"Joker" Review - The Oh-So Thrilling Joke

I don’t know if a movie has gotten this much negative press before its release that wasn’t because of sexual harassment or other scandal. “Joker” has been riddled with it for weeks even though it won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Going in, I was sure it would get mixed feelings, and so far, that has been the case. My thoughts specifically on this Joker film (another one?) are exactly that. I wouldn’t say I loved it, but I wouldn’t say I disliked it either.

Maybe I need another viewing of it to take int all in, but “Joker” didn’t hit the high notes I was hoping for it to hit. I hoped for something like Carrie, Silence of the Lambs, or The Assassination on Gianni Versace. These pieces of entertainment gave us cold blooded murderers with either a charm, a cloud of mystery, a well written sympathetic backstory, or all of the above. When viewing this, I just didn’t get anything like that. Without spoiling anything, the story felt very disjointed by either not explaining why or how certain events came to be, or by just glossing over certain plot points. Either way, it left me hanging with more questions than answers, and didn’t leave me feeling too much sympathy for the main character. The script doesn’t glorify a mass murderer, but it’s hard to feel bad or love him a good amount. About 2/3rds of the film, I felt sadness, but also disgust and confusion for why certain plot points couldn’t have gone another way, or why did the screenwriters choose this route? Do they really have to cram other DC characters in this? That last one, yes I know it’s a DC film, but this was supposed to be separate from the DCEU and some of the comic book connections felt very unnecessary. Overall, many of my gripes with the movie would probably be much harder if the “Joker” name wasn’t attached to it.

Here’s what “Joker” does accomplish however; gorgeous cinematography (a must see in 70mm if you can), a stunning and frightening performance by Joaquin Phoenix, and one HELL of a third act. I may be hitting on this film more than others, but trust me, the last 30 minutes will blow your socks off.

I think in the end, it deserves a second viewing. I’m not sure if I’ll get more out of it, as like I said, it felt slow and confusing at some times. Even the eye candy cinematography didn’t serve a good purpose about half the time. But as a stand alone movie, any cinephile will just barely enjoy themselves, and comic book/Joker fans will be pretty satisfied. It’s one beauty of a film both in color and in character acting. It deserves praise for that alone, and that’s no joke.

One Nebs Up!