Joker (2019 film)
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 "How about another joke, Mur-ray? What do you get... when you cross... a mentally ill loner with a SOCIETY that ABANDONS HIM AND TREATS HIM LIKE TRASH?! I'll tell you what you get, YOU GET WHAT YOU FUCKING DESERVE!!!"
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Joker is a 2019 psychological crime drama thriller directed and co-produced by Todd Phillips (who co-wrote the screenplay with Scott Silver). The film is loosely based on DC comics characters, starring Joaquin Phoenix as the titular character and providing an alternative origin story for the character. Joker was produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Films, and Joint Effort, in association with Bron Creative and Village Roadshow Pictures, and distributed by Warner Bros. Joker is intended to launch "DC Black", a series of DC-based standalone films and premiered at the 76th Venice International Film Festival on August 31, 2019, where it won the Golden Lion, and released in the United States on October 4, 2019.
Joker: Folie à Deux, a sequel, was released on October 4, 2024, after its trailer came out 7 months earlier on April 9.[3][4][5]
Plot
In 1981, party clown and aspiring stand-up comedian Arthur Fleck (portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix) lives with his ailing mother, Penny (portrayed by Frances Conroy), in Gotham City. Gotham is rife with crime and unemployment, leaving swathes of the population disenfranchised and impoverished. Arthur has severe mental conditions as well as a disorder that causes him to laugh uncontrollably. Due to his various psychological disorders and introverted nature, Fleck is continuously bullied and beaten to the ground by society, causing his fragile mental stability to decline until he goes insane and becomes a serial killer named "The Joker", determined to make Gotham City laugh again in his own twisted and violent way.
Why and How Arthur Became Joker
- It's a great take on mental illness, bullying, mistreatment, and how it affects the victim in a suspenseful and awful way to the point of ruining one's life, showing why bullying is not a good thing. It also works as a psychological thriller, especially since it is about a mistreated protagonist (in this case, Arthur Fleck) who suffers from issues and bullying, and it makes us feel sorry/sympathy for Arthur. The film is also a great way of dealing with said severe issues and why it severely hurts the victim so much, to the point it makes their lives feel different because of said bullying and mistreatment.
- For instance, the opening scene depicts Arthur getting jumped and losing his sign, and because he is mistreated severely, his life is very different because of how terrible he gets treated throughout the film; hence, his actions.
- The film draws inspiration from classic films with similar themes, such as The King of Comedy and Taxi Driver.
- Robert De Niro's casting as talk show host Murray Franklin is fitting, given his role in The King of Comedy and Phoenix's role as the Joker is almost a mirror reflection of De Niro's role as Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver.
- Unlike other DC films that try too hard to be edgy (or fail to be edgy), Joker is severe and dark by doing it correctly; it is dark by doing so in a way that is edgy but also serious about why a character can genuinely feel severe and dark inside, and a victim of bad things like these. The dark tone helps the narrative to make it meaningful/genuine and shows why you can't mess with a dark victim in every shape or form.
- Joaquin Phoenix does an amazing job playing Arthur Fleck/the Joker; his performance is exceptionally flawless and beautiful. While Heath Ledger did a great job with the Joker in The Dark Knight, Phoenix's performance is as excellent as the former, if perhaps even better. Just like Ledger, he earned an Academy Award for his performance and portrayal of the character. Not only this, but Phoenix's performance as the Joker is the most tragic, sympathetic, and emotional Joker today; the scenes that feature him going through difficult times, mistreatment and scenes that show him laughing when he is uncomfortable with the best performances altogether are enough to make one feel sympathy/sorry for him. It also helps that his lines are emotional, and you can easily feel the pain in his voice throughout his laughing; therefore, it's also hard to tell if he's actually laughing or feeling down.
- Arthur Fleck is a very compelling, tragic, sympathetic, and likable character. His actions are understandable because he experiences a lot of difficult stuff in his life, like bullying and being mistreated. He also has a lot of character development as he transforms into the Joker. His struggles also make the viewers want to be thrown into his world to experience how he was mistreated.
- It also works with his mental illness; it sometimes makes it harder for the viewer to know whether the events he's experiencing are actual or not.
- The narrative also accurately portrays how his mental health progressively worsens through the film, as he stars in the film as a sympathetic, tragic person who continuously becomes even more violent until he becomes a truly terrible person and a killer.
- Arthur's conditions make him a sympathetic victim, but his actions are still criminal, and the film appropriately paints him as a villain.
- So even if his actions are criminal - he is a villain and becomes excessively violent to the point of being a truly terrible person and a killer, he is extremely sympathetic. He can easily make the viewers feel sorry for him. Also, when he laughs, you can truly feel the pain in his voice.
- To make this even better, he kills people for valid reasons, such as not being nice to him; this also includes the three Gotham Wall Street men who died on the subway because they were punching/kicking him until Arthur got his self-defense out by killing them with a revolver, which led to one of them screaming for help, showing that he had every right to kill those people for what they did to him; consequently, they got what they deserve for that behavior.
- Hildur Guðnadóttir's musical score is incredible, mainly when Arthur dances in the bathroom. This scene gives the dance a haunting, sinister, and beautiful theme and makes it even more beautiful. When silent while watching, it is enough to give the viewer a haunting vibe, especially when feeling that way while watching.
- Moreover, the bathroom scene is so touching, as it's just the haunting music playing and silence, and there is no talking throughout that scene.
- The famous and iconic scene in which the Joker dances down West 167 Street's steps to the tune of "Rock and Roll Part 2" before he gets chased by the cops is amazing. Shortly after its release, the stairs became a tourist attraction.[6] Besides that, the dance itself is top-notch, with the epic style and way the Joker dances on the stairs before the cops chase him.
- The scene where the poster is chosen is well-shot and creative, using the aforementioned famous dance shown with the step stairs.
- There are also other posters, such as the one with the car explosion and the Joker making a stand (for the IMAX poster), which is beautiful due to the explosive fire in the poster.
- It spreads a strong message on hatred, unfair class systems, the dangers of long-term suppression of emotions, abuse towards the mentally ill, and many other issues with how Arthur is treated horribly by society and his ever-degrading mental state. It also talks about how cruel people can be to others and why mistreatment is always bad.
- The famous scene where the Joker is on Murray Franklin's talk show and goes on a lengthy rant about how society abandoned him and treated him like trash before pulling out a gun and blowing a hole through Franklin's head is all disturbing yet exciting. Everything he says to Murray on the live show is correct, and it's the perfect example of why bullying is never a good thing.
- To add to the pain, Murray Franklin invited the Joker to his talk show, only for the latter to be mocked in the first place. The Joker knew he was rude to him (since he heard it) and killed him for this as comeuppance.
- Regarding that, the famous quote: "How about another joke, Mur-ray? What do you get... when you cross... a mentally ill loner with a SOCIETY that ABANDONS HIM AND TREATS HIM LIKE TRASH?! I'll tell you what you get, YOU GET WHAT YOU FUCKING DESERVE!!!"... enough said.
- Aside from that, the Joker's entrance in his talk show is excellent, as after that introduction Murray did, it feels like an epic entrance style the Joker did before he started talking to Murray.
- This entire scene and shot make it feel like you're watching an interview show despite being a film, especially thanks to its perfect cinematography and lighting.
- Besides that one aforementioned famous quote and scene, there's also other phenomenal dialogue as well, particularly from Arthur/the Joker:
- "Is it just me or is it getting crazier out there?"
- "I used to think that my life was a tragedy, but now I realize, it's a fucking comedy."
- "When you bring me out, can you introduce me as Joker?"
- When the violent moments happen, they're intense and disturbing enough to make the viewers feel uncomfortable and upset and help the film's dark tone with the psychological implications behind the exceptionally intense and bloody violence. This proves that you can make a well-written film with enough violence to the point where it is dark inside and makes one feel uncomfortable, and the amount of blood and violence it shows is enough to show why it is; hence, it is a dark-tone, sympathetic, and violent film.
- At the end of the film, we see Bruce Wayne's parents being gunned down by one of the Joker's fans, allowing us to glimpse Bruce Wayne before he became Batman.
- The part where the Joker does a bloody smile is touching and beautiful; the crowd cheering in that scene makes it even more touching than ever.
- The film has some funny moments without overshadowing the dark tone, such as when the Joker cracks an incredibly inappropriate joke on Murray Franklin's talk show about a woman's son being run over and killed by a drunk driver.
- Although it's a dark-tone film, there are some heartwarming moments, like when Arthur cheers up the kid on the bus.
- At the beginning, it uses the old Warner Bros. ("Big W") logo from the 1980s, fitting with the period the film is set in.
- It's a very different take on a comic-based film (and character), presenting it less as an action blockbuster and more as a character study, a tragic and sympathetic film depicting how hard life can be for such a character. It's refreshing to see how it worked well.
- Todd Phillips, the director of this film, captures the charm of his films, such as The Hangover, and makes this one a crime drama thriller, which works amazingly at its true potential. Also, he did an incredible job directing this movie to give a disturbing, dark-tone, yet sympathetic plot. In fact, he has also directed other amazing movies such as The Hangover (which came out a decade before this film; that is, 2009), so it's nice to see him create a masterpiece of a movie like this a decade later.
- The cinematography is perfect, to the point that it was nominated for best cinematography at the 92nd Academy Awards (alongside The Lighthouse). It also feels like one shot was needed to make the film. The scenes are sharply vivid thanks to the help of the cinematography that does everything to make its picture at its best with meaningful color that darkens and brightens up the scenes because of the color grading and aspect ratio the film uses, the fact that it was also filmed in a highly great place for this also helps; moreover, the color grading is top-notch to the point it helps its dark tone, making the whole setting perfect for this film since the inside and outside locations the film does with its cinematography is perfect thanks to its camera being top-notch, lighting, and depth. This makes the entire film a pleasure to watch.
Qualities That Get What They Fucking Deserve
- Although the film's tackling mental illness is profound and amazing, it has a few inaccuracies:
- The pseudobulbar effect, a medical condition that causes people to laugh uncontrollably, is a physical disorder rather than a mental disorder.
- Given his severe declining mental condition towards the end of the movie, Arthur shouldn't have been able to outsmart the detectives. After donning the full Joker outfit, he shouldn't be able to interact with the interviewers.
- Despite being the Joker's archenemy, Bruce Wayne barely has anything to do in the film and has only one line, as he's only shown in a few scenes. Also, some commenters say that Brett Cullen and Carrie Louise Putrello are too old to play Bruce Wayne's parents, making them look like his grandparents.
Reception
Critical and audience response
While Joker polarized critics, it received widespread acclaim from audiences. Although Phoenix's performance, direction, editing, musical score, and cinematography were heavily praised, the dark tone, portrayal of mental illnesses, and graphic violence divided opinions and generated concerns of inspiring real-world violence; the movie theater where the 2012 Aurora, Colorado mass shooting occurred during a screening of The Dark Knight Rises refused to show it out of respect for the victims.[7][8]
Chris Stuckmann gave the film an "A-" rating,[9] Jeremy Jahns gave it an "Awesometcular" rating,[10] and featured it in his list of the Best Movies of 2019.[11]
Box office
Joker became a major box office success and set records for an October release.[12] It was the first ever R-rated film to gross over $1 billion worldwide[1][2][13] and became the sixth-highest-grossing film of 2019 (managing to outgross Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker by over $105,000).[14] It was also the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time (before Deadpool & Wolverine surpassed it).[15]
Awards and nominations
Joker has been nominated for and won multiple awards, including the Golden Lion at the 76th Venice International Film Festival. It earned eleven nominations at the 92nd Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Cinematography, but it lost to Parasite and 1917; however, it won Best Actor in a Leading Role for Joaquin Phoenix and Best Original Score.
Trivia
- Martin Scorsese was originally about to produce the film but backed out on that.[16]
- This was the first film to debut the new Village Roadshow Pictures logo, although the logo is still at the end.
- This film and Deadpool & Wolverine are the only R-rated films to gross $1 billion worldwide.[15]
Videos
Trailers and behind-the-scenes explanation
Reviews
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Joker-(2019)#tab=summary
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt7286456/
- ↑ https://www.billboard.com/culture/tv-film/joker-folie-a-deux-trailer-lady-gaga-joaquin-phoenix-1235652785/
- ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/lady-gaga-joaquin-phoenix-joker-folie-a-deux-trailer-1235001500/
- ↑ https://ew.com/joker-folie-a-deux-trailer-lady-gaga-joaquin-phoenix-8625054
- ↑ https://www.nme.com/news/now-iconic-joker-steps-bronx-becoming-tourist-attraction-2559253
- ↑ https://www.businessinsider.com/aurora-shooting-victims-family-members-express-concerns-about-joker-2019-9
- ↑ https://www.tmz.com/2019/09/24/joker-movie-not-playing-aurora-colorado-theater-2012-mass-shooting-joaquin-phoenix/
- ↑ See the third video in the "Videos" section.
- ↑ See the fourth video in the "Videos" section.
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d63rVzYjiuw
- ↑ https://ew.com/movies/2019/10/06/joker-box-office-october-record-opening-weekend/
- ↑ https://variety.com/2019/film/box-office/box-office-joker-billion-dollar-milestone-1203391166/
- ↑ https://www.boxofficemojo.com/year/world/2019/
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 https://www.the-numbers.com/box-office-records/worldwide/all-movies/mpaa-ratings/r-(us)
- ↑ https://ew.com/movies/2019/11/04/martin-scorsese-explains-why-opted-out-producing-joker/
External links
Joker at the Internet Movie Database
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