Awesome! (some spoilers)

Rating: 9/10 (8 October 2019)

I know that there has been a lot of hubbub about this film, where people are saying that it was misogynistic or that it's the "incel movie", but I have to say that if people say this after watching the movie... they clearly weren't paying attention.
If this film has any message, it's that the mental health system is severely flawed and that everyday life is geared towards the rich. It's understaffed and underfunded, resulting in people who really, REALLY want to seek out help (as in the case of Arthur at the beginning of the film) going with subpar or no help at all. Not to mention that the system in place ended up cutting public funding, which is an all too bitter reflection on what happens IRL to programs such as these. Then for the news to paint the three dead Wayne Enterprises guys as practically saints and for Wayne to effectively paint all of the city's poorer citizens as stupid, jealous, and violent clowns as a result, that just hammers home that the system is more in favor of the "have" than the "have nots". With all of that, it's no surprise that the citizens of Gotham rioted. They were treated like the garbage that littered their streets. The Joker was just a catalyst that really set the smoldering unrest ablaze and I honestly think that if it wasn't him, it would have been someone else. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and became an icon as a result. I have to say that I really do like how the Joker said that he wasn't a political person. When it comes to public aid and how people are treated, this shouldn't be treated as only a political thing. Yes, it can be political but it's fundamentally a moral issue - it's wrong to treat people as lesser and to cut funding that would benefit the less fortunate in order to make things easier for the fortunate and their pet projects. It's made painfully clear throughout the film that if Arthur had received any true human compassion beyond the caring yet distant compassion offered by his social worker or the manipulative and deluded compassion his mother gave him (if you can even call her behaviors that), his life may have gone in a different direction. Maybe not incredibly different, but still different.
Joaquin Phoenix did an excellent job as the Joker. It's kind of amazing to see how much he sunk into that role. He lost so much weight that it's really startling and helps to form a good suspension of disbelief. Hollywood uses so many of the same actors that many of them come across as "This Person playing themselves playing X character". I see Phoenix as one of those actors that, while recognizable, can fully lose themselves in a character and are more than just playing themselves playing someone.
I was really amazed at how quickly the film went by. Some of the moments were honestly painful to watch, as it's easy enough to feel sorry for Arthur at times. He's just so sad and broken that you can't help but wish that things would go a little better. I also loved the little nods to the various comic book series that featured the Joker, such as the Dr. Sally kiss - a scene taken from The Dark Knight Returns. It's subtle without demanding that the viewer know about the comics in the way that Batman vs. Superman did of its viewers. No viewer will feel like they had to study before going into the theater. Of note, however, is that apparently the director has stated that this isn't THE Joker, but rather a person that inspired him.
All in all, I think that this will be one of those films that will be studied in film classes, yet dismissed as a "violent nasty" by some in the same way that some critics are now. I can understand that some won't like this - no film will be universally liked, but I can't help but feel that by focusing on the violence they're really kind of missing the point of this movie.