Unofficial Academy Awards Discussion Board

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 1:00 pm**

MovieWes wrote:He's also the only villain in Batman's rogues gallery who has ever figured out who Batman's true identity is...

Bane also figured it out. That's how he "broke the bat".

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 12:36 pm**

The Penguin in the Tim Burton film was not the Penguin of the comics. Burton essentially gave Killer Croc's origin story to the Penguin (born deformed, dumped in the sewer by his parents, raised as a circus freak, lives in the sewer). He did nail the Penguin's obsession with power, which I can see working well in the Nolan universe. They shouldn't call him the Penguin, though, and they shouldn't give him a long, beaky nose. They should also just call him Oswald Cobblepot and leave it at that. Nowadays, he's the owner of the Arctic Lounge, which was actually mentioned in the viral campaign for The Dark Knight on the Gotham Times webpage (ironically, the Riddler was also mentioned on the same page -- or, rather, his true identity was -- Edward Nashton, who wrote a column for the Gotham Times, which seems to indicate that he's a journalist). However, I'm sure that if he is in the film, he will serve a role similar to that of Tom Wilkinson and Eric Roberts in the first two films.

The only way they can make the Riddler work is if they make him into a cross between the Unibomber, the Zodiac killer, and Jigsaw from the Saw films (with maybe a touch of Alex from A Clockwork Orange). He's obsessed with puzzles, particularly Saw-like death traps (imagine the barge scene or the Rachel/Harvey trap that the Joker lays in The Dark Knight). He also fancies himself as the most clever man alive and loves to leave calling cards just because he's the world's biggest narcissist. He's also the only villain in Batman's rogues gallery who has ever figured out who Batman's true identity is, which would be very interesting considering how The Dark Knight ended. Now that Batman's on the run from the law, his greatest weapon is his secret identity and the Riddler poses the biggest threat to him in that regard. In the comics, he's also worked for the police in a Hannibal Lecter-ish capacity.

They've got to shy away from making him comical, especially since he's sometimes seen as a poor man's Joker.

Edited By MovieWes on 1220982457

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:58 am**

The Penguin now adays owns a night club that acts as a front for his arms dealing - which work well if they use The Riddler as his big client. The Riddler is a narcissist with OCD, a criminal so infatuated with how smart he is that he has to leave a clue at every crime scene. Perhaps the Penguin will give The Riddler the ammunition and gadgets he needs to challenge Batman in the ultimate battle of wits. A challenge that threatens the city and leads to the redemption of the caped crusader.

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:32 am**

I think Nolan will want to go miles away from the surreal, Burton-esque interpretation of the Penguin of 1992. To me, De Vito's character is still largely a buffoon, no matter how hard Batman Begins tries to infuse pathos into his storyline.

The grim portrayal of the Joker in the Dark Knight has its roots in certain comic book revamps of the character over the past few decades. I understand that the serious treatment of the Two-Face character originates on the page as well. My question about the Riddler and the Penguin is whether their characters have undergone a similar, gritty, update in the comics or not.

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:15 am**

I can't really speak to The Riddler for he wasn't added to the first Batman series until Joel Schumacher defecated on it. However, if you look back at the Tim Burton penguin, it's clear that there is a dark, albeit humorous, side to the penguin that would make him fit perfectly into the franchise.

But, again, you can always give characters more darkness. I mean look at the Joker. He had been portrayed before as a buffoonish, even if smart, villain. Yet, he was given a dire dark side in the most recent effort.

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:05 am**

Can anyone more familiar with the Batman mythos than I am tell me that they think either of these two villians are likely to fare well in the Nolan Bat-universe? The Riddler and the Penguin both seem so light and buffoonish, that it's hard to imagine them meshing with the tone that's been established so far. Do either of them have a story nearly as tragic and compelling as Two-Face's? And as much as I like Johnny Depp as an actor, I can't picture him doing much interesting with the role.

(might as well weigh in on the Dark Knight which I finally saw: much better than I'd expected. I found virtually no value in the first Nolan Batman effort. But this was a really interesting, if politically suspect, film. It's not exactly to the Superhero movie what 2001: a Space Odyssey was to Sci-Fi in 1968: a production so classy and groundbreaking that it opens up perceptions on the potential and respectability of the genre. But it's the closest anything has come so far, that I've seen anyway. I'm still doubtful of a Best Picture nomination but I suppose it's possible depending on the reception of the remaining releases of the year.)

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 5:10 am**

jsmalahy wrote:
flipp525 wrote:The Academy won't want to pass up the opportunity to honor an actor who's could very well have been our generation's James Dean.

Except, James Dean never won an Oscar either...

Which is all the more reason to vote for him.

Posted: **Tue Sep 09, 2008 4:04 am**

flipp525 wrote:The Academy won't want to pass up the opportunity to honor an actor who's could very well have been our generation's James Dean.

Except, James Dean never won an Oscar either...

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:52 pm**

Okri wrote:He was also the original Katurian in The Pillowman (the Billy Crudup role on Broadway). Not that I've seen it, but it's one of my favourite plays ever and anyone involved automatically gets some points of affection from me. And I love the new Doctor Who, even if I'm so far behind.

I saw it and he was wonderful. Jim Broadbent and Adam Goodley also stared. One of my favourite plays as well.

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:22 pm**

If it ends up being true, when was the last time two so overly exposed actors got such plum roles? I mean I'm sick of hearing about Philip Seymour Hoffman and Johnny Depp's cachet has to run out sometime? I'm even getting tired of hearing about him.

At least the rest of the Batman cast, villains and heroes, are less annoyingly ever-present.

Posted: **Mon Sep 08, 2008 2:57 pm**

Caine Confirms Batman 3 Villains

Alfred actor Michael Caine has confirmed with the studio that Johnny Depp will be the Riddler, and Philip Seymour Hoffman will play The Penguin
Source: MTV

It’s one of the biggest — and most hotly debated — questions in fandom…which actors (and characters) will director Christopher Nolan enlist as a villain for his third “Batman” film? Rumors have abounded since the release of “The Dark Knight,” and Nolan has remained fiercely tight-lipped. But now, has one of his main players let slip some of the biggest casting news of the decade?

In an interview with MTV News, Michael Caine seemed to confirm rumors that the next installment of the “Batman” film franchise will feature two very well-known names playing the roles of The Riddler and the Bumbershoot Bandit, The Penguin. “They’ve already got them in mind,” said Caine, when asked who he’d like to see take up arms against the Caped Crusader. “It’s Johnny Depp as The Riddler. And The Penguin is Philip Seymour Hoffman. I read it in the paper.”

So Caine is like the rest of us, reading gossip in the tabloids, right? Except for one thing…according to the actor, he confirmed the news through the studio itself.

“When Christopher [Nolan] said we were going to do ‘The Dark Knight’ next, I didn’t what that meant in Batman terms,” related Caine, who plays Bruce Wayne’s loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth. “I said, ‘What’s the story?’ and he said The Joker. I said, ‘Oh, s–t! How are you going to top Jack [Nicholson]?’ He said, ‘Well, I’ve cast Heath Ledger. And I went ‘Ha! I couldn’t top Jack, but if anyone could, maybe Heath could.’ And he did.

“I was with [a Warner Bros.] executive and I said, ‘Are we going to make another one?’ They said yeah. I said, ‘How the hell are we going to top Heath? And he says ‘I’ll tell you how you top Heath — Johnny Depp as The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman as The Penguin.’ I said, ‘S–t, they’ve done it again!’” [Laughs]

While rumors of Depp and Hoffman have been hot topics around the upcoming film for quite some time, this is the first instance of one of the film’s stars speaking about the news, as well as Caine citing an albeit unnamed WB executive.

Meanwhile, when asked if he’s spoken to Nolan about the news or the next installment’s script, Caine made mention of Nolan’s vacation, and hinted that, “No. He’s gone. He’ll come back with a script sometime.”

Posted: **Tue Sep 02, 2008 9:29 am**

Johnny Depp on Riddler Casting Rumors: “It’d Be A Fun Gig”
Posted on Sunday, August 31st, 2008 at 7:52 pm by: Peter Sciretta
Slashfilm

The only good thing about those annoying Dark Knight sequel rumors is that it forces the actors on the receiving end to comment about the possibility in the inevitable denial. Our friends at Comic Book Cynic send over word that Johnny Depp has publicly denied rumors that he would be playing The Riddler, while appearing on a radio show. You can listen to the recording on YouTube or read the transcript below:

Host: Hey Johnny, a listener called in earlier said you have to ask about the rumors on the internet of you doing the Riddler.
Depp: Oh yeah, I heard about that. Not that I know of.
Host: You’d be a good choice.
Depp: It seems like it’d be a fun gig for a while, yeah.

So there you have it, Depp confirms he is not the Riddler, but doesn’t rule out the possibility. Christopher Nolan, did you hear that?

Posted: **Sun Aug 31, 2008 2:46 pm**

'The Dark Knight' just crossed $500 mil.

Posted: **Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:30 pm**

He was also the original Katurian in The Pillowman (the Billy Crudup role on Broadway). Not that I've seen it, but it's one of my favourite plays ever and anyone involved automatically gets some points of affection from me. And I love the new Doctor Who, even if I'm so far behind.

Posted: **Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:21 pm**

David Tennant is a British actor who is best known for playing Barty Crouch, Jr. in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and the title character on BBC's Doctor Who.