Better villain: Thanos (Josh Brolin) vs The Joker (Heath Ledger)

[LvtLeeTDK]

... Or should I say Best CBM villain: Thanos vs Joker ?

Judging by the whole package: the acting, the writing, the appearance,etc.

 

[DACrowe]

I mean (IMO) Thanos isn't the MCU's best villain (that'd be Killmonger), and you're also excluding others I'd rank above Thanos like Magneto, Jack Nicholson's Joker, Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman, Bane, and maybe Doc Ock.

So yeah, the one that won an Oscar, features one of the finest antagonist performances ever, and is on the same level as Darth Vader, Hannibal Lecter, and Hans Landa, please.

 

[LvtLeeTDK]

The title is stated clearly. "Better", not "The Best".

I don't really get the love for Killmonger tbh. I think he's fine but nothing outstanding.

 

[DACrowe]

The title is stated clearly. "Better", not "The Best".

I don't really get the love for Killmonger tbh. I think he's fine but nothing outstanding.

Ah, responding to your post. So stand by my vote.

Killmonger is the first MCU villain that I both actually really sympathized with and was also somewhat disturbed by. Michael B. Jordan gives the best performance of the MCU villains--one built just as much on expectations of American culture as the comic book villainy kind--with a character built on a genuinely depressing and true motivation... which makes his desires and goals disturbingly real, while still understandable and even justified up to a certain point.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Ask me this again in 10 years.

 

[LvtLeeTDK]

I thought you said The Joker is better

 

[Spider-Fan]

My vote would go to The Joker. It's a genius performance that has stood the test of time. But, we have Avengers 4 coming by that same token. Also in 10 years time, we can more fully understand the legacy of Thanos as a villain.

So ask me again in 10 years

 

[m2k]

Crazy as it may seem, I think Thanos is the superior villain primarily due to a more defined motivation and u do get that emotional moment with Gamora. So you do get a sense of where he's coming from and what drives him. U don't quite get that with Joker, which I understand works better since the essence of crazy is unpredictability and chaos so it needs no explaining. They're totally different characters played amazingly and carry their respective films. I just think Thanos is more 'perfectly balanced' as a written character. ;-)

 

[Snow Queen]

Joker. Thanos is fine, but I didn't find him particularly special or interesting.

 

[Skrilla31]

I found Thanos’s motivations too vague. The ultimatum he forced upon our heroes lacked the depth and complexity that Joker’s did. In TDK our hero has to fight not just to save the world but to save his soul.

I also dont think Thanos had very many memorable quotables if any. All of his standout moments came during action scenes.

Brolin definitely had presence and I enjoyed him in the role but Joker was just so much more compelling and added so many additional layers to the conflict.

I dont even think Thanos compares to Bane, let alone Joker.

 

[Kevin Roegele]

Joker, easily.

Too much effort was made to make Thanos appear rational and reasonable, as if Feige and co were desperate not to make him appear as a simple megalomaniac.Though it is interesting having Thanos as someone who believes he is doing the right thing for the future of the universe, unfortunately it's inconsistent with the standard supervillain tropes he is obliged to portray.

 

[LvtLeeTDK]

I found Thanos’s motivations too vague. The ultimatum he forced upon our heroes lacked the depth and complexity that Joker’s did. In TDK our hero has to fight not just to save the world but to save his soul.

I also dont think Thanos had very many memorable quotables if any. All of his standout moments came during action scenes.

Brolin definitely had presence and I enjoyed him in the role but Joker was just so much more compelling and added so many additional layers to the conflict.

I dont even think Thanos compares to Bane, let alone Joker.

Actually quite some memorable quote from him.
"...Me teaching... me teaching... But I never taught you to lie, that's why you so bad at it"

 

[Man in the Suit]

Joker. "Some men just want to watch the world burn" is a simple and scary motivation with great writing by the Nolans. And Ledger is just mesmerizing to watch.

 

[OutOfBoose]

Thanos is alright. Joker is phenomenal.

 

[Milk Tray Guy]

Joker, without doubt.

 

[Greens]

Joker

 

[BigThor]

It's gonna be a toss up for me dog, I gotta think on it.

 

[FunkMiller]

I mean, one is a terrorist driven by a combined desire to show the people of the world just how awful they really are, and to prove that society is a mere couple of simple steps away from total anarchy...

And the other is a big purple space titan, who wants to kill half the universe with some magic, glowing rocks, because he’s worried about resource depletion.

I love me some epic superhero silliness, but come on...

The Joker.

Every single time.

 

[Batmannerism]

I mean, one is a terrorist driven by a combined desire to show the people of the world just how awful they really are, and to prove that society is a mere couple of simple steps away from total anarchy...

And the other is a big purple space titan, who wants to kill half the universe with some magic, glowing rocks, because he’s worried about resource depletion.

I love me some epic superhero silliness, but come on...

The Joker.

Every single time.

All if the above is true, but I stil really struggle with this question, and as such I can't vote - really wish there were some other options ( tie, too different to compare etc.)

Nolan's conceptualization of the character, the look, the dialogue, his plan ( yes, there are a few conveniences and things that dont quite make sense) is just.....well, wow, it's magic !

Ledger's performance brings all of that to life, and 'mesmerising " is an accurate description.

However, Thanos feels very real, his motivations are understandable - he's a more developed character than the Joker, who's utterly evil and insane, Thanos has a tiny bit of goodness in him, which he's willing to sacrifice and the impact of that decision isn't lost on him. I lived that little scene at the end, after the snap, where he has the vision of child Gamora. She asks him what it cost, and ehen says "everything " you believe him.

I have to give a slight edge to the Joker, because until cgi improves significantly, a live actor is almost always more engaging ( Im thinking of XM Apocalypse, when I say almost, there they should have used cgi ).

Ultimately I feel that TDK and IW are such different films that they dont neatly fit into the genre - they're extreme ends of the cbm spectrum.

TDK is what Batman would be like in the real - ish world while IW feels like an epic superhero comic book story, played out in live action.

Tough to compare.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I really like Thanos in Infinity War. He is not in the same universe as Ledger's Joker. Ledger's Joker is special. Vader tier.

 

[DACrowe]

I find it interesting so many people are saying Thanos' motivations are unique or make him sympathetic. He is always a megalomaniac. Eh, I liked overpopulation as a motivation better when it was done with Samuel L. Jackson as Valentine in Kingsman.

 

[Drizzle]

This one is tough.

Ledger's Joker may be a better performance but I think Thanos had a more compelling motivation. They're almost too different to compare.

I also think it's a little too early to ask because we've seen all there is to see with Ledger's Joker while there's still more to be done with Thanos in at least one more film.

 

[Jh7058622]

I think there is no comparison Heath Ledger got an oscar for a reason. This is silly.

 

[Zarex]

I'm in the lightly populated "TDK is overrated!" camp, and I much prefer massively overpopulated super hero team ups over grim and gritty real world takes on comic book characters. But while Brolin's Thanos lived up to the 6 year hype, Ledger was unbelievable (and unrecognizable) in the role of Joker. His performance has always been properly rated as one of the all time greats.

 

[Skrilla31]

I mean, one is a terrorist driven by a combined desire to show the people of the world just how awful they really are, and to prove that society is a mere couple of simple steps away from total anarchy...

And the other is a big purple space titan, who wants to kill half the universe with some magic, glowing rocks, because he’s worried about resource depletion.

I love me some epic superhero silliness, but come on...

The Joker.

Every single time.

Agreed.

Both Thanos and Joker believe they are right, but if the implications of Joker being right are far more sinister.