#Joker Stand Alone Movie: Should be left alone or be toned down for general consumption

Rating: 6/10 (7 October 2019)

I'd say the character that #Joaquin portrays could've been in any other story or franchise & it would be seen as disturbing & too dark for the mainstream. It was well acted & tears down the "suspension of disbelief" which takes the character out of the campiness that #Joker's portrayal has been in the past. If fans of the #DC stories can see this as a "What if?" or #Elseworlds story: then it's easier to swallow. I think for that reason alone, it hasn't been removed from mainline theaters.
It's a sad look at mental illness in real world settings that depict a part of what's going on around us w/a political tone that's definitely social commentary.
In reality, it very narrowly captures an element of the DCU within Gotham (that could very easily be New York or San Francisco, or at least the most lowest income areas of both w/a little bit of LA thrown in). That sets the tone: the familiarity with the underside of society that we all hope will "just go away" or "is someone else's problem. We see a common enemy of big pharma & Capitalism gone bad. We see a person seeking help (albeit through a broken system, that may have been forced on him). Then we see a man, who through the eyes of mental illness, comes to a breaking point. A breaking point we can all sympathize with. A breaking point, that we think might not be his own fault. Therein lies the rub: we relate & disgust ourselves a little, and yet we can't look away at this travesty. That's why it's disturbing. We all find ourselves just 5 minutes away from making similar choices.
This movie takes us to the precipice of normality & morality then takes a magnifying glass to our psyche.
Here's to hoping for a longer edition that works out even more of that complexity or at least a second one to explore that depravity & not make just another "violence for violence sake" comic book storyline.