Characters' Study of Christopher Nolan

July 30, 2021

Characters' Study of Christopher Nolan

You cannot rank Chris Nolan's films, if you do it implies that neither do you appreciate cinema nor do you watch cinema. Each of his work is a kind.

He is an engineer turned farmer who is desperate in growing a food crop, which would soon die off like any other vegetation. He exists in the dystopian world, where technology failed to save humanity from man made and natural calamities. Since he believes in exploring, he voyages between stars and beyond time to find a habitable planet so as to ensure continuity of not only humanity but his family.

Failure or fear of failure has been his driving force. A childhood trauma, which took his parents compels him to become brave, but only after going through the depths of fear and desolation. Armed with wealth and influence, he avenges not only those took his parents away from him, but every evil who comes across in people's lives. Therefore, he becomes above the law, a savior on his own, who is wanted by the justice for trial, and needed by his victims for vengeance. He is caught in-between. Thus, his existence itself becomes invariably dangerous.

He randomly chooses anyone and follows them for writing. He doesn't realize that he is being followed by a stranger all along

It may remind you of BT's metaphor UsualDay (2014). Remember, BT didn't watch DoodleBug until 2016. Perhaps both share similar mind. Hence, the coincidence.

Perspective | DoodleBug | Christopher Nolan's first short film

DoodleBug (1997) is an abstract, experimental, open for interpretation short, conceived and executed by auteur filmmaker Christopher Nolan, which garnered admiration for his authenticity, in film festival circuits, and paved way for his future. Earlier, he made two shorts, apparently, they were never exhibited for general public, ' Tarantella' (1989) and 'Larceny' (1995) nor available in internet.

Synopsis: (If I may say so, as in abstract films, there is no such thing as plot. It is up to the viewers to interpret their own version of the story from visuals)

A middle aged man (Jeremy Theobald), appears to be mentally distraught of something mischievous in a room. He grows impatient of its presence, and needs to eliminate it.

In the process, he does not want to get distracted. When the phone rings, he becomes furious and inserts the receiver into a jug, full of water. And, finds something hiding under a brief, scrawling near the chair. He hits it with something appearing like a shoe. It staggers into the middle of the room.

Eventually, he finds a miniature of himself under the cloth. He does not seem to be surprised. He hits him, he repeats it angrily, and with even more force. It is unclear, what happens to him then. But, a mammoth version of himself, appears behind him, dwarfing the actual and miniature versions. The film abruptly ends.

The way i interpreted the short is, a man does not like himself, and wants to get rid. However, he is invincible or immortal. When he dies or disappears, someone more powerful than him unleashes. The film is metaphor that, humans are locusts, not only do they destroy their ecosystem, they themselves are their own enemies.

DoodleBug Short URL:

https://youtu.be/-WhKt_CkXD0

(Copyright claim, link removed)

https://youtu.be/xtDGJI32k2k

(Link is not dead yet)

Characters I like the most: Joker

Rationale: Joker was never a villan nor a hero. He intended to restore balance in #Gotham city as he believed, goodness in abundance would eventually lead to destruction. He was a symbol more than #Batman, and was never really killed by Batman either, he chose to die once. He exists spiritually and would surface, when its needed.

Actor: Heath Ledger [ Posthumously received Oscar for best performance in a supporting role for Joker. In 2016, a documentary reveled the self written notes by Heath Ledger himself on how did the character take over him. He locked himself in a room and didn't come out for months even before the shoot started. He enacted the character in front of the mirror, gradually got obsessed, and became the character for real. Even Nolan mentioned that he was calm throughout the production and always pondering about the character, he lived as Joker on and off the set. Eventually, obsession led to his biological death. He does exist spiritually among many of us]

Film: TheDarkKnight

Writers: Christopher Nolan , Jonathan Nolan

Christopher Nolan never intended the The Joker to clap when he was arrested, locked up, and the officers applaud Jim Gordon for being able to nab The Joker and for getting elevated as commissioner. The scene was so intense only because of the fact that Heath Ledger (The Joker) was so obsessed with the character and he just reacted and not acted when he was arrested. The genius Christopher Nolan did cut not the camera and rolled to capture the brutality of The Joker. The output is, for years to come, we would be talking about Heath Ledger as The Joker.

The Joker is ubiquitous. He is never dead. He is immortal. He collectively represents every good and bad deed of humans. After all, he is not a villain. Though, Heath Ledger lived and died as the character, the spirit of Joker prevails. If I were an actor, I would have chosen the same path as he did, that is being obsessed or becoming the character in real life. Incidentally, i'm not an actor. I'm a storyteller. I'm indebted to Nolan siblings for having created the most authentic character ever.

Christian Bale in a recent interview with yahoo movies said, in hindsight, he could have done the role of Batman better. The fact that Heath Ledger posthumously won the Oscar, probably made him to consider his performance to be relatively weaker. Nevertheless, I disagree with Christian Bale as the characterisation and performance of Batman(him) were as intensive as the joker. What do you think?

He is an epitome of simplicity. The only and the most powerful weapon, he has is his mind. He doesn't need anything to exist, but chaos. He possesses the ability to turn a hero into a villain, a villain to a hero. People can become mob, mob can become the savior under his able leadership. All he does is, intelligent manipulation of survival instincts. He is misinterpreted to be a monster. He is a creator. What he creates is the balance. He chooses to live. He chooses to die. Neither fate nor anyone has control over him.

He has no name, no identity, no past, no future, leaving no trace to his whereabouts. His outlook is even bespoke. He can't be found, he finds those whom he decides to be met. He doesn't like being called a clown, because he isn't. He is actually a damage wizard.

He is a saboteur. What he sabotages isn't actually anything tangible, but the very morale of his victims. He doesn't have anything to be threatened by. Therefore, neither can he defeated nor can he be reasoned with. What he needs is absolute freedom. The freedom to create chaos. When not given, he himself becomes chaotic.

I never believe in the premise of making a versatile actor to perform a character, which is isolated from the society. Because these actors lead a flamboyant lifestyle, that is too far from reality. I will never let them to become the character on the set, and lead life otherwise. To be able to work with us, actors will have to be both mentally and physically prepared to become the character in their real life either. No matter what the character is. No matter how extreme/violent? the character is, they will have to genuinely become the character, only then will the actors be able to bring authentic reenactment in front of camera. #BT

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Heath Ledger's Disturbing Joker Diary Surfaces in Documentary

A scene from a German documentary about the life of Heath Ledger shows off the diary that Ledger kept for a month during his preparation for the role as the Joker. In the video, Heath's dad, Kim Ledger, flips through the diary and talks about his son's approach to acting.

"He pretty well locked himself up in a hotel in his apartment for a month or so, to sort of galvanized the upcoming character in his own mind," said Kim. "That was typical of Heath on any movie. He would certainly immerse himself in the upcoming character. I think this was just a whole new level."

The diary has playing cards, photos of clowns, cut-outs from old Batman comics taped into it. There are also a lot of images of the character Alex from A Clockwork Orange.

One of the weirdest, saddest parts of the diary is that Heath made a note in it eight months later after the movie had wrapped. In what looks like silver Sharpie, he wrote, "8 months ago, wrapped now!" Then, on the last page of the diary, the words "BYE BYE" also appear in the same style.

"At the end of shooting, he wrote goodbye on the back of the last page," said Kim. "It was hard to read that."

Source: Complex

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Did Joker kill Heath Ledger? New docu reveals chilling proof

Did Joker unlock Heath ledger's dark side? A documentary on death of the actor explores.

Did Heath Ledger's turn as Joker in The Dark Knight pushed him into a spiral of depression and drugs that finally led to his death? This oft-discussed conspiracy theory will be resurrected by the legion of his fans as a German documentary, Heath Ledger: Too Young To Die, shows chilling excerpts from a diary that the actor maintained while preparing for his Oscar-winning role.

Many maintain that it was Ledger's obsession with the character that eventually led to him overdosing on painkillers in 2008. The Australian actor died on January 22, 2008. He was 28.

To prepare for the role, Ledger locked himself in a hotel room for a month and experimented for what will turn out to be one of the most defining negative characters of all times. In an interview to Empire in 2007, the actor said, "It's a combination of reading all the comic books I could that were relevant to the script and then just closing my eyes and meditating on it. I sat around in a hotel room in London for about a month, locked myself away, formed a little diary and experimented with voices - it was important to try to find a somewhat iconic voice and laugh. I ended up landing more in the realm of a psychopath - someone with very little to no conscience towards his acts. He's just an absolute sociopath, a cold-blooded, mass-murdering clown."

Heath's father, Keith, is seen narrating excerpts from the diary in a teaser for the documentary as we can spy the Oscar in the background. According to the diary, for his iconic Joker voice, Ledger took inspiration from hyenas, clowns, comic strips, and Alex DeLearge from A Clockwork Orange.

What may be interpreted as a sign of the tragedy to come, Ledger ends the diary with 'bye, bye' scribble across a page.

Source: Hindustan Times

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Heath Ledger’s Joker Diary from The Dark Knight

Following his tragic death before the film’s release, it was widely circulated that in preparation for the role of The Joker in The Dark Knight, Heath Ledger locked himself in a room for some time and scribbled notes into a journal. Now, a sequence from an upcoming documentary about the late actor (via EW) has surfaced online, featuring the very journal that Ledger used to get into the character of the clown prince of crime.

“He pretty well locked himself up in a hotel, in his apartment, for a month or so, to sort of galvanize the upcoming character in his own mind,” Kim Ledger, Heath’s father, says in the clip. “That was typical of Heath on any movie. He would certainly immerse himself in the upcoming character. I think this was just a whole new level.”

The contents of the journal feature images of the character from comics, playing cards, Hyenas, and a photo of Alex DeLarge from A Clockwork Orange. There’s also a few pages of his dialogue from the film when he meets Harvey Dent at Gotham General Hospital. You can check out the clip in the player below.

Ledger was posthumously awarded the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor the year after The Dark Knight was released. He co-starred in the film with Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart Aaron, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, and Morgan Freeman.

Source: Coming Soon.net

https://youtu.be/kJMoKMieNn8

If I were a director, I'd be brutal with the cast and the crew, it's not because Chris Nolan does that, but I'm instinctively a serious kind. In essence, what I expect is beyond complete devotion and commitment - submission to the creative idea of the film. For instance, what Heath Ledger did for the critically acclaimed 'Joker' character of 'The Dark Knight Rises'. #BT

His thought process is methodical and meticulous, but his actions aren't. They are impulsive and judgmental. He absolutely needs nothing but everything to make everyone chaotic. He is a man of words. No matter how big the catastrophe is, he gets it done with ease.

April 4, 2021:

He would have aged 42 years today. Although, he biologically does not exist, he spiritually exists among us as 'The Joker', the character he lived, became synonymous with his real life. Remembering, #HeathLedger on his birthday. Born, April 4, 1979.

The character I have attempted to Study is Cobb, a dream intruder, if I can say so. He doesn't steal anything materialistic but instills, rather implants an idea in your mind when you are not awake, when you are dreaming.

He is an able thief with a unique specialty to instill or delete an idea, capable of creation and destruction. How he does is a mystery. Neither does he persuade you nor does he meet you. He is never with you. Instead, he becomes you, your subconscious, perhaps in your dreams. In the process of planting and stealing ideas from minds, he fears that his reality itself is caught up in a dream of another. Does he really exist or is he an imagination of someone else's fear. He leaves the question to you - open to interpretation.