"I hope my death makes more cents than my life." - Arthur's diary of jokes

Rating: 8/10 (20 February 2020)

The aura of Joaquin Phoenix at work again in this standalone 'drama' by Todd Phillips. The word 'drama' is important for this movie in particular because if you're looking for the conventional madness and the psychopathetic phenomenon that the name "Joker" always brings, you would be disappointed. Joker is as much a movie about Arthur's fall as it is about Joker's rise. For the most part of the 121 minutes, we see this really poor and pathetic figure of Arthur Fleck, living with his single-mother in a not-so-pretty apartment, and working amidst continuous abuse and ignorance of the rich kids of Gotham City, while struggling to make it as a stand-up comedian. Arthur Fleck is the typical portrayal of the left-out loner, who is beaten down by the unforgiving capitalist society, and finally able to assert power and control by means of violence. This is not a new concept. But, the real deal is the way Phoenix makes the character his own. The whole movie is seen from Phoenix's (Arthur's) point of view, and I could not find a scene as such in which he is not present. It is not so easy to really convince the fans of 'The Dark Knight' trilogy that Joker could be someone other than the exceptional Heath. But, somehow, Joaquin Phoenix as Joker, right from its announcement, seemed right. He is phenomenal throughout the movie. The screeching laughter which looked physically very troubling for the actor to execute on so many occasions, is going to be remembered for sometime. Only someone as eccentric as Phoenix could've made this kind of a portrayal possible.
However, there are a couple of things which needs to be addressed here. Firstly, the divided opinions about the movie, with many of the critics questioning the negative message that this movie sends to the audience. The argument of the nihilistic portrayal and making violence fashionable through this movie is really devoid of sense. This is not the first movie and won't be the last to portray violence. Secondly, and this makes more sense than the previous, the movie does not really have much in it besides Phoenix's brilliance. Not much happens for the most part of the movie, except for Arthur's painful laughter and somewhat catchy dance-moves. That being said, the movie does end on a high with the metamorphosis of Arthur into Joker taking centre stage and chaos unleashed.
This one leaves us with hope for something bigger and surely, the next installment will see the Joker we all saw and loved through the years.
This is not a movie about Joker, it is a movie about Arthur. Remember this and you'll love it.