It's been almost 10 years since Heath Ledger passed away. He died shortly after completing Christoper Nolan's film, The Dark Knight (2008), from an accidental drug overdose.
He is well known for his phenomenal role of "The Joker" in this film. He actually played the frightening part so well, that he made Michael Caine, an actor in the same movie, forget his own lines. Everyone remembers him as the devious Joker, but not everyone seems to talk about his other movie roles or talents.
If you don't remember him from 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), we can't be friends.
The Australian actor had a wonderful singing voice in this movie and any person in the universe would love to have a guy sing to them in front of everyone.
His acting is very genuine because, in the scene where Kat (Julia Stiles) reads her "10 Things" poem to the whole class, her tears were not planned. This is Heath's legitimate reaction to it:
Looking at his reaction, you can see the complete sorrow that's written all over his face. An actor with a look like this, brings his character to life. I think he deserves more recognition for his role as Patrick Verona than he got.
Heath also has a way with words in the movie A Knight's Tale (2001). He played a knight in shining armor known as William Thatcher/Sir Ulrich Von Liechtenstein. Liechtenstein is an actual historic knight and poet. As for his character, he had some help to write a beautiful love letter to the woman of his dreams. If you wanna watch and hear it for yourself, here's the video:
"My dearest Jocelyn,
It is strange to think, I haven't seen you since a month. I have seen the new moon, but not you. I have seen sunsets and sunrises, but nothing of your beautiful face.The pieces of my broken heart are so small that they could be passed through the eye of a needle. I miss you like the sun misses the flower; like the sun misses the flower in the depths of winter. Instead of beauty to direct its light to, the heart hardens like the frozen world of your absence has banished me to. I next compete in the city of Paris, I will find it empty in the winter if you are not there. Hope guides me, it is what gets me through the day and especially the night. The hope that after you're gone from my sight, it will not be the last time that I look upon you. With all the love that I possess, I remain yours, the Knight of your heart.
Sir Ulrich Von Liechtenstein"
This love letter is one of the most beautiful that I have ever read and it makes me want to shed a tear. The look on his face and the way he said the words, just makes me melt. I'm sure that others feel the same way. Who knew that The Joker was such a romantic?
Heath had a secret passion for photography. He took self-portraits on many of the film sets he worked at. He also loved taking pictures of the London Underground, the contemplated faces of former girlfriends and deserted Australian landscapes. He loved art, reading and writing. Vanity Fair had released exclusive images of Heath's photography and artwork. Click on this link to view them: https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/photos/2017/0...
Heath was full of ideas and he wanted to become a director. He secretly liked being behind the camera more than he liked being in front of it. He loved to make home movies as well.
By him practicing his Joker role, he got into character by putting together a scrapbook filled with inspiration for The Joker. He focused on the main character, Alex DeLarge from A Clockwork Orange. On the last page of the "Joker diary” Heath scrawled the words “Bye Bye” after he finished shooting his scenes. Ledger wrote most of the diary entries while he was locked in a hotel room preparing for the role. The cover looked like an eerie, faded children’s book. Inside the diary, he had glued in pictures of clowns and hyenas, along with Ledger’s crudely scribbled notes.
Heath Ledger was more than just "The Joker," he wasn't just an actor or a heart-throb, but he was an artist. He wasn't trained as an actor, he was self-taught. His artistic abilities make him a legendary person and he will be missed every day. His work will live on forever.
