JOKER is a powder keg eruption of chaos that not only chronicles one man’s decent into sheer madness, but also a society divided by economic and cultural segregation that is just waiting for one small spark to allow itself to implode and allow anarchy to reign.
Todd Phillips finally, after years of making Warner Brothers billions at the global box office, gets to make his own film. And it is a glory.
Warner Brothers, who have taken much self inflicted and warranted bad press over the past decade, deserve all the credit in the world for allowing Phillips to make a film like this.
A film that not only will resonate but also act as a cautionary tale of false idols and society’s rabid obsession with blindly following clowns.
Warner Brothers didn’t make a movie to sell t shirts or to coincide with some misguided faux ideology.
They didn’t cash in on the topical flavor of the week; they were brave enough to make a film that is a direct statement of the boiling cesspool society has created.
“A film made by adults, for adults”
This comes as little surprise to many, but yes, of course Joker is a tribute to both Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy.
And while the film is an amalgam of Martin Scorsese’s two seminal pictures, as well as acting as the third and final installment of what now is God’s Lonely Man trilogy, it is so much more.
It is a dark and all too relatable picture, that is very reflective.
Almost holding a mirror up to the audience with the direct intent of dredging up disgust and outrage of what humanity has turned itself into.
Phillips crafts a stone cold masterpiece with the help of his longtime cinematographer Lawrence Sher.
Along with costume designer Mark Bridges, production designer Mark Friedberg.
He populates the film with seasoned character actors Shea Whigham, Bill Camp, Josh Pais, Frances Conroy, Glenn Fleshler, and Brett Cullen who all bring authority and gravitas to their respective roles.
Joaquin Phoenix gives a showstopper of a performance!
Which at the very least will yield him a nomination for best actor, yet he should really win the Oscar.
He’s not just that good, he is remarkable in his transformation into absolute insanity.
He easily gives his finest performances to date.
Robert De Niro legitimizes the film, passing his blood soaked Travis Bickle revolver and Rupert Pupkin business card to the Joker.
He crossbreeds the comicbook genre with the dangerous and high urgency films that so heavily influenced Phillips and company.
De Niro’s role is grandiose and meaty; reflecting society’s misplaced animosity that gets parlayed into the numbness of apathy.
He is the physical embodiment of everything that is wrong with our culture, and more so our acceptance of the degradation of morality.
Overall
The film won’t make you feel good.
It won’t make you clap your hands as the world burns down around the sleeping movement the Joker sparks; it isn’t supposed to.
It’s purpose is to show you what can, and probably will happen, yet isn’t audacious enough to offer false hope or a quick fix to the problems that has turned society against itself.
It doesn’t care about your feelings or your echo chamber ideology.
It wants to you sit and suffer in your own filth. Force you to reap the harvest you have sewn.
When all is lost and society has failed itself, Warner Brothers gave Todd Phillips 55 million dollars to send in the clown and burn this bitch to the ground.
JOKER review by Frank Mengarelli
Summary
JOKER explodes to the top of 2019’s best films, with Warner Brothers producing a film for adults, by adults.
