Our pals over at Reel Comix have scored an interview with the man of the moment – Christian Bale. We’ve plucked out a few highlights, but be sure to check out the full interview
here.
The Joker and Batman are very similar, can you elaborate on this dynamic?“The Joker is gleeful to come up against the Batman. Everyone else has been too easy. He’s an intelligent psychopath and he’s bent on chaos and destruction, if it means self-destruction so be it... He’s completely uncompromising, as is Batman, but Batman does have this one rule - He will not kill. He is in conflict often with himself about how far and how violent he can be, he embraces violence to an extreme degree but has to counter that with the do-good, inherited philanthropy of his parents. The Joker comes closer then anybody has to provoking Batman to break that one rule. What is the quickest way to finish the Joker and ensure nobody else dies? It is to kill him. However he is lowering himself to do so.”
Did you know how the Joker would be played before the film started?“I knew that the tone of Chris Nolan’s Gotham was one that we never wanted to have ‘characters’. We never wanted to have the actor peaking through and winking at the audience and saying “Hey what a great time I am having playing this funny and larger then life character”. We wanted to stay serious and dramatic with each of the portrayals.
Heath Ledger did such a damn good job that if Chris decides to make a third movie he has created a real challenge of how do you up the ante with any villain after Heath's portrayal of the Joker.”
You play it that Bruce Wayne would be very happy without Batman, if there were peace in Gotham.“He wishes for Batman to become obsolete. The beacon of hope for that is Harvey Dent… If a good official can crack down on corruption and crime then Batman can return to his life as Bruce Wayne. He is a lonely man he has suffered a great deal.”
Great stuff. I had a no killing rule for a while and I tell you it makes life tough.
November 22, 2007, 02:45:49 PM
