A Review of the 'Joker'
The creation of Joker signals a possible new direction for the DC cinematic universe. 2012 saw Avengers defeat The Dark Knight Rises at the box office, and signaled a seven year run of dominance for Marvel films. The Disney/Marvel movie machine is so powerful that three films with the Marvel logo have passed a billion dollars, each in 2019 alone. DC has been left riding the bench. Aquaman and Wonder Woman made some money, and Shazam! flew under the radar but may establish a cult following. DC still needed something, perhaps a dramatic shift from pattern.
The mythical R-rated comic book film had previously poked its head with the Blade films and other endeavors in the 2000’s. It was Deadpool and Logan that showed these films could also make a lot of money. Comic book film mania was on, and the audience for more dark and violent stories was suddenly booming. Joker is Todd Phillip’s attempt to funnel that passion for DC, and to crack the origin story of Gotham City’s oldest villain, not in the context of a winged vigilante or in the camaraderie of other villains. Joker is the story of Athur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), and Arthur Fleck alone. He works part time at a clown agency, where he is leased to children’s hospitals and street corners for advertising. Fleck dreams of stand up comedy, and fantasizes appearing with Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro) on late night television. Mental illness and a Tourrette’s-like condition of laughter are just two blockades to his path.
Reality and fantasy become blurred in Fleck’s mind as he moves closer to embracing evil. Joker follows the classic comic book theme of “one bad day”, as Fleck loses his job and discovers painful truth about his family and his upbringing. He crosses paths with other characters, even seemingly develops close relationships. Fleck’s mother Penny (Frances Conroy) holds the string to Fleck’s final grip on reality, and Penny’s secrets cut that string.
The moment Joker establishes Arthur Fleck as an iconic villain occurs after his first kills. Three young Wayne Enterprise employees lay breathless on the subway. Arthur Fleck escapes into a dimly lit bathroom, and the camera follows Fleck as he begins to move. Subtle at first, Fleck crosses his feet delicately. The camera plays second to his graceful flow. Arms spread out like a grotesque Christ, Fleck leaps from point to point as he basks in the afterglow of murder. A smile and a bone chilling joy radiates from the screen. His movement is backed by a theme so haunting and demonic it refuses to leave the ear. Swirling horns and ominous percussion help create a nightmarish scenario -- the birth of a villain.
Phoenix gives the character’s laugh a different function in the film. Rather than a standard human emotion, or an evil declaration, the laugh has warped Fleck’s mind. The laugh controls his physical reactions to his environment, determining if and when he speaks. Likely a result of horrific child abuse, the laugh takes roots and spreads where Fleck moves, an unforgettably disturbing aberration affecting those who even briefly cross his path. The film establishes Fleck’s struggle against the laugh in the first act, but by the credits the victor is clear.
Todd Phillips writes and directs the film with a grudge. His comments regarding PC culture and comedy in recent weeks betray his creative process. What makes a man evil? What causes mind and heart to forge a path littered with bodies and bullets? More specifically, how does the greatest villain in comic book history begin his marathon? While Phillips avoids the fear of many critics in establishing an incel fantasy, he uses a televised monologue from Fleck to grind his axe with society, complaining of the troubles and woes ignored by the upper class. Phillips paints a picture of a society so volatile that a few small words (and a touch of murder) from Fleck cause riots akin to some of the worst our country has seen. Look closely at the protestors in Phillip’s Gotham City; however, and you’ll find stark differences between them and the protestors in our cities today.
Joaquin Phoenix gave his emotional and physical spirit to Joker. Every scene runs through him, every twisted word and horrifying laugh. His eyes and smile disturb the very core, but refuse to let the eye wander. Attention is demanded. And despite Phillip’s best attempts to mold Phoenix into a mouthpiece for his own problems, a defining performance is drilled into the viewer's mind.