Joker
This is a depressing bleak movie; however Joaquin Phoenix’s
performance is outstanding and sublime. This is an origin movie of the Joker
whose real name is Arthur Fleck. He works for a clown agency sending clowns to
hospitals, out of business stores and children’s party’s. Gotham City is based
on 1970’s New York City with graffiti covered subways, porno theaters and roaming
gangs. This gritty violent environment is the perfect backdrop for someone
going mad.
Phoenix is a portrait in progress of a person descending
into madness. Sad eyes and vacant face, anyone who suffered from mental illness
can relate. He sees himself as a comedian but he is not funny. Phoenix has the Joker’s trademark laugh. His laughing is uncontrollable
and puts him some traumatic situations. He suffers from a real medical condition
called pseudobulbar affect (PBA). The condition can be triggered by stressful
or awkward situations and the laughter can be mistaken for mockery. Phoenix uses
laughter as a precursor of violence. His Joker is emaciated in this movie; his
ribcage and shoulder blades jut out. I am not sure what method acting this was
supposed to represent but there are chubby killers.
He does not start out
violent but as a victim of violence and ridicule becomes violent. The violence becomes
more frequent and brutal. There has been much said in the press about this film’s
violence. Quentin Tarantino’s movies
have ten times the violence than this film. Maybe here the violence is specific
to a madman and is more relatable to
current events. As he commits more murders his violence becomes more nonchalant.
The movie is a bit slow. It took about one hour for the action
to start. This is more of a dark drama rather than a superhero flick with lighthearted banter. In two hours there was only
one screen that was funny and clever.
The other actor of note was Robert De Niro who portrayed a parity
of late night host Johnny Carson. The stage set was a fateful reproduction of
Carson’s show down to the same open curtain. Compared to his other performances
this was a cake walk for DeNiro. De Niro’s performance is not the impetus to see
this film.
I am not deep into the Batman lore but the Wayne’s appear in
the film and Bruce Wayne is portrayed as
a young boy. In this script there is tangled relation between Arthur Fleck and
the Wayne’s.
This year’s crop of Academy bound films has not yet blossomed
so it is difficult to compare Joker to its competition. At minimum I think Phoenix
will get a nomination for best actor. Anyway given the film’s big box office
the award would be a nice to have.
