Joker
Directed by:
Todd PhillipsCinematography:
Lawrence SherComposer:
Hildur GuðnadóttirCast:
Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Shea Whigham, Bill Camp, Glenn Fleshler, Leigh Gill, Josh Pais, Marc Maron (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
Failed comedian Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) encounters violent thugs while wandering the streets of Gotham City dressed as a clown. Disregarded by society, Fleck begins a slow descent into madness as he transforms into the criminal mastermind known as Joker in director Todd Phillips’ thrilling origin story. (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment)
Videos (3)
Reviews (23)
I have been looking forward to this movie since I saw the trailer and found out that Joaquin Phoenix, a charismatic character actor who can infuse ambiguity and mystery into his characters, would play The Joker. The film's victory at the Venice Film Festival and the enthusiastic reviews only ignited my anticipation even more. However, the result is a cold shower and the feeling of the biggest film disappointment of the year. Spectacular action scenes, superheroes, and battles are nowhere to be found in Joker, and the film's inclusion in the comic book Batman universe is actually unnecessary and confusing. That's just a side note for those who prefer this type of experience because I didn't miss any of it. I wanted to witness the transformation of a human character, to see a man who gradually loses the ground under his feet, succumbs to darkness, and becomes a monster. Arthur was supposed to be a disturbing, unsettling, and dangerous character in my eyes. I was supposed to fear him. I have no problem with Phoenix's performance, as he gives his maximum, as expected, and greatly contributes to the film. My problem lies in the interpretation of the Joker character. Arthur reminds me of Theodore from the movie Her - that is, his "patheticness." Phoenix's Joker does not evoke dark premonition and fear, but rather sympathy. His laughter is not sinister; they are sounds of a fragile desperate person whom you would rather take by the hand and comfort (everything will be alright, little guy) - even when he commits murder. In reality, Arthur doesn't undergo any development. Although he commits several crimes during the film, they could have easily happened at the very beginning. From the first minute, he is a miserable man trapped in the web of mental illness, self-pity, and bitterness. Moreover, he is an utterly peculiar character. A man recently released from a mental institution, who works as a clown visiting sick children in the hospital, even though there is no more optimism in him than in someone dying of cancer and no more kindness than in a black plague epidemic. The director clearly modeled his antihero after Travis Bickle, the iconic character from the famous Scorsese film. He also transparently references this by casting film veteran Robert De Niro. However, Joker lacks the drive, energy, determination, and stubbornness of Taxi Driver. In the end, Joker fails as a movie that wants to entertain, as it clumsily treads water for the first two-thirds of its runtime, but also as a film that wants to be more than just a comic book spectacle. I sense an attempt at transcendence similar to the pretentiousness that emerges from Aronofsky's films, but as an existential psychological drama, Joker doesn't work - Todd Phillips is too predictable, shallow, and self-righteous for that. Giving Joker less than three stars wouldn't be fair, given Joaquin's phenomenal performance. Phillip's craftsmanship cannot be denied; he beautifully creates a Gotham environment reminiscent of neglected city centers in American metropolises from the 1970s. Hildur Guðnadóttir's music delivers precisely what it should in terms of emotional impact, and the cinematography and production design are just as grand as you would expect from a similar American blockbuster. However, we don't watch movies for their cinematography or music, but for the story and characters... Overall impression: 55%.
()
(less)
(more)
Yes, it's basically trivial and in surprisingly many ways less sophisticated than it looks (apart from idea with laughter and the final “relativization"). Yes, its quoting/following of Scorsese’s examples in the form of Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy is too obvious and consistent to be considered a plus. It's not surprising in terms of its course or outcome. At the same time, however, it is undeniable that what Sher can do with the camera, Guðnadóttir with the droning (non-)music and especially Arthur Fle ... Um, Joke ... Um, Phoenix, together make a film that is disturbing, gets under your skin and won´t fade away when movie is over. Even without an apologetic excuse “in the context of a comic-book movie". Which means a lot.
()
A return to The Dark Knight in full glory. I haven't seen such a brutally depressing film in a really long time. Gotham is a city where no one would want to live, with the possible exception ofsome extras someone would pay to do so. At the same time, however, it is perfectly emulating what is probably supposed to be the1970s and is based on the equally beautifully gloomy New York. It’s giving off an incredibly powerful old-school feel, which is why, together with the practically perfect performance of Joaquin Phoenix and no less great music, it creates an absolutely epic atmosphere that has not been seen in similar films for a really long time. I like the way the character Joker is portrayed so that he is neither good nor bad. He has his issues and bad traits but also positive traits and an effort to create a better world… until he loses his marbles. Joaquin Phoenix was given free rein here, and this time I liked his performance immensely. It’s true that he plays one weirdo after another, but Joker is a phenomenon who has both a light and a dark side. So even though I wasn’t exactly rooting for him the entire film, my eyes were glued to the screen in every scene. Some scenes expressing human madness, evil or anarchy belong among the best I’ve ever seen. I won’t hesitate to say that it’s the highest level of filmmaking craft and an experience I will be processing for a long time. Who are we as people? Hasn’t Joker been born out of all the grief and evil we keep inside and try to not let it out so we don’t go crazy?
()
It is precisely for this dark dimension and fateful depth that I generally like DC characters more than the brightly colored Marvel ones. Todd Phillips’ Joker is a stylish, psychologically well-conceived drama with a great acting performance by Phoenix that satisfactorily explains the birth of an important comic book character in the Batman universe, as it reveals the causes of the character’s deepening anxiety, leading to his total rejection of belief in anything good, and his logical self-realization in his revolutionary leadership of the disgruntled resistance against higher society. The film is a pop-culture vision of Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and is well connected to the origin of Batman both in its screenplay and atmosphere, with the typical Batman-like darkness. I won’t give this the full five stars because the film’s climax was neither surprising nor extraordinary – I was expecting, but I had hoped it wouldn’t be the “biggest” thing that the film would bring.
()
Joker gave me goosebumps sometime in the first few minutes, and then repeated the phenomenon a few more times for me. It's possible that it was just a well-written character that any good actor would have excelled at portraying, but for me, something this well-acted is a minor miracle. Joaquin Phoenix blew me away with his performance and I don't think I'll ever forget his pained smile and laugh, it was etched deeply under my skin. 5 stars, one of the best of the past year. I can see myself rewatching it again very soon.
()
