher Nolan explains as such while showing a complete computer rendering of that scene, that was used to plan out the scene, which shows that the explosions weren't botched. With all that aside, I agree with everything else you said about the film and heath ledger. The dark night is a masterpiece of cinema, and heath's portrayal of the joker is perfection.

Actually, the hospital explosion wasn't botched, the delay was there purposefully to ensure Ledger was at his marked spot.

"What's better?" Christian Bale in The Prestige. I can't even explain how good that performance is without spoiling the film.

I fucking love your videos. Please never stop.

I like how you can hear the Joker's singular violin string while Mickey is talking about the movie's protagonist. Hinting at the plot twist to come.

Awesome video! Completely loved how you changed completely the point of view of the movie into something really believable and interesting. I also loved the background you used; totally screenshoted the title! :D

officially a fan now, going back to watch older episodes. really enjoy your videos man.

Sorry i'm sure you heard this plenty of times but at 14:37 it wasn't a botched shot, it was an intentionally staged delayed explosion Ledger's RESPONSE was 100% natural, yes but the explosion was intentional I still love you

"Because he's not Spiderman!" I'm dead.

I feel like each piece I was already aware of to some degree, so it was nice to hear it all together with your honey-mustard voice.

"Batman's a dumb dick." I loved that. And calling out Leto. Good on ya.

As usual, mike, you're a bloody genius mate. Classic stuff, love the vids

There is not a single viewing of this film that does not absolutely beat me over the head with this exact point: "Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker is the single greatest on screen performance ever" Heath literally disappears into this role in a way I have never seen any actor do(well others have accomplished this feat but not to this level). It is staggering to revisit this film because you can't help but feel a sense of loss that never again will we be able to watch something so great and yet poetically that makes this performance that much more important.

That little Boushh smash cut single-handedly made this the best video on youtube. Well done, Sir, I say: well done.

I've been waiting for this episode since I first watched the Turtles video that launched your show and it didn't disappoint. Thank you so much for this!

The thing I love about the interrogation scene is that despite being the captive, Joker has all the power and control. Both actors are amazing in that scene.

I literally talked about this movie tonight and lo, I found your video about it when I got on RU-vid. This is a perfect encapsulation about why I love it.

I watch this a few times a year. This is my absolute favourite analysis of a movie ever.

oh so keen for you to do sum Wes Anderson!

I'd like to see what 2019 Mikey has to say about Joker (2019) against what 2016 Mikey has said.

I know this is an old video but it's a common misconception that the hospital explosion scene was improvised, it was not. There is mock-up CG footage of the scene showing that the scene went exactly as planned. However the scene was supposed to be longer having almost a full minute of just staring at the Joker as he rides away in the bus, staring into the middle distance

5 years later and this still hits home. This video is the Dark Knight of movie reviews.

I really like your reviews in general, and this review specifically. My only quibble, the exploding hospital scene being a botched take, is a myth, and wrong. It was storyboarded exactly as it played out on screen, they used real buildings, and only had one chance to do it, and they executed it one hundred percent as they intended to. I don't take anything away from Heath Ledger's performance, but that was not an actor maintaining character in a glorious bit of improvisation, it was an actor inhabiting his character, and playing it exactly as planned. There is a difference.

Glad to find you, Mikey! In a world where giving a video more than 2 minutes of your time is a "chore", I didn't even notice the 16 minutes had passed 'til they were done. Excellent video! Very subscribed, very subscribed!

I don't often comment on RU-vid but your video genuinely made me tear up because I loved Ledger as the Joker. I like how you showed the many facets of corruption within the movie and also how you highlighted Ledger's performance. It sounds weird but Ledger truly ACTS. He uses micro-expressions very consciously and every movement conveys so many things. For example, his eyes. They dart around and he often looks upward, while the rest of the cast looks, as many actors do, straight ahead, focused on a point, got get a clean shot. It may not seem important to others but I noticed it and it's the small things that make a performance extraordinary. And it still fucking hurts that he died, so watching this video was a rollercoaster of emotions.

This is an awesome birthday gift! Thanks Mikey! One of your best for one of my favorite films.

totally agree but also heath had a nuance to his character that nobody in comic book movies will ever pull off again without being hokey or silly

A lot of people have been saying that 2016 is one GARBAGE FIRE of a year... but I found this channel in 2016, so I'mma say it ain't too bad. Keep doin' what you doin', Mikey.

The use of the escalating Joker theme during the intro is absolute aces.

I have never re watched a video more than this on youtube, it's my go to whenever I'm up past 1am....your mind truly is magic and it shows in all of your episodes. I hope you continue to amaze and stand out amongst all the billions of channels that try to accomplish what you definitely do :)

One of my favorite movies, I’ve always defended Heath Ledger’s performance as being amazing and the most accurate to the comic books. He truly threw himself into the character. Great job Mikey awesome episode. Your videos always inspire me, i was wondering if you could do the new Mission Impossible: Fallout, I work at a movie theatre and we had an employee only showing before it came out and it was honestly amazing, if you could do it that would be awesome. The directors of photography and sound must have had a really fun time working on the movie. Thank you Mikey.

I heard about your channel a few days ago from a RU-vidr named Falcon Paladin, your reviews are great!

TDK is a film that should be shown in film school. It is a cinematic masterpiece that I have now watched over 20+ times and STILL get excited to watch it again. The interrogation scene alone is one of the, if not THE greatest scene ever filmed. The contrast between Batman and The Joker during the scene and the camera angles...I could go on and on about this film! Speaking of Ledger's performance, I couldn't agree more that it is the greatest performance in film history. I have yet to get as excited about a character entering a room (like when Heath Ledger enters the lion's den with that laugh of his which is so creepy and awesome), as I do whenever Heath is on camera. He will be missed...RIP

Extra Credits sent me here. This series is amazing. I'm stunned by how the sheer production quality mixed with the beautiful analysis of these films manages to create such a moving narrative. Mikey, you have a made masterpieces by looking at masterpieces. Wow, simple wow.

Mikey dude, that was effing awesome! Thank you so much! What a ride. No complaints about the message either, the level of the Ledger-Joker will most probably never be reached again.

THAT WAS JOHN RISINGER, WELCOME TO ON THE SPOT

Have watched this so many times now and it still holds so much power.

goddammit mikey i just got introduced to your channel through the monster factory review (big ol mcelroy fan) and now i have watched your entire channel and have a huge set of movies i absolutely gotta rewatch because your take on them is so good. thanks so much for the videos!

Again, a very insightful analysis. You deserve soooo many more subs. So I posted this on Reddit. I got 650 subs off one video on there. You will definitely get more than I did. I wish I could get my videos as smooth as yours. Fucking amazing.

I would love to know what you think of Knight's Tale.

That was fantastic, again. Super stoked I was introduced to your channel, I’m in love with your videos, you’re super inspiring

Love these videos and your show Mikey! So pumped every time a new one pops up on my front page.

This is the only argument that has made me want to see The Dark Knight. People talked about the cinematography, the dialogue, the "hit me for real", and Ledger's suicide, but nobody articulated it in a way that made me interested in a Batman movie again. Too many misses, not enough hits. This, on the other hand - I'd never thought of this movie as turning the whole superhero genre on its head, making the easily-assumed hero a criminal down to his morals and the "villain" the one actually fighting for the good of the city. Seeing more depth talk about Ledger's actual performance also helps (the diction thing, for example, matters a ton - character voices need to be consistent and if he stuck with that it would be huge) and now I understand how much of himself he really did put into the role. I tend to avoid movies that I see as over-hyped without the hype having compelling arguments. I didn't see "the actor killed himself" as a compelling argument (especially when phrased as "the actor died so now you have to watch it out of respect", when I'd never really taken notice of Heath Ledger's performances before) but you've shown me that I am probably missing out on a real cinematic and philosophical masterpiece. Thanks, Mikey.

Absolutely excellent, Mikey ❤️ dang dang cool.

I just found your channel and I feel like it’s been a missing piece of my movie life, found. Well done!

14:38 it wasn’t botched. Since Nolan uses entirely practical effects, they had to make sure Heath got clear of the explosion, so he just made it a part of the performance

Thank you Man, I*ve been saying this about Heath/Joker since day fucking one!!!!! I think its the best movie of all time.

Live action Joker? Absolutely. That’s Heath Ledger’s role from now til the end of time. But I sincerely believe Mark Hamill deserves just as much credit, if not more, for all of his work voicing the Joker. He’s not only been doing it for decades at this point, but he’s done a fantastic job of it, too. You never see the man himself in any of his portrayals of the Joker, but none of them would be anywhere near as good without his voice to bring the character to life.

Great job! I'm eagerly looking forward to your treatise on The Grand Budapest Hotel

Just discovered this channel today, and I already know it's going to be one of the best things that happened to me this 2017.

Christian actually punched Heath in the face...dude your boner for him is so justified. Epic.

This video is legendary!

Exyracredits just sent me over, brilliant channel, I look forward to your future videos

This movie is everything and I love it to bits and all that but the pause in the hospital explosion wasn’t an accident. It was in the script, the storyboards and the animatics. Again, this is the greatest film of all time and your show is amazing and I love it.

Hell yes. Nailed it, as usual.

oh, man. please do make a Westworld one too at some point!

Joker tried to blow up people after he lost the game. He isn't better than batman.

Dude, the more content I watch, the more I fall in love with you... awesome job!

I have no shame in admitting that John Risinger's twiier account brought me here after 13:06.

I'm actually not entirely unconvinced there were never any bombs on the boats at the end. That Joker orchestrated the whole thing to get the people to turn on each other and to screw with Batman.

This will forever be my favorite episode of Movies with Mikey and it is the one I refer all of my friends to. "You like Dark Knight? Watch this video." "You like Marvel? Watch this video." "You like film in general? Watch this video."

Ahhhhh. I don't know if I'll ever watch this film the same way again. Thanks

I think this is a direction a fair number of films are going to take from now on, because of Dark Knight, and more recently, because of Infinity War. Have our bad guy be our protagonist. Hell you can look at it from a purely character development standpoint. We've already developed our heroes (in Avengers case, a lot for characters like Tony and Cap), why NOT spend much of the runtime of the movie developing your villain into someone whose story you care about? Even if you end up hoping they die a horrible death. *Especially* to make you hope they die a horrible death.

Judge Judy and Executioner...pure gold :D

This is one of the most entertaining videos I've seen all year. This needs way more views

Great piece! Excited for Grand Budapest, it's one of my favorite movies and my favorite Wes Anderson.

I think it's a bit pointless to break down Batman's brand of justice as "not conventional" or "breaking the law". He's a vigilante. Everything he does skirts the legal system.

Based on this review, I think Mikey would really like Law Abiding-Citizen. Up until the ending anyway.

Argh I love your videos sooo much.....makes my day to see one come up! Keep up the good work!

Great video man. So freaking great. I hadn't thought about the movie from this context. Thank you.

I give anyone a thumbs up for trashing Jared Leto. Especially his "Joker" performance.

I don't think I can go on if you don't make a video about The Departed.

Amazing video, Mikey. I will always be bummed over the fact, that we will never get to see another Heath Ledger performance again. Anyway, I'm pumped for your episode on The Grand Budapest Hotel. One of my faves from Wes Anderson - right after Moonrise Kingdom

Same Opinion. Heath's Performance was pure gold, not much compares. It was truly beautiful and as tragic as this may sound, it was a once in a lifetime performance that probably could never have been topped if Heath Ledger were still alive. Nolan captured lightening.