RIP: Heath Ledger

The first time I saw Heath Ledger was watching 10 Things I Hate About You. I was watching it because I have pretty big crush on Julia Stiles and was watching whatever movies I could find with her in it. In 10 Things Ledger plays Patrick Verona the misunderstood gentle man who inadvertently falls in love with Stiles' character. The movie based on the "Taming of the Shrew" was new age Shakespeare in the same way that Clueless was Jane Austen's "Emma". That was his start with me and I found myself enjoying many of the other movies acted in subsequently. Ledger was a good actor he played a variety of roles and did them all pretty well. Im not sure he ever played the same role twice.  He was picky, so many of his contemporaries seemed to take whatever movies were thrown at them and he was a little more choosey.  Movies like "Ned Kelley", "A Knights Tale, and " The Patriot" are favorites and  his brief stint in " Monster's Ball"  was a glimpse into what he could be.  Then his coming of age role in "Brokeback Mountain". followed by his turn in "I'm Not There" the biopic inspired by the life of Bob Dylan. He was a cross between pretty Hollywood and gritty Independence film work. He had the potential to be my generations Sean Penn without all the angry outbursts and backlash. I'm really excited to see his turn as the Joker in the Batman: The Dark Knight Returns . It seems as if he is a throwback to the Joker that Frank Miller wrote, a sadistic sociopath who knew no boundaries.  I was initially surprised at the casting of Ledger but after seeing the trailer I believe that he will pull it off well. Honestly after Brokeback I'm sure he can play anything. The rumor is that his reaction to the role may be part of his issue, that he couldn't shake the character from his own life . Method acting is what they call it, submersing yourself in a role so far that sometimes you take it home with you. Back when Hollywood was gearing up for "Hannibal" the sequel to "Silence of the Lambs" Jodie Foster turned it down because couldn't put herself through the mental rigors anymore. She spent months on a couch discussing what that movie did to her with a professional. In truth the Joker may have had nothing to do with either way its tragic that someone that young with that much talent  dies and leaves behind a little girl who will miss growing up with her father. The famous are not exempted from the human conditions that we experience they are just susceptible as the average joe, I think sometime we forget ....