Ah the soothing stare of a sociopath |
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I recently saw the long awaited release of THE DARK KNIGHT. Needless to say it was a great film and a full out spectacle of what moviemaking could and should be at all times. After I left the theatre and started driving home something bothered me about the movie. I couldn't quite put my finger on it but something just didn't sit right. Then it hit me. It was obvious and there was no denying it. The only problem I had with the movie, the only issue that was gnawing at me was the obvious stand out issue that this Batman movie had: Batman was in it.
I don't think I am alone here when saying that there was too much Batman in this Batman movie and not enough of what we really all came to see in the menacing, out-of-this-world performance of Heath Ledger as The Joker. One could easily argue you cannot have the enjoyment of the villain without the heroic escapades of the protagonist. However, I beg to differ. Nothing against Christian Bale (aside form the allegations of him beating up his mother and sister to defend the honor of his wife), he is a great actor and is by far the best actor to play Batman since Adam 
Looks like it's gonna be a good summa! |
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West, but short of vomiting from under the bat cowl, I don't think anyone cared too much about his performance in the least bit. I think he was just a screen filler until the story got back to following The Joker and his menacing antics.
The more I delved into this theory, the more I realized this stretched far beyond The Dark Knight and the Batman villains. This seems to ring true with a lot of movies in the annals of movie history. Let me pose a question: why do movies like THE GODFATHER, SCARFACE and GOODFELLAS have such stay power finding them deeply enriched in today's pop and youth cultures? Is it because the characters in the film do right by their fellow man? Is it because they follow the yellow brick road because all they have is a wish to make it back home? I don't think so. It is quite the opposite. They are sociopathic killers with minds that work counterclockwise to mainstream society. These stories are all about watching the villains, the bad guys, the outlaws. Let's face it watching the bad guys are a lot more fun then watching the good guys. Does this make us blood thirsty psycho nutcases? No. 
It's good not to bottle your anger |
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Simply put, movies are a form of escapism. Its fun to watch things that don't happen in our daily activity (um, that's a good thing) and watch the spectacle of it all take place safely on the screen while we sit in a darkened theatre and stuff ourselves with popcorn and jujubes. No one wants to watch this really take place (hopefully), but we can do this through the magic of the motion picture.
Now this is not to say that there are not stories and themes in movies that cater to the good guys (chick flicks). These stories are puffy and light and you can almost read it as an algebraic formula: A (girl meets boy) + B (boy likes girls) C (boy screws up) x D (girl forgives boy) = girl and boy are happy and float on a cloud of pink marshmallows forever and ever alongside purple ponies and unicorns. I am being a bit facetious, however you get my point. It is pretty predictable and easy to swallow (ahem).
On the flip side of the coin, the fun part about watching the bad guys is there really is no predictability whatsoever. No one knows how the mind of a psychotic works, therefore nothing is set in stone. The 
The face only a mother could love |
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story can go anywhere through these characters and usually does. A screenplay writer can have a field day creating through these muses. When this is done poorly it is usually because the writer didn't take full advantage of the tools that were laid out in front of him/her. However, when this is done right it is like a fine wine, aged to perfection and put to the screen with just the right crisp taste we as audience members crave.
I don't know about you but I could have watched a movie called The Joker. I could watch a movie just about the bad guy without the good guy. There are many people that can and will argue that you cannot have one without the other, that without the inclusion of the performance of the good, you would not be able to appreciate that performance of the bad. Okay. That is fine. By all means that could be true. However, the next time you choose a movie, or are sitting in one ask yourself what you are waiting to see next in the story, what scene you will get the most enjoyment out of: the good? The bad? Or the ugly?
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| Pop Goes The Culture |
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A little corner of the world where you get to read my rants and raves on the world of entertainment. Lucky you.
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| Jeff Lurie |
Skye enjoys telling people that while he rarely wears underwear, when he does it is usually something rare and exotic. Inspired by scaring circus clowns and random 80's movies, Skye has always had a passion for writing and the world of entertainment. He hopes that through his writing he will in turn inspire others or at the very least propel them into a life of mopping adult coin operated booths.
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