If you misunderstand evil you will unwittingly create evil

Rating: 7/10 (8 October 2019)

Regardless of whether you like it or hate it, I think the film explores how the Joker is the way he is because he can't be otherwise, literally. One of the greatest dangers to America itself is American culture. It's not terrorism that will destroy America; it's American culture that will ultimately be the undoing of America. The film looks to examine our distorted points of view or detachments from reality and show us that WE, as a society, have the same characteristics of the Joker. The Joker is a product of this materialistic culture we live under. Epistemically western culture is motivated by striving for money, status and recognition, which is focused on results and efficiency but that can have severe consequences because you're always judging yourself with the person next to you.
The movie Joker is what you get when you take American culture, and you take it to its pinnacle. When you exaggerate it to the extreme, you get someone like the Joker. But the critical hidden message is that we need to become more aware of our OWN double standards within ourselves. We need to start to empathize that we have the same mechanisms as the Joker has. So, on the one hand, I can criticize the Joker, but on the other side, I can also see why he acts the way he does, but more importantly see it collectively. Notice that trying to rid the world of evil only creates more evil. Everything you might criticize; corporate greed, different beliefs, religion, people you dislike, violence, war, mass shootings, even just hating this movie - We like to criticize things, but while we're criticizing, we're NOT really thinking about how we ourselves are part of the very same problem that is contributing to the cycle.