VOTEZ DONNEDIEU DE VABRE 2007
Ledger was born in Perth, Western Australia, the son of Sally Ledger Bell (née Ramshaw), a French teacher, and Kim Ledger, a race car driver and mining engineer.[3] Ledger's mother is descended from the Clan Campbell of Scotland and his father comes from a family known in Perth for their ownership of the Ledger Engineering Foundry.[4] Heath (Heathcliff) and his sister Katherine were named after the two main characters in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. The Sir Frank Ledger Charitable Trust was named after his great-grandfather.[5] Ledger attended Guildford Grammar School, where he had his first acting experiences, starring in a school production as Peter Pan at age 10.[5]
At sixteen, Ledger sat for early graduation exams, and left school to pursue an acting career[6] with girlfriend Jenna Sorrell. With his best friend, Trevor DiCarlo, Ledger made the cross-country drive to Sydney. He returned to Perth for the TV series Sweat (1996), in which he played a gay cyclist.[5]
In 1996, prior to his film debut in the 1997 Australian movie Blackrock, Heath Ledger was involved in the short lived Fox Broadcasting Company fantasy-drama Roar. In 1999, Ledger starred in the teen comedy 10 Things I Hate About You and also had the lead role in the acclaimed Australian movie Two Hands, directed by Gregor Jordan.[5]
From 2000 to 2005 he starred in The Patriot, Monster's Ball, A Knight's Tale, The Four Feathers, Ned Kelly, The Order, and The Brothers Grimm. In 2001, he won a ShoWest Award for the Male Star of Tomorrow based on his performance in The Patriot, and worldwide release of A Knight's Tale. In 2003, he was named one of Australian GQ's Men of the Year for acting.
Ledger received "Best Actor of 2005" awards from both the New York Film Critics Circle and the San Francisco Film Critics Circle for his acclaimed performance in Brokeback Mountain, in which he plays Wyoming ranch hand Ennis Del Mar, who has a love affair with aspiring rodeo rider Jack Twist, played by Jake Gyllenhaal. He also received a nomination for Golden Globe Best Actor in a Drama and a nomination for Academy Award for Best Actor for this performance. In the New York Times review of the film, critic Stephen Holden wrote:
In another review in Rolling Stone, Peter Travers wrote:
Also in 2005, Ledger played a fictionalized version of Giacomo Casanova in Casanova. The film, a romantic comedy which co-starred Sienna Miller, drew mixed reviews from critics and failed to find a significant audience among general moviegoers.
In 2006, Ledger was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[9] In 2007, he was one of six actors to portray different sides of singer Bob Dylan in the film I'm Not There.
Ledger played iconic comic book villain The Joker in The Dark Knight, the sequel to the 2005 film Batman Begins, opposite fellow I'm Not There star Christian Bale. The film is set to debut on July 18, 2008.[10]
The film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, in which he had been cast, was in production at the time of his death.
Music
Ledger started a record company with singer Ben Harper. His first step in the music business was directing Harper's music video for "Morning Yearning". In 2006, Ledger directed three music videos: "Cause an Effect" and "Seduction Is Evil (She's Hot)" for Australian hip-hop artist N'fa, as well as "Morning Yearning" for Ben Harper.
In 2007, Ledger spoke at a news conference at the Venice Film Festival about his desire to direct a music video set to the music of Nick Drake, even though he also said at the conference that such hopes had faded away. It was found out after Ledger's death that he had, in his final days, created a music video for Nick Drake's 1974 song "Black Eyed Dog", one of the last songs recorded by Drake. The black-and-white video, which has not been released to the public, shows the camera being turned on Ledger, who, at the end of the video, drowns in a bathtub.[11]
Ledger had a turbulent relationship with paparazzi photographers. It is alleged that he spat at and assaulted a photographer in Sydney in 2004, while a relative also is alleged to have spat on a photographer in 2005. Ledger strongly denied the accusation.[12] On January 13, 2006, several photographers retaliated, squirting Ledger with water pistols as he walked the red carpet for the Sydney premiere of Brokeback Mountain.
Ledger was also subject to criticism in the press following his performance on stage at the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Awards. Ledger was seen giggling when presenting Brokeback Mountain as a nominee for Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. The Los Angeles Times described his behavior as "some kind of gay spoof."[12] Ledger later called the Times to explain that his actions were the result of stage fright, saying that he was only told he would be presenting the award minutes beforehand. "I am so sorry and I apologize for my nervousness," Ledger told the newspaper.[13]
Ledger came under fire after he was quoted in January 2006 in Australia's Herald Sun as saying that West Virginia had banned Brokeback Mountain (which it had not). He also referred to the state as having had lynchings as recently as the 1980s. These statements have been roundly disputed by archivists and historians, who state that the last extra-legal public hanging in West Virginia occurred in 1931.[14]
From August 2002 to April 2004, Ledger had a relationship with actress Naomi Watts, whom he met during the filming of Ned Kelly.[15] Previously, he had dated actresses Lisa Zane and Heather Graham.
Ledger was engaged to actress Michelle Williams, whom he met on the set of Brokeback Mountain.[16][17] Their daughter, Matilda Rose, was born on October 28, 2005 in New York City. The child's godparents are Ledger's Brokeback costar Jake Gyllenhaal and Williams' Dawson's Creek castmate Busy Phillips. Ledger and his family divided their time between Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and Sydney.[citation needed] Ledger sold his Australian residence in Bronte, New South Wales, for A$7 million.[18][19]
In August 2007, Us Weekly reported that Ledger and Williams ended their relationship because of their busy schedules. Neither Ledger nor Williams confirmed the rumor at that time. In September, 2007, Williams' father, Larry, confirmed to Sydney Daily Telegraph that Ledger and Williams had indeed split.[20]
In early 2008, Ledger was reported to have been seeing model Gemma Ward after media articles linked the two together at end of 2007 holiday celebrations.[21]
Ledger was found dead in his fourth-floor apartment at 421 Broome Street [22][23] in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City on January 22, 2008. He was found at 3:26 p.m. EST[24] by a housekeeper and a massage therapist, who entered the bedroom to find him face down and unconscious at the foot of his bed with sleeping pills on a nearby night table. [25] Police said that they also found prescription medication in the bathroom and that there were "no obvious signs" of suicide, nor did they suspect foul play.[26] Ledger was also said to be suffering from pneumonia at the time of his death.
On January 23, 2008 Ledger's parents and sister—who learned of his death from a radio broadcast—appeared outside Ledger's mother's house in Applecross, a riverside Perth suburb, and read a short statement to the media:
| “ | "We, Heath's family, confirm the very tragic, untimely and accidental passing of our dearly loved son, brother and doting father of Matilda, who was found in a peaceful sleep in his New York apartment by his housekeeper at 3:30pm [New York Time]. We would like to thank our friends and everyone around the world for their kind wishes at this time. Heath has touched so many people on so many different levels during his short life, but few had the pleasure to truly know him. He was a down-to-earth, generous, kind-hearted, life-loving and unselfish individual who was an extreme inspiration to many. Please now respect our family's need to grieve and come to terms with our loss privately."[27] | ” |
In reaction to his death, former partner Michelle Williams was reported as saying
that she was "devastated" at the loss and had boarded a plane to New York City. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd released a statement saying, "It was with great sadness that I have learned of the passing of Heath Ledger... It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest
actors in the prime of his life."[28]
. Il a vécu en Australie occidentale jusqu'à 16 ans, âge auquel il a quitté l'école un an en avance. Il part alors à Sydney avec son meilleur ami, Trevor DiCarlo, afin de poursuivre une carrière d'acteur. Ledger a obtenu son premier vrai rôle en jouant dans la série américaine
Roar.
En 1999, Ledger apparaît dans la production hollywoodienne 10 bonnes raisons de te larguer et obtient également le premier rôle dans le film australien Two Hands, réalisé par Gregor Jordan. Depuis, il a joué dans plusieurs grosses productions américaines.
En 2001 Heath Ledger a été récompensé d'un ShoWest Award[2] du meilleur espoir masculin, pour sa performance dans The Patriot, et à l'occasion de la sortie mondiale de la fiction anachronique Chevalier. En 2003 il a été sacré « homme de l'année » par le magazine australien Gentlemen's Quarterly, dans la catégorie acteurs.
Il a eu en octobre 2005 une petite fille prénommée Matilda, avec l'actrice Michelle Williams, qu'il a rencontrée lors du tournage de Brokeback Mountain (2005). Ce film a remporté le Lion d'or à la Mostra de Venise en 2005 et de nombreuses autres récompenses. Heath Ledger a fait partie des cinq acteurs nommés pour les Golden Globes, ainsi que des huit nominations (celle du meilleur acteur) du film Brokeback Mountain aux Oscars.
Il a dernièrement obtenu le rôle du Joker dans le prochain Batman (The Dark Knight), prévu pour l'été 2008. Sa performance de junkie dans le film Candy, de Neil Armfield, lui a tout récemment valu le Prix d'interprétation masculine du Festival de Valenciennes 2007.
Il a été retrouvé mort dans son appartement du quartier de SoHo, à New York, le 22 janvier 2008. Selon la police, cette mort pourrait résulter d'une prise de stupéfiants ou d'un abus de substances pharmaceutiques, l'hypothèse d'un suicide n'est pas écartée. Le père de l'acteur, Kim Ledger, a parlé de « mort accidentelle » dans une déclaration lue à la presse devant la maison familiale, à Perth (Australie). « C'était quelqu'un de généreux, qui avait les pieds sur terre et aimait la vie [...] Heath a touché tellement de gens durant sa courte vie mais peu avaient le plaisir de le connaître vraiment », a ajouté son père.[3]
When Palahniuk made his first attempt at publishing a novel (Invisible Monsters) publishers rejected it for being too disturbing. This led him to work on Fight Club, which he wrote as an attempt to disturb the publisher even more for rejecting him. Palahniuk wrote this story while working for Freightliner. After initially publishing it as a short story (which became chapter 6 of the novel) in the compilation Pursuit of Happiness, Palahniuk expanded it into a full novel, which, contrary to what he expected, the publisher was willing to publish.[2] While the original, hardcover edition of the book received positive reviews and some awards, it had a short shelf life. Nevertheless, the book had made its way to Hollywood, where interest in adapting it to film was growing. It was eventually adapted in 1999 by screenwriter Jim Uhls and director David Fincher. The film was a box office disappointment (although it was #1 at the U.S. box office in its first weekend) and critical reaction was mostly favourable, but a cult following soon emerged as the DVD of the film was popular upon release. As a result of the film, the original hardcover edition became a collector's item.[3] This film is now widely considered to be a defining work and an uncompromising critique of humanity's loss of identity through mass consumerism. Two paperback rereleases of the novel, one in 1999 and the other in 2004 (the latter of which begins with an introduction by the author about the conception and popularity of both the novel and the movie), were later made. This success helped launch Palahniuk's career as a popular novelist, as well as establish a writing style that would appear in many of his future novels.
Despite popular belief, Palahniuk was not inspired to write the novel by any actual fight club. The club itself was based on a series of fights that Palahniuk got into over previous years (most notably one that he got into during a camping trip).[4] Even though he has mentioned this in many interviews, Palahniuk is still often approached by fans wanting to know where their local fight club takes place. Palahniuk insists that there is no real, singular organization like the one in his book. He does admit however that some fans have mentioned to him that some fight clubs (albeit much smaller than the one in the novel) exist or previously existed (some having existed long before the novel was written). Also, in the introduction to the current edition of the novel, Palahniuk refers to a few of the many actual instances of mischief being carried out in the style of fight club, most notably, a "Waiter from one of London's two finest restaurants" alleging that he ejaculated into Margaret Thatcher's food on multiple occasions.
Many other events in the novel were also based on events that Palahniuk himself had experienced. The support groups that the narrator attends are based on support groups to which the author brought terminally ill people as part of a volunteer job he did for a local hospital. Project Mayhem is loosely based on the Cacophony Society, of which Palahniuk is a member. Various events and characters are based on friends of the author. Other events came as a result of stories told to him by various people he had talked to.[5] This method of combining various stories from various people into novels has become a common way of writing novels for Palahniuk ever since.
Outside of Palahniuk's professional and personal life, the novel's impact has been felt elsewhere. Several individuals in various locations of the United States (and possibly in other countries), ranging from teenagers to people in technical careers, have set up their own fight clubs based on the one mentioned in the novel.[6] Some of Tyler's on-the-job pranks (such as food tampering) have been repeated by fans of the book (although these same pranks existed well before the novel was published). Palahniuk eventually documented this phenomenon in his essay "Monkey Think, Monkey Do",[7] which was published in his book Stranger Than Fiction: True Stories, as well as in the introduction to the 2004 paperback edition of Fight Club. Other fans of the book have been inspired to non-anti-social activity as well; Palahniuk has claimed that fans tell him that they have been inspired to go back to college after reading the book.[2]
Other than the film, a few other adaptations have been attempted. In 2004 Fight Club was in development as a musical, developed by Palahniuk, Fincher, and Trent Reznor.[8] Brad Pitt, who played the role of Tyler Durden in the film, expressed interest in being involved. A video game loosely based on the film was published by Vivendi Universal Games in 2004, receiving poor reviews from gaming critics.
Le narrateur (Jack?) est un jeune type insomniaque qui ne demande qu'une chose: sortir de son quotidien monotone. Il rencontre Tyler Durden, avec qui il fonde le fight club, un club de combat clandestion ou des jeunes se battent pour évacuer leur malaise. Il rencontre aussi Marla Singer, une droguée suicidaire amoureuse de Tyler. Le narrateur et Durden fabriquent du savon avec de la graisse (dont celle de la mère de Marla). Soudain Tyler disparaît. Le narrateur se met à sa recherche et découvre que tous le monde le connait sous le nom de...Tyler Durden. Le héros schizophrène retrouve son double et le tue en se mettant une balle dans la tête. Croyant être au ciel, le narrateur se retrouve dans un hôpital (psychiatrique?). Marla lui écrit. Mais de temps en temps un type blessé s'approche et lui dit: vous nous manquez monsieur Durden. Tout se déroule selon le plan prévu...
Reservoir Dogs is the 1992 debut feature film of director Quentin Tarantino. It incorporates many of the themes and aesthetics that have become Tarantino's hallmarks — violent crime, pop culture references, memorable dialogue and nonlinear stories. It features Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi and Lawrence Tierney. Tarantino has a minor role, as does criminal-turned-author Eddie Bunker.
Tarantino (who had been working as a video store clerk in Los Angeles) was originally going to shoot it with his friends on a budget of $30,000 on 16 mm with producer Lawrence Bender playing Nice Guy Eddie. However, actor Harvey Keitel became involved via the wife of Bender's acting class teacher, who had managed to get a copy of the script to him. He agreed not only to act in the film, but to co-produce. With Keitel's assistance, the filmmakers were able to raise $1.2 million to make the film, fairly large for an independently-financed film, but a small fraction of the typical Hollywood production.
The movie has since come to be seen as an important and highly-influential milestone of independent filmmaking. Film critic Jami Bernard of New York Daily News said of the film's premier at Sundance: "I don't think people were ready. They didn't know what to make of it. It's like the first silent movie when audiences saw the train coming toward the camera and scattered".
The film portrays the events preceding and immediately following a badly botched Los Angeles jewel heist (but not the actual heist itself) orchestrated by Joe Cabot (Lawrence Tierney) and his son "Nice Guy" Eddie Cabot (Chris Penn). Six men are recruited by the Cabots to carry out the heist and, for reasons of security, are given "color" aliases — Mr. White (Harvey Keitel), Mr. Orange (Tim Roth), Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen), Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi), Mr. Blue (Eddie Bunker), and Mr. Brown (Quentin Tarantino) — to protect their identities and are further instructed to never tell one another anything of their personal backgrounds.
Reservoir Dogs begins with Joe, Eddie, Pink, Orange, Brown, Blue, Blonde, and White eating breakfast at a large diner before the heist. Mr. Brown at length discusses his interpretation of Madonna's popular song "Like a Virgin
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