Hello, I’m back!
I thought of writing this review just after watching the new movie from DC… yes I’m talking about Joker! But decided not to do that because I wanted to digest the movie because a lot happens in this movie (I will not write all you should go see it yourself) and I wanted to think before writing a review.
As you can see here it shows my star ranking of the movie, and I think I have to disclose this, I took it down one star – from 6 to 5 – because, and this is why I didn’t write this right after watching the movie, there some small things that I thought would justify a 6 star ranking (which would be a full ranking). I will get into what later.
Is it just me, or is it getting crazier out there?
Warner Bros writes the storyline like: Joker centers around an origin of the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone story not seen before on the big screen. Todd Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), a man disregarded by society, is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.
(light-spoiler)
Okay now I have to say there are tons of reviews that goes into to greater detail of the movie and have many spoilers, so I will try and make this light-spoiler as much as possible.
The movie is set in Gotham 1981, Arthur (Phoenix) work as a professional clown and wanna-be comedian has a hard time fitting in. He lives with his mother, and he is going to a psychologist, but that is not going so well either.
During the whole movie you can be a little confused as to what is reality and what is the reality Arthur has painted for himself… but that is answered in the movie at pivotal moment.
Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck – from Warner Bros.
Arthur: He is beaten, mocked and abused. The abuse stems all the way back to his childhood, which Arthur has forgotten about, but get to know about, when he learns about his origin. He has uncontrollable laugh, and often in the worst situations, which also leads to beatings. I would like to say that the movie is rated R, so they can show more of this.
Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker, by Warner Bros.
Dance is one trade we get to see almost from the start with Arthur and it really comes out when he has become his alter ego – Joker! I must say Phoenix’s dance moves is good or great, I don’t which one.
So inspiration to the movie – well inspiration is part of most movies.
We should think that since this is somewhat of an origins story of the villain – Batman’s nemisis – Joker, that some of the inspiration would be from the comics and other joker related material, and yes they have used the Killing Joke, in terms of the idea of the failed stand-up comedian, but the director Todd Phillips (the Hangover movies) has also said that the silent movie The Man Who Laugh (1928) which is actually the inspired the creators of Joker, was a big inspiration.
You can read more in the article: Inspiration for Joker
I’ve read the article and I have watched The Man Who Laughs, which is an adaption from the novel of the same by Victor Hugo, and I can clearly see where the inspiration was.
The main character in the silent film Gwynplaine who was made to have a permanent smile as a child after his father was executed. There quite a few similarities between Joker and Gwynplaine in the appearance – SPOILER the hand over the mouth which Arthur does when he can’t stop laughing… it’s hard as a viewer to watch those scenes sometimes, because if you look at his eyes you can se sadness where the mouth is a smile and laugh – it’s like they don’t work together, but Arthur has a laminated card stating his condition – that must be frustrating not to be able to stop laughing especially when you see the people getting angry or weirded out by you… there is a scene in The Man Who Laugh where Gwynplaine is sitting in front of the mirror and you can see how sad he is by the look in his eyes but his mouth is always a smile.
I could go into detail comparison between The Man Who Laugh and Joker but that is another post.
The cinematography, use of needle drops and score is amazing. Now for the cinematography, I saw the movie in IMAX which gives it a crystal clear image, but the image itself is great to look at and love the different angles used.
Now to something I think is not talked about enough is the needle drops and score used in the film; fx Send In The Clowns by Frank Sinatra (when Arthur/Joker is going on a talk show), Rock and Roll Part II by Gary Glitter (used when Arthur is the Joker and dances on the stairs). The score is by the Islandic musician Hildur Gudnadóttir, and it really accompanies the image very well and it really plays into the mood of the every scene very well, and since I saw the preview of the movie I have been listening to it – great for when you have to focus on something, like writing this “review”, yes I’m listening to it right now.
I should get into my ranking of this movie. As I said in the beginning I original gave it 6 stars, but after thinking it over for a couple of days I gave it 5 instead.
My reason for that is very minor but still not okay for 6 stars.
- The political thing… it has been brought up in some of the reviews I’ve read, and it mirrors a lot of how it looks today, and I don’t know if it is an answer to the political situation right now or if really should be in the origin story of Joker, since Arthur doesn’t have the same arguments as the people with clown masks demonstrating – The rich are getting richer and poor getting poorer… but I can’t remember the political situation in 1981. I’m still thinking about how I feel about this being a center of some parts of the story (like funding for health care being cut down, which means Arthur can’t get his medicine because he can’t go to his psychologist who prescribe it to him) – so is it like that justifies his action or is the reason (I don’t know). You could see it as a signifying moment for Arthur’s descent and his path to becoming the Joker.
- The story itself. For me, as an origin story I’m torn between thinking yes I was entertained and therefore it must have fulfilled its purpose, but then again it also feels a little shallow at times.
Well take those points as you will and they’re as I said minor problems, but seriously go see it because it is worth it. I would recommend seeing it in either 70mm (as a filmnerd myself I would love to see it in this format) or IMAX… but that is up to you.
Last thing- reasons for my ranking:
- The magnificent performance by Joaquin Phoenix, I really hope he get an oscar nomination for this.
- The lack of CGI, FINALLY a superhero or in this case supervillain movie without the overflow of CGI, it helps this movie to stand out amongst these franchises – but this is just my opinion!
- The darkness of the story of the Joker. we all know it has to be dark to become a villain in Gotham
- Score and cinematography.
RANK: 5 out of 6
I think that was it for me for now!
The movie is in cinemaes now.
Links:
Emprie review: Joker review – Empire Magazine
Screencaps: Joker Screencaps
Vibes Filmclub 