Well crafted and intense comic book origin story...

Rating: 9/10 (7 October 2019)

After reading a NYT article about this movie winning the weekend box office, I pondered how crazy it must be to live in a place where going to the cinema requires a calculation on whether you might get shot. Perhaps the hysteria whipped up prior to this film opening makes more sense in a violent society like that stateside, as after seeing it, I don't think it glorified Arthur Fleck, nor did I see it being inspirational to a pathetic incel who feels the need to shoot up a church or a nightclub or a school. It wasn't particularly violent at all, and was much better than I had expected. I really enjoyed the movie a lot, and have found myself thinking about it the next day. Yes, it's basically a comic book movie (with a good segue to the eventual Batman story), and I do agree with Scorsese's recent comment that superhero movies are like theme parks. That's generally why I enjoy those kind of movies, though, as an escape from the awfulness of the world. But sometimes a comic book origin story can actually be about something more, and I agree with Michael Moore that "this movie is not about Trump. It's about the America that gave us Trump - the America which feels no need to help the outcast, the destitute. The America where the filthy rich just get richer and filthier". I don't think the movie was necessarily sympathetic to the course of action the character took, but it does help you to see the consequences of a society that's been poisoned by the lack of compassion for the less fortunate and a massive amount of inequality. Joaquin Phoenix has never been one of my favorite actors, but he was excellent here. I'm impressed that director of "The Hangover" could craft such a compelling story, and I also think there was something to Todd Phillips' furious reaction against the far-left for their indictment of his movie without ever having seen it. Wherever you fall on the political spectrum, you'll take what you will from any piece of art, and I think this is well worth seeing to form your own opinion. At the very least, it's an enjoyable and well crafted movie. The references and callbacks to some classic 70s movies like "Taxi Driver" were well done, too.