Valid Point Irresponsibly Communicated

Rating: 3/10 (6 October 2019)

Joker will be a keystone project in the careers of many of the crew; the score, cinematography, lighting design, costuming, and much more were all brilliantly done. Of course, Phoenix's performance exceeds remarkable. However, I take a lot of issue with the messages illustrated in the film.
The film opens with a news story about garbage accumulating in the city to the point of major health hazard. We later learn there has been a garbage strike, and it becomes more and more clear that Gotham's wealthy are to blame for the literal and societal filth that plagues the city. This is a valid point. Thomas Wayne is the city's villain. He looks down on the impoverished people of Gotham and says, "Accept me as your savior or take on the responsibility of making something of your lives." We have seen this abuse of privilege in actual American politics.
My issue arrises in how the villain is taken down. Arthur Fleck clearly struggles with serious mental health challenges, and the municipal government has clearly not prioritized providing him support, but the viewer is forced to empathize with his journey to becoming a psychotic killer and at no point does there seem to be an option for Arthur to make an effort to seek personal healing or more appropriate coping mechanisms. And so, Arthur accepts his mental illness as the core of his identity, becomes Joker, aimlessly starts a violent movement against the systematic violence of shoddy infrastructure, inspires the killing of the villain, and is exalted by his peers. This is a valid point irresponsibly communicated.
Many great conversations could come from this film. For one, we can consider that Joker's life parallels that of many superheroes; after a personal tragedy, superheroes employ retributive violence to "solve" society's problems, and they are then exalted by their peers. Even Bruce Wayne, who could invest his billions in wide-scale systematic change, ultimately chooses to instead dress as a bat and beat up the poor, disturbed people of Gotham. Additionally, the end scene of Joker calls into question our culture's over-valuing of happiness. We often hear the phrase, "I just want you to be happy," but for Arthur, the first time he experiences happiness is when he remorselessly murders. Is the means justified by the end? Should we care about peoples' happiness more than their deeper wellbeing? So, there is a lot of potential for people to wrestle with the dissonance this film creates. However, I am aware that, sadly, the average film viewer is not a responsible consumer and will not have important debrief after watching this film. Even more concerning, the film is emotionally escalating and does not send a responsible message to those who don't search deeper than art's surface. I think there is legitimate concern that Joker could incite a real-world movement, or at least a violent outburst here and there from unhealthy patrons.