Spoiler Free review

Rating: 10/10 (5 October 2019)

Heath Ledger will probably always be my favorite rendition of The Joker, because of the charisma and intelligence he brought to the role.
With that said, I don't think anyone could have played this version of the Joker except for Joaquin Phoenix. He did things with the character, both through physicality of acting and through emotional depths, that both amazed and hurt me.
The movie is most definitely a drama and something of a personal journey of horror. It does not, as was my fear and the voiced concerns of many others, demonize everyone with a mental illness, or give justification for the incels and Red Pill Society members and MRA's to be terrible human beings. Neither does it say "Hey if you're alone and nobody likes you you can fix your problems with a little random violence." Instead, it shows us a plethora of factors, and a variety of nudges, that cause someone who's already struggling with who they are in life, and whether or not they actually even exist, to take a dark path. Joker shows us that those with mental illnesses, the 'clowns', the people considered broken or invisible or worthless by society as a whole, are being consistently let down by the system, at every turn. And Phoenix, and the writers, do an incredible job of showing us that The Joker is *human*. He's not some criminal mastermind, not at this point; he's very much figuring things out as he goes, and the film takes care to point out several times that the Joker is not making a political statement with his actions; he's not trying to enact sweeping change, or smash the Patriarchy, or fight The Man; he's just done with everyone's shit, and with how he feels the world is treating him. The movie doesn't have a lot of violence, but when it does it is brutal, harsh and quick; and it explores the ripple effects those violent acts cause.
I found this to be an incredible film. I didn't come away from it feeling like it blamed those with mental issues or trauma; The Joker was very much responsible for his own actions, just as we all are. But it definitely helped remind me that underneath the makeup, there was still a human being in there, and it definitely made me analyze my feelings on the interactions between Batman and the Joker over the years.
If you see this movie, expect to cry (I teared up several times) and to feel awkward; they do an excellent job of overextending an awkward situation until it becomes almost unbearable. Also, they somehow manage to be predictable without being boring; the predictability instead turns into a slow build of dread, because you can see where something is going a mile off, and then you're still along for the unavoidable end. And this movie is an R for a lot of language, and some fairly brutal violence.
It is not a movie that leaves you feeling good at the end, but it is one I am glad I went to see, and I hope that they tap Phoenix for the Joker in a future movie; he can clearly find that character's depths.