A Good Lead Performance--Yet a Poor Character Study

Rating: 4/10 (5 October 2019)

"Joker" has received a ton of attention--and controversy--in recent weeks, with strong reviews from the Venice Film Festival leading up to a Golden Lion win, but increasingly divisive and polarized reviews after that. I was very excited for this film because I really like Joaquin Phoenix, and was especially interested in the idea of doing a character study-style take on the comic book movie that would theoretically feel unique to most of the other, CGI action-filled ones. Don't get me wrong, some more traditional comic book movies are very entertaining, but I thought that this could be a fresh take on the genre. Sadly, I was wrong.
Much has been said about Phoenix's performance, and I will say that he is quite strong here. He looks somewhat unlike his normal self, as in remarkably thin and frail--and convincingly plays the part of a genuinely disturbed man caught in the desire to seek attention solely to augment his own psychotic state. His fits of laughter sound both funny and depraved, and you can tell that he truly immersed himself in character. Unfortunately, the rest of the movie is extremely disappointing. The film's plot is rather generic--that is, when the movie has substantive plot points. With the exception of one scene, there are not many key plot points in the first two-thirds of the film. As a result, the film starts to feel stale and extremely repetitive after a while. We know that Phoenix will continue to gradually lose his mind, but what else are we supposed to take away from this, especially since the film's supporting characters are uninteresting and often underdeveloped? The film tries to be a homage to some of Martin Scorsese's earlier films such as "The King of Comedy" and "Taxi Driver," but ends up feeling like a disingenuous knockoff rather than a clever homage to Scorsese. Even though the film's idea of making a famous comic book villain into a dark psychological drama/thriller sounds "original," the actual film itself regrettably does not feel original at all. The script is generally fine, but it fails to give Phoenix as much of a range as he should have in this role. (However, he does incredibly well working with what he has.) The film is also poorly edited at times, with ringing noises and music sometimes juxtaposing or intruding on what should be key moments based on character and dialogue, rather than sound design--although, to its credit, there are moments of strong cinematography and lighting. While some will like it--hence the divisive reception--I was deeply disappointed. 4/10
Note: I saw the film in Dolby Cinema. The film's picture and sound quality were greatly enhanced in this format.