Thing is, all of the people whom you mentioned simply stated that they have "grown to like" the make-up, without stating any specific reason as to why.
I've grown to like the make-up interpretation even MORE than I did in the first place.
Does that mean I'm automatically referring to the viral marketing, or have I simply grown to love the make-up viewpoint based on the actual nature of the character?
People have always been united behind Nolan -- well, ever since I've posted it here. It's not as though people were queuing up to bash Nolan before TDK hit production -- the guy has earned demi-God states after his work on Begins.
Naturally, Nolan has received more praise, because of how awesome both Heath and the movie looks. Oh, and for creating a wonderful viral campaign. But in terms of fans accepting the cut smile more than they did in the first place: well, I put that down to the awesomeness of the pictures that have been released. The first picture was pretty poor, it didn't truly justify the cut-smile. The second picture was blurred, and then came the third picture, where Heath is holding Rachel. That's when people realized that the cut-smile is actually a fantastic way to reform the character.
The acceptance of the cut-smile wasn't inspired by the game, it was inspired by
the picture.
But that's the thing: there are hardly any "hardcore fan boys" who post in this section. There are a few, but not many.
All right, so who are these fan boys? Specify them. Let's ask them why they the cut-smile has grown on them, because that's the only way this debate can be settled.
Nolan has always been criticized in this section by a particular group of members, but the criticism deteriorated once Nolan took it upon himself to release more pictures. That's when people saw how great Heath looked in the Joker make-up; it wasn't the actual games that made people accept Nolan's vision.
But it has always been the same. Where's the change? There has always been around 30% of the people here who've disagreed with Nolan's vision, while the other 70% have been defending Nolan.
That's my point: it's always remained the same. The percentage of Nolanites may have risen, but that's due to the fact that Heath looks bloody great in every single picture that's ever been released.
People have begun to acknowledge this.
But there are still quite a few people who don't want Nolan to mess with Two-Face's origin. Yes, and there are those who are ready to back Nolan's decisions. But this has
always been the case. People have faith in Nolan's direction, in his execution, in his cinematography, in his knowledge of cinema; it's faith.
The Joker applying make-up, for instance. From the very beginning there have been those who disagree with it, and those who agree with it. And that was well before the viral marketing got underway. The same applies to Two-Face. He's still going to be Two-Face, come the end of the film. He's going to be vengeful, psycho with an 'effed up face.
There's no need for such dramatization.
I'm truly not following this debate any more. Who are we referring to, exactly? Which band of people have suddenly thought "Oh, the cut-smile is awesome due to the virals", because I'm not quite seeing it.
It's this simple, for me: at the beginning, people were skeptical about the cut-smile, while others were enthusiastic about it. The first picture hit, and it received mixed reviews. The Joker/Rachel picture hit, and people fell in love with Heath's Joker, but there were still a minority of haters. More pictures came through, and more people witnessed how great Heath looked as the Joker.
Why are we specifying certain groups of people? I'm generalizing about everyone who posts in this section.
I truly wonder if these hypothetical fan boys are not keen on ambushing this section because they know they'll be totally overrun by Nolanites?
And, let me reiterate: those Nolanites have always existed since the very beginning. The same percentage. It's always been the same, here. There has always been more gushers than bashers, and the margin has remained lengthy, throughout.
I mean films like, Spider-Man 3, Superman Returns, X-Men 3. Why didn't the director's of those films utilize viral marketing? It's not a difficult concept to grasp, and any bog-standard businessmen will understand that the Internet has been the hot-topic for marketing for the past 8-10 years.
If only Sam Raimi would have marketed his film a bit better, I assume Spider-Man 3 would have been better received, according to your logic?
Well, since ideas are generated by the director, I'd say the difference is pretty moot. A director is defined by how good his/her ideas are.
Since we're talking specifically about the acceptance of ideas such as the Joker's cut-smile and the make-up issue; I don't see how a particular scavenger hunt can make an specific element related to a fictional character seem any more grand. It's just the same.
People have accepted the make-up because people have learned more about the character. The Joker is extremely theatrical; one of the core themes of the first film. The Joker realizes the power of theatricality, that's why he smothers his face with clown-like colors. That's his symbol, and if you put him in a room with a bunch of gangsters, he's going to seem like the most sophisticated and threatening criminal of them all.
I, for one, have grown to realize this; thus my growing love for the make-up. I wonder if others feel the same?
Well, it swings both ways. I believe the "acceptance" stems from the simply nature of development. The concept of this interpretation has developed greatly. Most of us now have a good understanding of both Nolan's and Ledger's intentions for the character. We know what he's all about and what he's based on. Thus, people have began to realize the truth: make-up and cut smiles suit the character.
Same difference. The make-up serves as Nolan's vision, while the bleach skin serves as comic-book history.
My point is that there has been the same number of bashers from the very beginning, and the figure has not drastically changed, in any capacity. Most people have ALWAYS been fine with the make-up idea -- most people residing within this section of the boards, anyway. I put that down to faith and respect for Nolan.
People respect him for what he did in Begins. They're willing to give him a chance. There's more to Nolan's loyalty than the marketing campaigns...
Oh, come on. Read my post! Nolan has received less criticism. Considering what he did with Begins; people are willing to give him a chance. This place is grounded with intelligent people, and they realize that you cannot adjudge an idea based on, well, one or two pictures.
At the end of the day, this place has always seemed the same. There have been much more Nolanites than haters...always. That sentiment still exists today. There are a small minority who still bash Nolan, but the majority are totally behind Nolan.
This has always been the case.
I don't think so...at all. The viral games have been enjoyable, but I don't think they've stapled Nolan's vision down as the be all and end all. Sure, the viral games create the illusion that we are part of the universe, but this does not reflect on any changing figures -- because the figures simply haven't changed. If the number of Nolanites has grown, I'd put it down to the fact that Heath looks great in all of his pictures. When you look as good as Heath does in the make-up; whining about cut-smiles and a bit of greasepaint becomes a side issue.
All right. Maybe in one or two years time, people will still be moaning about the new suit in TDK? Maybe people will still be moaning about the Joker not being permawhite? It's not a fair comparison.
What makes, shall we say, the original X-Men film better than Daredevil? Execution. Directing. Not the marketing of the film.
Some films are simply
better than other films. Some directors are simply better than other directors, and have a greater understanding of how to convey their ideas on-screen. We love Nolan's vision, because everything we've seen is
visually gratifying.
And people still moan about the make-up, here. They have since the beginning...
Come on, when you see this:
...the viral games don't even enter your head. You see THE JOKER. And that's why Nolan's received so much praise, because he picked Ledger and he reformed the character to suit his universe. The viral games do not come into it.
Hmm, you know I disagree. Especially in the context of this debate.
I don't see how this relates to my point. When the Joker/Rachel picture came out, people wet themselves. They saw a pretty lethal Joker. The make-up became a side issue.
That's when people started to back Nolan. Not because of the marketing, because of how great and menacing Heath looked, and what a potentially fantastic revival of the character this could be.
Hiya.
