Nolan on Ledger

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"Heath was bursting with creativity. It was in his every gesture. He once told me that he liked to wait between jobs until he was creatively hungry. Until he needed it again. He brought that attitude to our set every day. There aren't many actors who can make you feel ashamed of how often you complain about doing the best job in the world. Heath was one of them." -- from a 1.26 Newsweek tribute piece by Dark Knight director Chris Nolan.

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Posted by Jeffrey Wells on January 27, 2008 at 11:52 PM

comment #1

Dan Revill says ...

That was great. Thanks for the link.

Posted by Dan Revill at January 28, 2008 12:15 AM

comment #2

Richard_Stone says ...

Great tribute. Why did Nolan send that piece to Newsweek? Why not just publish it on WB's website?

Posted by Richard_Stone at January 28, 2008 12:56 AM

comment #3

Fred Mounts says ...

Thanks for the link, Jeff.

I watched Brokeback Mountain again last night, in my own insignificant tribute. I didn't really 'get' the fuss last time out, mainly I think because I watch so many movies. The added weight of his death made me focus on Heath all that more this time out, and this time the movie touched me on a personal level.

I feel sorry for homophobic people who avoid the movie. I realize that not everyone that avoids it does so for that reason, but I personally know several who do. Their loss.

Posted by Fred Mounts at January 28, 2008 5:50 AM

comment #4

BurmaShave says ...

I keep reading Christ Nolan as Chris Noth. I need to stop doing that.

Posted by BurmaShave at January 28, 2008 6:12 AM

comment #5

Breedlove says ...

I was thinking the other night how Ledger was one of those almost annoyingly picky actors...when someone turns down Spiderman and everything else in town, there's a tiny little part of you that says, "who the fuck does this kid think he is"? Now that he's dead before the age of 30, it's obvious that he was right to work on things with people he loved working with or things that really meant something to him.

Posted by Breedlove at January 28, 2008 7:07 AM

comment #6

Breedlove says ...

I watched Brokeback last night too. Extremely random side note but in a couple of close ups Heath looked just like Joseph Gordon-Leavitt. Would have been absolutely flawless casting as brothers. And of course they did work together...I can't recall seeing two unrelated actors who looked so alike. But I was high. Maybe it was me.

Posted by Breedlove at January 28, 2008 7:18 AM

comment #7

raygo says ...

It was a great weekend for movies. Brokeback Mountain and 10 Things I Hate About You (w/ Joseph Gordon-Leavitt, I think) were both on. I'd never seen 10 Things, but I watched it in tribute to Heath Ledger. And Brokeback Mountain, well, that's just heartbreaking to watch.

Posted by raygo at January 28, 2008 7:32 AM

comment #8

Joel says ...

I know pot and movies go great together, but Brokeback Mountain as stoner film is a new one.

Posted by Joel at January 28, 2008 8:04 AM

comment #9

frankbooth says ...

Turning down a chance to work with the Coens sounds borderline insane, but I can see why he wouldn't have wanted to play another terse cowboy so soon after Brokeback. It's a very similar role, especially compared to the Joker.

By the time Dark Knight is released, we should all be over his death (and maybe -- probably -- even burned out on reading about it) and be able to enjoy it for what it is. I just hope that Nolan and company have enough respect for his work to avoid softening the performance in any way out of attempted sensitivity.

Posted by frankbooth at January 28, 2008 10:44 AM

comment #10

Sean says ...

"when someone turns down Spiderman and everything else in town, there's a tiny little part of you that says, "who the fuck does this kid think he is"?"

Well, he certainly thinks that he isn't Spider-Man.

Posted by Sean at January 28, 2008 10:46 AM

comment #11

Dan Revill says ...

frank, I kind of doubt there's anyway to "soften" his performance from everything we've heard and seen.
I think Nolan will do his best to honour Ledger by making sure it is shown for what it was intended to be - a homicidal maniac clown with zero empathy. If you can declaw that, then you haven't made a good movie in the first place.

Posted by Dan Revill at January 28, 2008 11:26 AM

comment #12

francinefishpaw says ...

Normally I wouldn't post on this thread but I have to say how disgusted I am by the way the public (and this site as well considering this it the upteenth post on Heath Ledger since he died) is pecking at Ledger's corpse like this. For Christ's sake, the man is dead! Let him rest in peace. All this bullshit about him being a great actor and all these wild conspiracy theories about his death mean nothing and it's just vultures circling a corpse and it's actually quite revolting. Why can't people let the dead rest in peace without sticking their snouts in and try to claim something from it?

Posted by francinefishpaw at January 28, 2008 2:04 PM

comment #13