Cinema at its extreme edge.

Rating: 9/10 (13 October 2019)

First things first, I am not a phycologist. But, I like so many in the aftermath of seeing this movie found myself discussing the threads of human nature first, the sinews of the film second.
Every scene, every frame of this reminded me of a Gregory Crewdson photograph, every object picked with purpose, every room structured to affect emotion. I found it spectacular, ruthless, unforgiving and painful it might not even have been a movie it might have been interpretive dance. But constantly you can't help but ponder on the very nature of being human and how far could you be pushed; how far could you fall.
Personally, I don't see this as the glorification of violence as some others might. I grant you it does traverse a very thin line at points, and this is massive credit to Joaquin Phoenix' portrayal of Arthur. I think maybe the reason so many people are finding it uncomfortable is that it actually cuts to close the bone, it unwaveringly shines a spotlight on how we are capable of mob mentality and how quickly and how far, when things go wrong, we as 'decent' human beings could go.
I don't see the character of Arthur as simply he thrives on the violent acts, he doesn't, he thrives on finally being excepted and finding a place to belong. This Arthur within this DC Universe is a fragile one, at a crossroads within himself. This film documents what it takes to push him to become the Joker. The backdrop of social upheaval is the fuel needed to take him that extra distance and finally be accepted for who he has become.
This is also about Gotham, a fictional place, conjured in the times around post World War economic boom in America, and based on a New York style with Chicago mobster mentality, all elements that play into the fat-cat nature of Gotham, the rich get richer the poor stay poor. Sadly, an idiom that we struggle with back in the real world. The really incredible thing this film does, is we know this character, we know how it ends up, he's Batman's nemesis, he's a fictional bad-guy, yet Todd Phillips and team show us a version of this character and his story such as it is, that we didn't know possible, where we are gestured to sympathise and understand how he became a 'monster'. In real human terms.
Joker is an incredible piece of cinema and I think my opinion of it is open to change as I ponder the nature of being human more.