Actually, you CAN say you heard this one from me: “JOKER” IS A REALLY GOOD MOVIE AND YOU SHOULD GO SEE IT! This standalone portrait of the famous Batman villain is best described as a close-up psychological study of a descent into madness. And, when I say close-up, I mean really close-up. Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker is in each. and. every. scene. This exposure results in a slow build, but the payoff is more than worth the wait. Phoenix rises from the proverbial ashes of neglect and dilapidation to become Charles Manson without The Family, at least not explicitly, bringing us an updated vision of Helter Skelter whose conflict is not between the races.
One of the questions on everyone’s mind is, should he be nominated for an Oscar? Yes. But, will he be and, if he is, will he win? That’s hard to say. Phoenix’s performance is certainly Oscar-worthy, but political correctness could be his downfall, in the same vein that it robbed Leonardo DiCaprio of a much-deserved Oscar for his performance in “The Wolf of Wall Street”, the deeply flawed reasoning being that awarding his performance would have been synonymous with sanctioning rampant capitalist greed. Poppycock!
But getting back to Phoenix, yes; he crushed it, as we all knew he would. And, although there will undoubtedly be comparisons between his Joker and Heath Ledger’s, I would argue that each actor’s portrayal is so unique that a fair comparison cannot be made. Phoenix brings his own brand of crazy as he physically and psychologically morphs into the being that was once Arthur Fleck; may he rest in peace.
The movie itself is also quite good as it brings together elements from the comic books, previous movies, the Gotham TV series, and the graphic novels. I thought one interesting twist is the portrayal of the Thomas Wayne character. Up until now, we had been led to believe that he was of patrician stock that was raised on the Luke verse, “…to whom much has been given, much will be required”. (Btw, that was the very mild spoiler.)
Oh well, I guess I shouldn’t cry too hard over this rendering of the Wayne patriarch as so many other aspects of the comics have changed over time. Long gone are the depictions of violence with balloon captions like “BAM!” and “BOFF!” (oops, scratch that one, LOL). But I have to say I miss the innocence of the original comics I read at my grandmother’s house when I was a little girl. I remember sitting on the floor of my uncle’s bedroom for hours picking out my faves, mainly Superman, Archie, Richie Rich, and, perhaps a few others I can no longer remember. (Batman wasn’t one of my favorite comics, but the TV show was).
But, alas, we can’t put the genie back in the bottle, can we? “Joker” is where we are, folks, in a dark, twisted world where down is up and wrong is right. Hmm, sounds like life is imitating art, doesn’t it? #littleblogger
I need to to thank you for this good read!! I certainly loved every bit of it. I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you postÖ
I need to to thank you for this good read!! I certainly loved every bit of it. I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you postÖ