Joker delves into psychotic character's mind
By Jillian Law
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The Joker, Batman’s iconic nemesis, has been a regular on both the big and small screen since the 1960s. Every actor who has played the Joker left their mark on him. Jack Nicholson embraced the campiness and demented fun of the Joker in the 1989 Batman film. Heath Ledger gave a masterful, demented performance as Gotham’s biggest villain, resulting in a post-humous Oscar for best supporting actor. More recently, Jared Leto transformed the Joker into a demented crime boss in the 2016 film Suicide Squad.
Now, it’s Joaquin Phoenix’s turn to put his own spin in Todd Phillips’ Joker, proposing an origin story for the Crown Prince of Crime. The film centers around Arthur Fleck, a clown-for-hire and failed comedian who lives with his mother in Gotham City.
Arthur can’t seem to catch a break. He suffers from a neurological problem that causes him to laugh uncontrollably. He has no connection in the world other than his mother, who is as delusion and mentally unwell as he is. He is beaten up not once but twice: first by a group of kids stealing his sign and then on a subway by three young men who work for Wayne Enterprises. The second time, he can’t take it anymore. He kills all three, and so begins his transformation into the Joker.
Phoenix gives a stellar performance as Fleck. It would have been difficult for any actor to match Ledger’s iconic performance, but Phoenix rises to the task admirable. Ledger’s Joker was a chaotic evil genius, enigmatic and impossible to predict.
Phoenix’s Joker is another creature entirely. At first, he’s broken and sympathetic, a man who hasn’t caught any breaks in life. Then he starts to kill and discovers that he likes having control in the chaos. His transformation into the Joker may be the best and most disturbing part of the film. Every time he laughs in the clown makeup, chills run down your spine.
Phoenix’s acting is excellent, but the rest of the film suffers from too many ideas. First, Arthur is a victim of a broken city. Gotham’s city funding for counseling services and medication are cut, forcing him to go off his medication and dive deeper into his psychosis. The film also tries to comment on class. Gotham is a city with a tremendous class divide. Arthur’s mom tries to reach out to Thomas Wayne, her former employer and Bruce Wayne’s father, for help. However, Arthur comes to realize this pointless. Men like Wayne don’t care about people like them.
All these are ideas would be interesting if the film took any time to explore them. Instead, Joker presents these issues and then skates right by them so Fleck can become the Joker. The film doesn’t think to ask, “If Gotham is broke, how can it be fixed?” Joker doesn’t think it can be. Like Fleck, it celebrates the city burning.
As a film, Joker is a tremendous achievement in character study and a deep dive into the mind of a villain. Outside of its artistry, however, Joker is intensely disturbing. Is the audience to root for to the Joker or to condemn him? With the way the rioters at the end cheer the Joker on as he dances, bathed in spotlight, it is clear where the film itself falls.
For a break-down of the controversy surrounding Joker, listen to the podcast.
[email protected]
The Joker, Batman’s iconic nemesis, has been a regular on both the big and small screen since the 1960s. Every actor who has played the Joker left their mark on him. Jack Nicholson embraced the campiness and demented fun of the Joker in the 1989 Batman film. Heath Ledger gave a masterful, demented performance as Gotham’s biggest villain, resulting in a post-humous Oscar for best supporting actor. More recently, Jared Leto transformed the Joker into a demented crime boss in the 2016 film Suicide Squad.
Now, it’s Joaquin Phoenix’s turn to put his own spin in Todd Phillips’ Joker, proposing an origin story for the Crown Prince of Crime. The film centers around Arthur Fleck, a clown-for-hire and failed comedian who lives with his mother in Gotham City.
Arthur can’t seem to catch a break. He suffers from a neurological problem that causes him to laugh uncontrollably. He has no connection in the world other than his mother, who is as delusion and mentally unwell as he is. He is beaten up not once but twice: first by a group of kids stealing his sign and then on a subway by three young men who work for Wayne Enterprises. The second time, he can’t take it anymore. He kills all three, and so begins his transformation into the Joker.
Phoenix gives a stellar performance as Fleck. It would have been difficult for any actor to match Ledger’s iconic performance, but Phoenix rises to the task admirable. Ledger’s Joker was a chaotic evil genius, enigmatic and impossible to predict.
Phoenix’s Joker is another creature entirely. At first, he’s broken and sympathetic, a man who hasn’t caught any breaks in life. Then he starts to kill and discovers that he likes having control in the chaos. His transformation into the Joker may be the best and most disturbing part of the film. Every time he laughs in the clown makeup, chills run down your spine.
Phoenix’s acting is excellent, but the rest of the film suffers from too many ideas. First, Arthur is a victim of a broken city. Gotham’s city funding for counseling services and medication are cut, forcing him to go off his medication and dive deeper into his psychosis. The film also tries to comment on class. Gotham is a city with a tremendous class divide. Arthur’s mom tries to reach out to Thomas Wayne, her former employer and Bruce Wayne’s father, for help. However, Arthur comes to realize this pointless. Men like Wayne don’t care about people like them.
All these are ideas would be interesting if the film took any time to explore them. Instead, Joker presents these issues and then skates right by them so Fleck can become the Joker. The film doesn’t think to ask, “If Gotham is broke, how can it be fixed?” Joker doesn’t think it can be. Like Fleck, it celebrates the city burning.
As a film, Joker is a tremendous achievement in character study and a deep dive into the mind of a villain. Outside of its artistry, however, Joker is intensely disturbing. Is the audience to root for to the Joker or to condemn him? With the way the rioters at the end cheer the Joker on as he dances, bathed in spotlight, it is clear where the film itself falls.
For a break-down of the controversy surrounding Joker, listen to the podcast.