Joker echoes the echanting spark that films once had

Rating: 9/10 (3 October 2019)

From catching that first glance of Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker a year ago, I have been painfully anticipating this movie month to month counting towards 2019's October (while also avoiding as best I could any early reviews, and the second trailer).
The day arrived and what a day it has been! - JOKER 2019 is nothing short of OUTSTANDING! - a truly beautiful dark twisted film focused on the life of a very confused and lonely protagonist ... ahem antagonist, encapsulated and thrown around within a terrifying but gorgeous 80's Gotham set behind him wherever he may roam. Films like this DO NOT and WILL NOT come around often, so see it on the big screen.
Pros: As a someone who can confidently say I am at this point in my life a seasoned cinephile first, and a movie watcher second, I was growing tired of most recent superhero movies and the seemingly safe cookie cutter movie making format used over the last 5 years or so.
I prayed, I made my bet and I was relieved to see my horse win -- Gone are the quick cuts and rapid quippy one liners between foes or friends, gone are the 'sheathed characters, cities and worlds with souls of rubber' that never quite seem to be affected by a characters cause and effect. Gone too are the politically correct actions and statements peddling to each member of the audience - the film perhaps asks you to be offended and torn, and to sit and process it, without escaping - Bold film-making indeed.
Here is a hark back to the true pre-blockbuster cinema of the 70's; there's the long shots and long takes, the moving music, loose, fun and unsaturated colors, the design, the conscious thoughtful speech, and no speech but guided emotion - the writing and the heart all melds together dangerously in an industrial vat of chemicals, with a good dash of that old school daemon, acting genius (and now older) - Robert De Niro we all new was still hiding under those direct to blu-ray and B-comedies of late.
Mr. Phoenix's performance as Joker is almost comedically haunting - 'Arthur' is a man fed up, ready for empathy and wanting to give it. He is gracefully rage filled with laughter of deep sadness, and impressively thought out.
Much like the performance of the late Heath Ledger - The Joker is hard NOT to root for, even when he invites you to the front row for his grimmest of deeds.
Todd Phillips's departure from directing his mostly great original comedies into a movie like this is surely a welcome surprise and only goes to show how far he has come as a serious director, while seemingly holding a mirror up to his animalistic 1993 documentary about societal pariah 'GG Allin'.
Cons: This is a rare movie that I wanted to be a half hour LONGER rather than shorter!, that's it.
Just as we glimpse into his mind and go beyond, and as the Joker and Gotham are finding their nail-biting footing, and the city screams and cries for change - we are back in that confused quiet waiting room of Arthur Fleck's mind, plotting and scheming, wondering what the scene will be, when the end comes for us all.
BATMAN 2021, please Mr. Phillips, Mr. Silver and Mr. Phoenix?