Although everyone’s probably seen “The Dark Knight” (it did gross a record-breaking $155 million its first weekend), I’ll be careful not to write any spoilers or give away any major plot points. 

To me, The Dark Knight was really a movie about the Joker – Batman, while important, seemed more like a secondary character.  Perhaps that’s because of Health Ledger’s scene-stealing performance (there’s talk about giving him a posthumous Oscar nomination).  But I do think the Joker is the more intriguingly drawn character, a character whose philosophy of chaos drives the entire film. 

The writers of The Dark Knight accomplished so much – they compel us with a character we know very little about.  We never know the Joker’s motivations because he lacks motivations.  We never know anything about his origin, and the stories we do get about his past (i.e. his facial scars) are contradictory.  His face paint, too, unsettles – we never know why he wears it, but are constantly reminded of its presence as it runs, smears, and fades mid-scene.

In writing, we are always told to give our characters motivation.  Why do they do the things they do?  Where do they come from?  What is their past and their history?  The Joker contradicts all this, and yet still compels us, still draws us in.  Perhaps he is so intriguing because he violates these expectations.