The Most Intriguing Portrayal of the Famed Vigilante Clown

Rating: 6/10 (11 October 2019)

Out of all the movies that have been released this year, none have been as controversial as the newest film adaptation of the DC Comics, Joker. Based on the iconic villain from the Batman lore, the film showed both promise and doubt upon its announcement. Although acclaimed actor Joaquin Phoenix was cast as the titular character and it was set to be a psychological thriller that commented on how society can affect those who are less fortunate, it seemed quite bizarre for the director of the Hangover trilogy to be tackling such a flick. Yet now that the film is out for the whole world to see, how does it work in the end?
Without a doubt, the highlight of the feature is definitely Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck. For someone who is intended to be severely mentally ill, he really elevated the performance to the point where he practically became Arthur throughout the picture. Most of the cinematic Jokers beforehand were either malicious sociopaths bent on taking over Gotham city or messed up victims that got screwed over from a severe past, and while Phoenix's falls into the latter category, one could argue that this is the most profound out of them all. As this is a psychological film, there are themes of delusion, narcissism and societal interference that can corrupt an already damaged individual, and all of those make Fleck one of the most fascinating representations of the famous clown. Speaking of clowns, comedy is another noted subject that is tackled upon in the feature, but more so how humor is conveyed to the world. Dark comedy may seem funny albeit incredibly subjective, but it's never a laughing matter when you try to bring in real world trauma into the mix, something only Arthur could misinterpret in his own scattered way.
Todd Phillips is the director of the feature, and despite being more well known for his goofy and raunchy comedies, he managed to pull off the job well in presenting a dark gritty thriller inspired by Taxi Driver and Serpico. The cinematography is intentionally bleak and grainy, the action scenes are realistically brutal and intense, and the dramatic elements are surpassingly depressing. As the film takes place in the early 1980s, a noteworthy time period of crime and violence in major cities, the creepy atmosphere displayed throughout is what makes this film frightening more so than juvenile jump scares and gun fire. There also seems to be some influence taken from The King of Comedy, as the way the filmmakers and Phoenix depicted Arthur's interpreted reality clashing with the real world is worthy of that film's bizarre tone. Another great addition to the scenes has to be the haunting score by Hildur Guonadottir, as it adds in the necessary tension throughout the most disturbing moments in the feature without being overbearing.
However, the film is not without its shortcomings, and a lot of the issues for me have to do with some of the narrative decisions. For one thing, some of the ways they depict Arthur's insanity is a bit questionable and a bit pretentious, as in we don't need constant mood swings from his reactions to the horrors of Gotham. That, and there are some overdone cliches to the story that almost ruin the film's unique execution, like Arthur's origins and some of the ticking points that made him snap and kill certain people during the first act. Also, one of Arthur's notable symptoms is hallucination, and there's a subplot where he hits it off well with his neighbor, and the way they revealed it was all fake was too obvious for what's supposed to be a down to earth character study. Finally, this is supposed to be stand-alone origin story of the Joker character, yet it seems they couldn't help but to shoe horn in Bruce Wayne's story too. The attempts at that came off as unnecessary and rather clunky, as if you could have removed that element from the narrative and not much would have changed.
In spite of some odd plot elements and a really pathetic attempt to connect this to the Batman mythos, Joker still works well enough on its own thanks to its gritty urban tone, Joaquin Phoenix's stellar performance and the overall chilling presentation. If you're a big fan of the Joker as a character, down to earth crime dramas or character studies in general, then you should definitely seek this one out. It may not be for everyone, but what must be made clear is that this film is not meant to sympathize with the titular character as opposed to reflecting on what caused his ultimate downfall. Whether or not you agree with the Joker's mindset, it's fascinating when a film introspects into his psyche in order to leave an impression on viewers who will feel challenged by the clown's tragic beginnings.