The changing nature of Villainy

Historical context and the impact on representations of ‘evil’

Film Villains

• Often called the Antagonist• Can be male or female• Use power to hurt others• Often evil, selfish and act like tyrants• They start the conflict in the film and they are

the enemy that the hero has to fight against by the end of the film.

Film Villains

• Name some film villains• What visual look do film Villains have?• Who are some of the worst film villains in your

opinion – before the Joker?• Where do they traditional come from?

The Joker

• Does the Joker fit with the traditional film villain? Why/Why not? Write one paragraph to answer this question

• Think about what he does, how bad it is, why he does it and what other characters in the film say about him.

The Joker• How is the Joker shown in the film?

Costume Camera Lighting

Shot Composition Dialogue Performance

Actions

The Joker as a Clown

• The clown's makeup is a symbol of death and resurrection. The white is the symbol of death and is applied first. The colours symbolize life.

• Why are people afraid of clowns?(Coulrophobia)

Character Quotes

• Who said this and what did they mean?– Copy down the quote– Say who said and what it tells us about the Joker

and his personality.

Character Quotes

• “Nothing. No matches on prints, DNA, dental. Clothing is custom, no labels. Nothing in his pockets but knives and lint. No name, no other alias”

• “Come on, I want you to do it. I want you to do it. Come on, hit me. Hit me!”

• “With respect, sir, perhaps this is a man that you don’t fully understand”

• “Some men just want to watch the world burn.”

• “The Joker’s just a mad dog. I want whoever let him off the leash”

• “You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength”

• “Some two-bit whack job. Wears a cheap purple suit and make-up. He’s not a problem. He’s a nobody”

• “I believe whatever doesn’t kill you, simply makes you..... Stranger”

Why is the Joker so evil?

• Does not care for his own life– Where do we see this?

• We don’t know who he is or where he is from– What stories does he tell?

• Agent of Chaos – insatiable desire for chaos and destruction– List examples of actions that are about creating

chaos and destruction

Why this Villain now?

• The Joker is a product of the time the film was produced –

• He reflects the present fears in American culture

• The film shows a possible response to these fears (Nolans - but does represent commonly held ideas in America)

Real Villains

• List the names of real life villains in our world.• List the qualities and actions that made them

villains.

Terrorism

• What acts of terrorism have made the news in the last few years?

What does the Joker Represent?

• “The film shrewdly positions the Joker as the super hero movie equivalent of a modern day terrorist”– What actions done by the Joker are like terrorist

action?

The Agent of Chaos

• “He presents an enemy unbound by any scruples; striking out for no rational reason; hell bent on causing civilization-threatening destruction”

• What normally motives villains?• How are we shown that the Joker has no

motives?

American Society

• There is a link between the film and what is happening in America

• Al Qaeda = Joker • Treatment of Prisoners of War = Interrogation of

the Joker• CIA Actions = Batman• View of the War in Iraq = The way Batman is

treated at the end of the film• George Bush = Batman?• Jesus Christ = Batman?

The Dark Knight Vs Batman 1989

• List all the ways that Jack Nicholson’s Joker is similar to Heath Ledgers Joker

• List all the ways that Jack Nicholson’s Joker is different to Heath Ledgers Joker

• Explain why Heath Ledgers Joker is worse