Ledger's Joker Makes Dramatic Entrance

By DAVID GERMAIN, AP Movie Writer

LAS VEGAS (AP) — This time out, there's no vat of chemicals to explain how Batman's greatest enemy came to be the twisted sociopath known as the Joker.

Heath Ledger's Joker springs full-blown in this summer's "The Dark Knight," the sequel to 2005's "Batman Begins" that was previewed for theater owners Thursday with a clip showing the new movie's opening sequence.

Unlike 1989's "Batman," in which the deranged, disfigured clown appearance of Jack Nicholson's Joker resulted from a dip in chemical goo, "The Dark Knight" starts right in with the bad guy in all his psychopathic glory.

"I believe whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you stranger," Ledger's depraved Joker cryptically tells an accomplice in the opening scenes, in which he pulls off a daring bank robbery.

In an interview at ShoWest, a theater-owners convention where distributor Warner Bros. showed off footage of "The Dark Knight" and the rest of its summer lineup, director Christopher Nolan said it was almost inevitable that the sequel would pit Christian Bale's Batman against the Joker.

"The psychopathic clown, that's an icon to stand with the guy with the ears and cape," Nolan said. "It's just a wonderful visual relationship, and it's a terrifying image."

Long before Ledger's death of an accidental prescription drug overdose in January, the marketing of the movie had focused on the villain's rise to power and his creepy appearance.

There had been speculation among critics and fans that the studio and filmmakers might take a different approach to selling the film in light of Ledger's death, but the marketing has gone on as originally planned.

"I think he'd be very pleased to see we're just moving ahead as is," Nolan said. "If you try to honor somebody, you honor them by respecting their work and putting it out there for as many people to see. He was immensely proud of the work he did on the film. I feel a great burden to present that in an undistorted form."

"The Dark Knight" is due in theaters July 18.

The last time producer Charles Roven saw Ledger was when he showed the actor the very footage that was screened at ShoWest.

Fans have been buzzing over the anarchic style Ledger brings to the role in the movie's trailer, but the actor himself was utterly taken by what he saw of himself on screen, Roven said.

"He was just blown away by his own performance," Roven said. "He said, `Can I see it again?' So he was really, really thrilled."

Bale — reprising his role as the wealthy Bruce Wayne, who moonlights as the emotionally tormented crimefighter — said he watched the footage Thursday with a heaviness of heart over Ledger. But Bale said he hopes the movie will serve as a testament.

"I hope that this can be seen as a celebration of his work," Bale said. "He did a phenomenal job. It was a real joy working with the man. It was a joy knowing him, as well. I liked him a great deal, and I liked also how seriously he took his work."

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Naomi Watts' Ultra-Violent 'Funny Games' Has Serious Message For 'Saw,' 'Hostel' Fans

'We are guilty sometimes of going, 'This is cool when brains hit the wall,' says actress, who stars in nihilistic thriller.

"Funny Games," the new thriller from Austrian director Michael Haneke, is the most nihilistic, depraved, sadistic torture flick imaginable. It is a punishment to watch in every conceivable way, an enduring agony that plays like the cinematic equivalent of the rack: First it stretches, then pulls, then breaks you in slow, unmitigated, unrelenting cruelty. It is the type of movie that makes you want to yell expletives, to throw things at the screen in rage.

Hooray!, thinks Naomi Watts, who not only stars in but produced "Funny Games," a shot-for-shot remake of Haneke's 1997 foreign-language original.

"I think that people are going to have extreme reactions to it," she said. "That's certainly what happened to me when I saw the original. I felt angered but excited that I felt so much."

To stress the film's plot — psychopaths invade summer home, torture and kill Watts, her husband (Tim Roth) and their child — would be to miss the point of what amounts to a philosophical and intellectual exercise. In the same way, for instance, that Stephen Colbert brutally satirizes right-wing pundits by becoming even more right-wing, Haneke's film aims to raise a mirror to violence by becoming even more horrific. If he can push the envelope to an absurd degree, he seems to be saying, astute audiences will be more aware of their own rapidly growing desensitization. "Funny Games,"
then, isn't meant to be enjoyed so much as it's meant to be experienced.

"I think that Michael is trying to show violence in all of its ugliness and brutality so that we are more mindful as audience members and think more carefully as we cheer it on and crave it," Watts said.

But "Funny Games" goes even further. Haneke not only aims to show audiences the horror of modern-day cinematic violence, he aims to make them complicit in it as well. It's our fault movies are what they are, the movie declares — literally. At several points throughout the film, the perp played by Michael Pitt directly addresses the audience: "You're rooting for them," he says of Watts and child. In one section toward the end he gives a moment of catharsis and then dramatically takes it away, by rewinding the film.

It's a finger wag, a condemnation. You like "Die Hard" or "Rambo" or, worse yet, "Saw" or "Hostel"? Shame on you, this movie says — you need to feel bad about that.

"I think that is Michael's intention a little bit, yeah," Watts said. "He thinks violence is revolting and inexcusable, and that's why he depicts it in an authentic way. It's not cool, it's not sexy, it's not funny. It's grotesque. And we crave those movies and it's not pleasant.

"[In this movie] you have been through the experience and felt like you were a part of it," she continued. "So you acknowledge that we are guilty sometimes of going, 'This is cool when brains hit the wall. That's fun!' We're getting lost in that. But he's making you more conscious. He shines the light on you in saying, 'See, you want this? I'm going to give it to you.' But no, that's not this movie."

Whether or not the movie succeeds on that level depends in large part on whether or not it reaches the very audience that needs it most. But any audience member should ultimately be "prepared for the work," Watts said. "The ones who stay do get to do that work and maybe, hopefully, they go away with something. I felt it provoked a huge discussion.

"To me," she added, "that felt like a success when a movie is really impacting you in such a way."

If, that is, you can stomach it.

"Funny Games" opens Friday.

Check out everything we've got on "Funny Games."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.

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R.E.M. Add Classic Flavor To Night Of New Faves, Including White Williams, YACHT & More: South By Southwest '08

Plus, Lightspeed Champion aim to take over the fest with a whopping 14 shows.

AUSTIN, Texas — If you somehow managed to make it all the way down to the Convention Center, wait in line to get your badge, wade through the crowds on Sixth Street, stand outside a tiny bar (or promotional space) for an hour to squeeze into a showcase that was "at capacity," down some gristly BBQ, scam a couple free beers and not die of heat exhaustion, then you still wouldn't have been able to catch the biggest show of Wednesday at South by Southwest.

Because that show actually happened on Thursday.

Well, now we're splitting hairs. R.E.M. actually took the stage at Stubb's, Austin's landmark BBQ shack/ rock space, at 12:20 a.m., making Wednesday's most-anticipated, most-attended gig actually a great kick-off to Thursday's rock action.

And from minute one, Athens' premiere elder statesmen knew all eyes were squarely on them. Frontman Michael Stipe strode to the mic, rose his arms, Messiah-like, and greeted the masses ("Children of South by Southwest," he laughed, "come to me!") before the band launched into "Living Well's the Best Revenge," the lead track off their upcoming Accelerate album (the promotion of which was, in theory, the reason they were playing SXSW).

"We're going to play a lot of new songs tonight," Stipe smiled. "Luckily, they're under two minutes. So if you don't like it, you can go take a pee."

But no one moved. And they were rewarded with a one-two punch of vintage R.E.M.: "Second Guessing" (from their sophomore album, '84's Reckoning) and "Drive," the lead track on '92's Automatic for the People. Camera phones were held aloft, Stipe's oft-inscrutable lyrics were shouted back at him, and everyone basically behaved unlike a SXSW audience is supposed to — they were acting like fans attending a once-in-a-blue-moon show by a truly legendary rock band. Equal parts flaunting of the new album and joyous, intense workings of older classics, the gig — and R.E.M. themselves — was solid, tight and really quite stunning.

"Well, this is Stubb's Bar-B-Q, and I've never been here before," Stipe said at one point. "It's a great pleasure."

And you get the feeling he meant it.

(Check out photos of R.E.M. and other bands performing at South by Southwest here.)

Other Highlights of a Wild Wednesday in Austin, From Our Intrepid (and Tired) MTV News Team

John Norris:

White Williams. I got to know these synth-pop guys from Ohio-via-Brooklyn a couple of months back and was psyched to run into them in our hotel this morning. They seemed quite excited as well (and they'd better be) to be playing shows at SXSW '08. Unfortunately, their first was a tough one. At the Peacock, an all-blue lounge/ party space well east of Sixth Street, White Williams — now a four-piece with the recent addition of a live drummer — were wedged onto a stage that was maybe 30 square feet, with a guitar player, Hayes Shanesy, who was so sick that he spent the night before at a Dallas hospital. Suffice it to say, they'd all had better days. Still, they soldiered on with a too-brief set that had a newfound edge, thanks to the ol' drum kit, which rendered synth-pop songs into (nearly) rock.

Lightspeed Champion frontman Dev Hynes is a native Texan-turned-Brit who used to be in an art-punk group (the Test Icicles), but, with the help of Bright Eyes' Mike Mogis, has just released a beautiful country-tinged pop album called Falling Off the Lavender Bridge. They turned in a terrific acoustic set Wednesday at Antone's. Earlier in the night Dev told me that Lightspeed may indeed be the "champion" of this year's SXSW — he is playing no less than 14 shows here this week! "I was told that Black Lips played 12 shows last year," he said (sounds about right), "but I guess we got 'em beat."

Out at La Zona Rosa — a big barn of a club that held the "Free Yr Radio" party — the crowds were small (thanks, R.E.M.) but the lineup was huge with talent, including the fantastically fuzzed out Times New Viking and Brooklyn indie giants Yeasayer, both of whom deserved — and usually get — more attention.

James Montgomery:

Forget R.E.M. and Times New Viking. The best band on display Wednesday night at SXSW was undoubtedly the Plastic Constellations, Minneapolis' premiere purveyors of fist-pumping, buddy-hugging, six-pack chugging, adrenaline-surging rock. And, yeah, I know I've wasted a bunch of virtual ink on these guys already, but they're going on indefinite hiatus after the release of next month's We Appreciate You album. That — coupled with the sheer lack of recognition they receive — makes me a tad bit wistful. And their gig at the Mohawk — which doubled as a label showcase and a farewell show — made me even more teary-eyed (though that could've just been caused by all the beer being tossed into the air) amid the flailing guitars, karate kicks and super-good times. So, basically, it ruled like every other gig TPC have played over their decade-plus together. It's a shame you never got to see them.

At the same showcase (sorry, I didn't mention it earlier, but it was for Frenchkiss Records, which is a totally great label), I also really enjoyed Call Me Lightning and Tejas' own Fatal Flying Guilloteens, both of whom played music that sounds exactly like their names — hard, fast and dangerous (though the 'Teens also added a large degree of blood, sweat and honest-to-goodness, seizure-inducing, strobe-aided terror). Both were awesome and made you want to fight someone.

Other highlights: YACHT (Gil's got more on them in a second) and Does It Offend You, Yeah? at the Levi's/Fader Fort, getting to hear three songs from the Cab's upcoming Whisper War album (while sitting on their tour bus, no less) and running into actor/musician Lukas Haas on the street outside Stubb's. Apparently he's playing a show here Thursday.

Gil Kaufman:

South by Southwest is best when it's like one of those sampler platters at a Chinese restaurant, the kind where you don't necessarily know what everything is, but it doesn't really matter, because even the stuff that doesn't taste that great is still pretty interesting. Which explains a day that began with Los Angeles' Foreign Born — who, though together twice as long as Vampire Weekend, still kind of reminded us of that buzztastic New York combo — and ended with Nashville's spazzy surf-punkers Be Your Own Pet.

In between, I was treated to the anarcho digital terror of YACHT, whose singer/rapper, Jona Bechtolt, jumped into the audience at Emo's to bounce along with the hyped-up crowd and ended the show by repeating the "thank you" on his prerecorded digital track. And though John covered London's Lightspeed Champion above, I primarily want to give props to him for managing to work a shout-out to Elijah Wood into his set.

Speaking of celebrities, Austin's great for rubbernecking. Hey, there's former neon-dreadlocked 'NSYNC member Chris Kirkpatrick, wobbling his way down the street, hoping to see anything good, including a band we've never heard of called I Laid Your Mom (we think he made that one up). And there's Cisco Adler, roving with an eight-person crew and hoping someone notices him. And though the woman working the door at Stubb's didn't recognize them, we saw Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello and former Jane's Addiction singer Perry Farrell ducking in to see R.E.M. at midnight.

And despite all that, uh, star power, perhaps the best moment of the night came just before the hyper set from Nashville's Be Your Own Pet, when a suave gentleman up front was trying to chat up a few young ladies and asked them if they were going to see Vampire Weekend. "What's Vampire Weekend?" squeaked one of the girls, proving she may be the only non-blogger here, as well as one of the only people not trying to get into the VW show. All hype was forgotten, however, when Pet took the stage and lead singer Jemina Pearl — wearing yellow tights under a microscopic black miniskirt and a gray sleeveless T-shirt — proceeded to bounce around the stage like tattooed pinball, rolling on the ground and smashing into her bandmates as they chopped out double time surf-punk tunes from their upcoming second album, Get Awkward.

We're all over the bands, BBQ and hipster parties at SXSW '08. Check out the MTV Newsroom Blog and You R Here for more.

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