Incredible performance, and an excellent reimagining of an origin film

Rating: 9/10 (26 February 2020)

When the movie ended, my thoughts were: "Wow, that was a really dark, depressing movie. And Joaquin Phoenix is an incredible actor."
After a few days to ponder it, I now view it a tremendous movie. It works on so many levels: The transformation of a mentally ill man to someone who is criminally insane. A dark origin film that takes Arthur Fleck, in an otherwise ordinary tale of woe, on an unlikely path to an eventual arch-villain whose unhinged randomness is his greatest weapon. And that transformation is not quite complete in this film, leaving room for more
The cinemtography is ugly (in a great way) and sets the dark mood. The plot and the script do a great job of making Arthur's tortured existence palpable and sympathetic. Phoenix's physical performance is unbelievably good. Never felt so sorry for such a creepy persona. He's like a car wreck you can't look away from.
Highly recommended. I'm looking forward to seeing where they go with this.