Twenty years ago, I thought I had seen the best Batman movie ever — Batman Forever. A controversial choice even back when Batman Forever was released on June 16, 1995 (hey, don't judge! I was only nine years old back then!), the Joel Schumacher film has obviously been surpassed time and time again, most notably by Christopher Nolan's second Batman movie, The Dark Knight, in 2008. While Heath Ledger provided the entertainment world with one of the best screen villains of all-time with his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight, let's not forget another important Batman nemesis — Jim Carrey's the Riddler in Batman Forever .
Yes, Carrey's Riddler performance was completely absurd, but up until that point, he fit right in with the other movie Batman villains by being so cartoonish. Nolan helped ground Batman in the real world — and I will forever be in debt to him for that — but that doesn't mean fans of Nolan's franchise need to completely dismiss the rest of the Batman canon. And while I will never say that Carrey's Riddler was better than Ledger's Joker (I'd have to be more insane than those two psychopathic characters combined!), the two men often had similar thought processes when it came to defeating Batman. (Val Kilmer for the Riddler and Christian Bale for the Joker.)
Most of Ledger's Joker's lines are pretty iconic (he deservedly won a posthumous Oscar for his performance), but it's time to see how well you really know your Batman movie villains. Can you guess whether Carrey's Riddler or Ledger's Joker said the following quotes?
Round 1: The Theory Of Nothing
- "You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with! Nothing to do with all your strength?"
- "What is everything to someone and nothing to everyone else?"
- The villains liked to mess with Batman's head, but this quote belongs to Ledger's Joker.
- This is a simple start since this riddle appropriately comes from the Riddler. (The answer? Your mind.)
Round 2: Party Time
- "You're ruining my big party! Are you insane?"
- "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. We are tonight’s entertainment!"
- Carrey's Riddler was a lot more into partying and a lot less serious than his fellow villain. (Why so serious?!)
- But the Joker wasn't completely averse to partying too when he crashed Bruce Wayne's shindig.
Round 3: Game-Time Decisions
- "Not enough time to save them both. Which will it be, Batman?"
- "Choose between one life or the other."
- Both villains gave Batman an ultimatum, but this line comes from the Riddler about Dr. Chase Meridian and Robin.
- The Joker made Batman choose between Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dent.
Round 4: Contemplating Murder
- "I don't, I don't want to kill you!
- "Why? Why can't I kill you?"
- The Joker understood that to be a great villain, he needed a great hero.
- With his mind ruined, the Riddler questioned Batman during his moment of defeat.
Round 5: Playing With Batman
- "Now there's a Batman!"
- "Who is Batman?"
- The Joker seemed to admire Batman's skills after tormenting some of the vigilante's impersonators.
- The Riddler considered this question the greatest riddle of all-time.
Round 6: Games Are Afoot
- "Now the real game begins!"
- "Oh, there's only minutes left, so you're gonna have to play my little game if you wanna save one of them."
- Carrey's over-the-top delivery makes this line a Riddler classic.
- Joker really made the most of making Batman choose between his love and the lawyer.
Round 7: Always Questioning
- "Has anybody ever told you you have a serious impulse-control problem?"
- "Could you please just give me a minute?"
- The Riddler wasn't talking to Batman for this quote — he was questioning his buddy Two-Face.
- And the Joker was annoyed with Lt. James Gordon.
Round 8: Tricks Are For Villains
- "How about a magic trick?"
- "Then I taught my doggie a new trick."
- It's hard to unsee the Joker's magic trick he performed with a pencil.
- The Riddler loved talking nonsense before posing his riddles.
Round 9: Taking Charge
- "This is your captain speaking. Please remain in your seats."
- "Oh, excuse me, I want to drive!"
- While this quote may sound like something that the Joker would have said during his social experiment on the ferries, this one belongs to the Riddler.
- The Joker always liked the driver's seat.
Round 10: Messing Around With Harvey Dent
- "Harvey! I don't think it's me you really want to kill."
- "You know. I don't want there to be any hard feelings between us, Harvey."
- The Riddler was on very-friendly terms with Tommy Lee Jones's Harvey Dent/Two-Face.
- The Joker was responsible for killing the love of Harvey (and Batman) — Rachel Dawes.
Round 11: Tiebreaker
- "Riddle me this."
- "You wanna know how I got these scars?"
- No, this was not a trick question: Obviously, the Riddler loves to riddle you this.
- If you couldn't get that this final quote was from the Joker, I really am unsure on why you embarked on this quiz in the first place.
So, how'd you do? Either way, the Joker applauds your efforts.
