I Am Heath Ledger

I believe with this piece of work, we finally have taken off heaths mask that he portrayed himself as the Joker. We now see a side to heath that the world had to see. I believe it leaves the light on who he was as a artist and just how he was able to tackle and perfect not only the joker in dark knight, but also how he was a father, a friend loved by many and a creative individual who shocked the 21st century with what method acting was really about. The devastating and sudden death that rocked the world just around ten years ago had a huge impact on many. I found this project as an interesting and insightful one. Right from the beginning there is close personal creative genius from this guy. If you think Heath ledger-the actor? Incorrect. The love of film and photography is evident throughout, along with home videos of heath turning the camera on himself and friends. Footage of Heath acting along the best actors in the business, we see the humanity in Heath and just how he was human, he did suffer from the constant overwhelming fame, and in my opinion enjoyed his work rather than his benefits from it. Creating film was heaths love. Also we see a insight into how heath found his wife and love in his tender years that he did live. I believe this documentary went to a place that needed to be searched when we think about the guy that was Heath Ledger. Heath was a guy who lived life to the fullest and never really took a break because of his love for film. Alongside Dean, Brando and Day-Lewis, Heath Ledger was an iconic method actor, that held qualities of a rare breed and should be a image for young actors today. The ethos of this entire documentary holds this idea I believe.

In the sea of young upcoming actors, Heath Ledger was unique. Like Patrick Swayze, I remember where I was when I heard about his passing. It was a bombshell, let me tell ya. I honestly thought my ears were that January summer day, on the way to the beach. This excellent top form documentary recounts his life, and his real self, away from the camera, catching those truest of moments. We are introduced to a variety of other close friends, U.S. and of course more Australian, all mostly actors, where we learn't this multi talented artist dabbled in other things, including song writing, directing and etc. We of course hear a little bit of his method acting approaches as well as snippets, from an impressive C.V of films in a less than ten year span, his joker, his greatest and unbelievably brilliant feat. If still alive, I know we would of seen much great acting work and accolades, awards, what have you,from him. It would of been good to see younger work from this actor, like his five day Home And Away stint, but I think more actors who have risen high about that, don't want to visit original territory, and put their H a A days way behind em'. Ledger himself, said, "you won't learn much about acting, spending 5 days on Home And Away". I solely agree, for here is an actor, a role model, for accepting challenges, and going all out to achieve your dream. The greatest inspiration to budding actors, this guy is, who like James Dean, lived fast and died young, a waste of what was so much more to come. Absorbing, and involving viewing from start to finish. For H L fans, a must see, and a trifle bit, memorably sad, in it's final minutes, as in the actor's short lived life himself.

I love his vlogs!! Love all the clips Heath shot to record lots and lots of bits of ingenious and beautiful moments in his life. He was probably one of the earliest persons to shoot vlogs with certain artistry. He playing basketball in his living room reminds of Uma Thurman in the Pulp Fiction, when Mia is dancing wildly in her parlour and is absolutely oblivious of the surrounding world. All those familiar faces, Naomi Watts, Ang Lee and Ben Mendelssohn and their recollection of Heath presented what a generous person he was. He would've produced and even directed great films. Surprisingly ignorant as I was, I didn't know the relationship between Michelle and him until I watched this. The way Ang Lee and Health's friends recalled how they had met and fell in love during Brokeback Mountain and the way Michelle looked at him at the premiere are sweetly plaintive.

A refreshing look and celebration of the life of a wonderful actor rather than a cynical detective story of his untimely death. It's not a particularly deep documentary, and the lack of input from someone like Michelle Williams or Ledger's daughter is understandable but ultimately disappointing, but it sheds what may be a new light on a young man we were truly gifted to share 28 years with. The insight into his creative process and his pure love for what he did is more than enough to make it a worthwhile watch for anyone curious to learn more about Ledger's life as an actor.

Greetings again from the darkness. Lao Tzu wrote "The flame that burns twice as bright, burns half as long". Though the math might be a bit off, that phrase aptly describes the too-brief life and career of shooting star Heath Ledger. As a 20 year old from Australia, his talent seemed to leap from the screen in 1999's 10 Things I Hate About You. As his popularity soared, so did his commitment to avoid being typecast as the charming and handsome love interest by the desperate directors of every upcoming rom-com project.

It seems inconceivable (that word means what you think it means) that Mr. Ledger only made 15 more movies before an overdose killed him in 2008 (at age 28). Adrian Buiterhuis and Derik Murray co-direct this portrait of the man, the artist, the friend, the father. We see the young Heath, nearly always with camera in hand, flouncing about with his buddies as he seeks his next adventure. The home videos and photos fill the screen with luminosity that we recognize from his movies … the camera loved his face, and he seemed to love everything about filmmaking.

Interviews, often the bane of biographical documentaries, provide a real sense of the admiration and love that Ledger attracted. His father, mother, sister, childhood Aussie friends, agent Steve Alexander, former lover Naomi Watts, and close friend Ben Harper pay tribute not just to the star who burned out too soon, but also the warm-hearted man they all connected with.

The film walks us through some of his key movies: his chance to work with his acting idol Mel Gibson in The Patriot, A Knight's Tale, his devastating performance in Monster's Ball, The Four Feathers, Ned Kelly, reminiscing with Catherine Hardwicke on Lords of Dogstown, his stunning turn in Brokeback Mountain, and his final movie The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus with his beloved director Terry Gilliam. Of course, there is also a full segment on his most famous (and his own personal favorite) role as The Joker (a guy with a plan) in The Dark Knight. The role not only won Ledger a posthumous Oscar, it became the most talked about film performance in years.

Even more interesting than the recollections from the various movie sets are the bits and pieces we get of Ledger as guy sharing the journey with his buddies, approaching master status as a chess player, as an artist dedicated to his craft, or as a photographer honing his style (in music videos) in what surely would have been an intriguing path as a director. Director Ang Lee brings us closer to understanding what we have missed out on in regards to Ledger as an artist, and with actress Michelle Williams, the mother of his daughter Matilda, choosing not to participate in the film, we still have the distance between fan and man that allows for due respect.