Posthumous Oscar

One bookmaker has reportedly already paid out on Heath Ledger being awarded the best supporting actor oscar for The Dark Knight. Watching Ned Kelly (2004) last night, I realised again just what a loss of talent it is. The film has lots of flaws, not least that it romanticises the real Kelly and paints him out to be a victim of circumstance, forced into being an outlaw. There may be an element of truth in this, but having been to visit his suit of armour in Melbourne and seen the exhibition, I would suggest that he was a more brutal figure than we see here, who in all probability accepted the necessity of violence and more than likely revelled in it.

The pity is that Ledger was more than capable at hinting at this without taking away from the charismatic and popular nature of the man (which was undoubtedly true), that made him the most interesting of anti heroes. We know this because of The Dark Knight. Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain notwithstanding, his portrayal of the Joker is his outstanding performance and one of the best of the decade. Dangerous, compelling, it takes us inside madness and celebrates the abyss. One can only speculate (and The Knowledge wouldn't recommend it) about how much of a character an actor takes home with him, but did the darkness of the Joker add to Ledger's depression and help set him on a tailspin? We will never know for sure, only that the idea doesn't feel as wrong as it might.