talk about split personalities yes
welcome to watchmojo.com and in this
installment of vs. we're pitting Heath
Ledger against Jack Nicholson to see
who's the better Joker
round one makeup and munitions
face in this corner we have the zany the
kooky the psychopathically irrational
Jack Napier probably closer and
appearance to the comic book iteration
Nicholson's Joker has bleached white
skin pouty red lips and a penchant for
purple crushed velvet he uses all manner
of gag weapons which inevitably turn out
to be lethal and in this corner we have
the dark the brooding the facially
disfigured Ledger Joker good evening
ladies and gentlemen this season's Clown
Prince of Crime is sporting the always
trendy Chelsea grin long straggly green
hair and skin foundation that's just a
shade too light in lieu of exploding
whoopee cushions this joker prefers good
old-fashioned knives firearms and
pyrotechnics you see Alec I have simple
tastes
I enjoy dynamite and gunpowder coming in
just under the wire
Ledger's version steals the wind with a
look that says why so serious
winner ledger now round two closest to
the comics Jack Nicholson surprised
everyone by proving that a 52 year old
man could still prance around on screen
as a gaudy supervillain hey get a load
of me
while this detracts somewhat from the
ageless comic book version Nicholson
stayed faithful to the Joker with a
combination of well-tailored clown suits
and gag weapons
it's truly mightier than the sword
rather than limiting himself to the
time-honored image we still hold dear
Heath Ledger made the Joker his own by
introducing a lot of grungy and ARCIC
elements see I'm not a monster
I'm just ahead of the curve his version
is completely insane and often
contradictory and for that he will
always be remembered now I'm always
smiling
unfortunately originality doesn't win
this round ever robbed another man's
room with a technical ko Jack Nicholson
comes in on top for his faithful
depiction of the character winner
Nicholson that is going to make some
heart darling round three
on screen origins where you look nervous
is it the scars in 1989's Batman the
Joker starts off as common crook Jack
Napier who slowly climbing the ranks of
Gotham's seedy underbelly you my number
one guy he's eventually set up by his
boss and comes face to mask with Batman
nice outfit
this encounter ends with Napier falling
into a vat of chemicals which alter his
appearance and shatter his mind in 2008
to the dark night Ledger's Joker comes
out of nowhere and describes conflicting
accounts of how he came to be disfigured
speaking out you know how I got these
scars there's no background info on him
and he has no close ties in Gotham City
no name no it Elias this gives the
character more gravitas and threat but
again you don't get points in this round
for deviating from the source material
the winner
take it away jack life's been good to me
Round four maniacal mannerisms
Nicholson's Joker was bursting with all
manner of crazy catchphrases
he danced around like a nut and stole
scenes from Michael Keaton's Batman with
frenetically
wouldn't get a guy with glasses would
you but summer of 2008 was rife with a
low hum of constantly quoted ledger
lines of an engine of chaos
not only did he steal scenes he stole
the whole movie with his maniacal cackle
and loping grace very poor choice of
words we're gonna give this round to
Heath Ledger winner my judge I just I do
the best I took your little plan I
turned it on itself round five intensity
and insanity Jack Nicholson plays Jack
Nicholson in pretty much every role he's
ever had this is a great thing because
Nicholson is basically a nut and so's
the Joker he can't make an omelet
without breaking some eggs his
performance was exactly what you'd
expect from the actor crazy intense and
at times terrifying
I'm glad you did all kinds of stories
circulated about how Heath Ledger
prepared for his role he purportedly
shut himself up for days on end in an
effort to fully flesh out a character
that is fundamentally insane
you see this is how crazy Batman's made
Gotham the result was a portrayal that
has yet to be topped and can probably
never be imitated ledger wins this round
by a longshot
winner ledger you truly are encouraged
to Bala aren't you
verdict by a score of three to two the
winner is Heath Ledger's Joker crazy is
as crazy does but in this battle of
psychopathic criminals Ledger's version
is a special kind of magic no I just do
things did our verdict just drive you
nuts
I thought my jokes were bad be sure to
debate in the comments and subscribe to
watchmojo.com for more entertaining vs.
battles if you could see inside try you
might join