JOKER IS THE MOVIE WE NEED TO SEE

Rating: 10/10 (4 October 2019)

#JOKER lives up to the hype. If you care about movies and society this movie will prompt you to think about several scenes hours after watching it.
I grew up hip-hop. I remember media and politicians attacking hip-hop stating that the music incites violence. I remember Z104 editing all hip-hop lyrics out of R&B songs. It was preached that a person rapping no matter the subject, was a detriment to society. In my youth we traveled through many cities that had no stations that played 90s hip-hop. I had a family member that lived and went to all white, wealthy schools and they couldn't stand hip-hop. They saw it as violent stories that pushed people to want to be thugs. Because they were family, my teenage-self pushed to get them to understand that; that you have to listen to it, before you can judge it. Dismissing it, isn't going to stop it. White America is on record for stating their beliefs, that hip-hop would die out with in 10 years. (Like Disco). Their avoidance of viewing the art that talks about real problems, real pain, real life either cites away or down the block will not work. 12 hours after seeing JOKER, I woke up feeling that JOKER is a must see. You can be the individual that believes a movie will influence killers by showcasing a fictional killer's origins or be the person that believes a movie can tell the story about the path that people are already on to become murders. Our problems with mental illness & suicide/killer gene is already here. It is as relevant as either. How many weeks since the last mass shooting?? How many people have been arrested for violent crimes, that if they were tested it would show this person has problems on a biological level? The reason these individuals are dealt with after their 10th victim is usually because the lack of attention to the problem, lack of necessities to fix the problem, and/or the lack of belief in the problem. JOKER highlights the world that so many people choose not to believe exist. Everyday, every 65 minutes a military/vet commits suicide. It's hard to review this movie, without attaching it to real life.
Joaquin Phoenix is a master class actor, with a deep resume of classic roles. This will be consider his best and most haunting. You know the story, and yet you yearn for a happy ending, but then you're reminded happy is relative to the situation and person. Very little action and yet this movie has you on the edge of your seat. Unlike Halloween were you're waiting for Jason to die, with Joker you're engaged from start to brilliant finish. The Joker's death is not your target.
In the comic-book world, Batman is the only one that can take down a psychotic killer like the Joker. I'll buy this movie on Blu-ray, but it won't be something I'll watch on the regular (unless I'm studying it for movie making material). It cuts deep, but the best thing about this movie is that it displays real problems and the blueprint of a mass killer - but we, us, you and I can treat these people before art predicts the future. No Batman required. Drug problem caused fatherless homes, crime rates rose, America ignored it. People from those areas told stories about it. America rejected it, and cited the art, the songs, the movies cause the problem. And the cycle continues. This film illustrates the cure.
The Joker will battle The Irishman this award season. Joaquin will probably win a Oscar. More than winning awards, I pray Joker starts funding programs for mental health. (It's that powerful of a movie.) Our society doesn't like to read, but this movie can inject some type of care into the right people's minds to start childcare facilities to treat PTSD victims. This movie can change laws. But first it has to change your perception. Joker is one of the best films of the decade. Our current world, has made sure of it.