Genre: Drama/ Crime
Runtime: 121 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Shea Whigham, Bill Camp
Description: In Gotham City, mentally-troubled comedian Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) is disregarded and mistreated by society. He then embarks on a downward spiral of revolution and bloody crime. This path brings him face-to-face with his alter-ego: “The Joker”.
Review: One of the movies I was most looking forward to this year. A film that should save DC, when it’s Marvel and Disney that rule Hollywood. Looking forward on how they are going to treat this origin story of one of the most iconic DC villains. But also how Joaquin Phoenix, just as eccentric as he his talented, was going to portray the Joker.
You can say many things about this crazy clown, but not that he is a superhero. To mark “Joker” as a superhero film, is wrong. Even though the film is set within the superhero universe. Gotham may look like you average American city, it does have its own laws an rules. With some social criticism here and there, “Joker” is mostly a mix of action and sharp dialogue in a totally crazy environment.
And crazy it is indeed. From the first moment, Arthur’s hysterical laughter and awkward dancing grabs you by the throat. Where Heath Ledger surprised us all with his portrayal of the Joker in 2008, he showed us a character in a further state. Because the only thing we were missing there, was his backstory. It was the mystery that made Ledger’s Joker so great. Joaquin Phoenix gets the task to show us how he has become the Joker and why he is the way he is. He is a loner, lives with his ill mother in a crappy apartment and transforms into one of the most legendary movie characters of the past decade. The question is why, and we get an answer.
The hard thing for an origin story to do is, to create an interesting and grabbing story, even though you know how it ends. We all know, that in the end he takes on his persona of The Joker to the fullest, but the story of how he got there has to be strong to keep an audience interested the entire runtime. And what we get is a series of unpredictable incidents, which make the outcome even more crazy.
Everything that isn’t Joaquin Phoenix, is a sideshow. The beautiful shots, nods to previous films, the subtle use of music or the strong performances by Robert De Niro and Zazie Beetz. “Joker” is in many ways a masterpiece, but it doesn’t count when Phoenix isn’t in the center of all this. He is the reason why many people were so excited for this film. Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger and Jared Leto all played this role before him and they all had a different take. So whoever wants to follow this line of performers, is a brave man. Phoenix never imitates or copies anyone, he gives the character his own spin with its own quirks and manners. Every frame with Phoenix in it, he makes it his own. You have to watch him, you only see him. He probably is closest to Ledger’s version of the Joker, but in no means we need to compare the two. If Phoenix doesn’t get an Oscar nomination for this, I have no faith in humanity anymore.
“Joker” is definitely one of the best movies of 2019 and it will most certainly end up on my list of best films at the end of the year.
Rating: 5/ 5
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