This may be one of the most important works of mainstream art in our time.

Rating: 10/10 (23 November 2019)

The only emotion I was able to understand after watching this film for the first time was disturbed. It invoked one of the longest and thought-provoking conversations I've had after watching a film. One of the biggest being its portrayal of mental illness, which may have been the most realistic I've seen, and the graphic violence. Only after watching it a second time did I realize how little violence there is in the film. The way Todd Phillips was able to make the viewer feel so strongly about the protagonist's journey throughout is a testament to him, Joaquin Phoenix and anyone involved in the film, especially the way the cinematographer used colors. It balanced an original story and comic book origin story flawlessly and after the second viewing, was able to look past it's 'not so' graphic nature and understand everything Arthur was going through and was somehow able to empathize and disagree with a character at the same time as they slipped into madness. This may be one of the most important works of mainstream art in our time.