Movie Review: Joker — What’s Cool?

Heath Ledger’s portrayal of Batman’s most infamous nemesis was widely heralded as a masterful performance after the 2008 release of The Dark Knight. Time has been kind to that film, and after Jared Leto’s failed attempt to recapture the magic that was Ledger’s haunting and larger-than-life Joker, fans were sure that there would never be another performance of this character that could compete with what Heath Ledger was able to do on-screen. While I’m not here to compare and contrast Joaquin Phoenix’s 2019 performance with Ledger’s in 2008, I’m confident saying this new take on Joker is unique enough to stand on its own as a masterful character piece in an incredible movie.

I truly didn’t expect director Todd Philips and company to take the direction they did with this film. Without spoiling too much, this is an entirely different take on Arthur Fleck as a character. Instead of cool and charismatic, Phoenix’s Joker is broken and hurt. Instead of the character’s iconic laugh being maniacal and strong in its intention, it was pained and weak in its impulsivity. Watching Arthur being beat down by life almost led me to feel sympathy for him, but in the end, I couldn’t help to root against what the cruel world had led him to become.

Joker works both as an incredibly well-delivered origin story and as a commentary on the darkest sides of ignored mental illness. I intensely disagree with the narrative that this film inherently promotes violence. This film instead encourages us to treat each other kindly despite our differences, and demonstrates the negative consequences that come from treating those who have less or are not as privileged in a rude way, in the most shocking fashion possible.

I can’t give enough praise to this film. Any awards that Joker can be nominated for, it should immediately be in the conversation to win. This movie thrives stylistically and thematically, and Phoenix gives a career-defining performance. This is a must-see, incredible movie with only minor problems that I would have to spoil to explain. Great stuff, albeit very, very unsettling.

SCORE: 9/10