Ignore the hit job by reviewers

Rating: 10/10 (12 October 2019)

I don't know the politics behind the movie which got reviewers upset but their reviews on other sites (which impact the meta) are nowhere near indicative of how this movie is. This was a hit job by reviewers to tank the score. Maybe they didn't get paid enough to give good reviews?
I echo what others have said, Phoenix delivers an incredible performance that rivals Heath Ledger. In fact, I'd almost want to say his is better but I think that's only because it's still fresh in my head. Heath Ledger was the best adaptation of any comic book character I've ever seen, but this is close.
This is also the best origin story I've ever seen as well. I'm going to keep this spoiler free but I'll just say the last 30 or so minutes was incredibly intense climax comparable to the Infinity War ending.
This is also a rare comic book movie that can be a complete stand-alone film. It had very few references to the DC world and was to comic book movies what Rogue One was to SW movies. Dark, gritty, and distanced enough from the "world" it's in where you can change the names to random people and it would be just as good.