Most of us know the basic story of the "Joker", Batman's arch-nemesis.
However, director Todd Phillips felt that the most widely accepted origin of the Clown Prince of Crime, that of a man who fell into a vat of chemicals and came out with bleached skin and emerald green hair, wasn't realistic in his eyes.
Instead, Phillips, along with writing partner Scott Silver, created their own version, an Everyman who's been a victim of bad circumstances that ultimately drive him over the edge.
When we first meet Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), he's employed, via a comedy-centric employment agency, as a clown promoting a going out of business sale at a Gotham City business, circa 1981. Some juveniles steal his sign, then use it to beat him down.
Arthur, soon enough, finds out the truth about his own life, and how he's lived a lie for so, so long. In the words of Ray Bradbury, this way lies madness.
Phillips drew inspiration from a number of sources, including, predictably, Conrad Veidt's "The Man Who Laughs", although an excerpt of Charlie Chaplin's "Modern Times" is shown. In essence, it is a love letter of a sort to Martin Scorsese, as three of his films--"Raging Bull", "Taxi Driver", and "The King of Comedy", all starring Robert DeNiro---were among Phillips' inspirations. DeNiro, in a callback after a fashion to "King", plays a Johnny Carson-esque talk show host. The ensemble cast also includes Zazie Beets ("Deadpool 2"), Brett Cullen, and Marc Maron (GLOW).
"Joker" is powered by an eclectic, diverse soundtrack which includes music by Jimmy Durante and the Main Ingredient, among others. Phoenix is already generating Oscar buzz, just as the late Heath Ledger did 11 years ago in "The Dark Knight", but Phoenix shows some added range and versatility. The pantomimed dance routines are some of the strongest scenes in the movie, perhaps a result of Arthur being inspired by those old movies, not only Chaplin, but there's an old Fred Astaire movie mixed in, too.
Here's the trailer:
It's funny how, more than three decades before the "Occupy" movement became a thing, Phillips & Silver posited Arthur as an inspiration to an anarchistic movement bent on bringing down the rich. Hmmm.
Trailers at today's screening included:
"Gemini Man" (Friday): Will Smith's latest has oversaturated the airwaves with a commercial airing 2-3 times an hour, depending on what channel you're watching.
"Pain & Glory" (November): A Spanish language drama with Penelope Cruz & Antonio Banderas. No Benicio del Toro here.
"Joker" gets an A-.
4 comments:
"....an Everyman who's been a victim of bad circumstances that ultimately drive him over the edge....."
Perhaps, but comic book readers in 1940 wanted something a bit more dramatic, and the artists needed something a bit easier and faster to depict than a warped personality. I'm not certain audiences in 1940 were ready to believe that personality blended with environmental factors made a criminal, either. If you're the comic book reader in 1940, what are you going to believe? Sigmund Freud or a vat of boiling acid?
It had to be boiling acid, of course. Always boiling. Room-temperature acid does't carry the same menace as boiling.
Ehhhh, ok.
Even this film really doesn't tell the true story as there are many clues as to how much of the story is really in Fleck's head. To he honest, you could take out the Joker references and mentions of Bruce Wayne and Gotham and have what is essentially a latter day version of Taxi Driver or Falling Down.
The whole look of the film does remind me very much of Taxi Driver - the early 80s aesthetic, the slow burn, the character study of a guy who slowly falls into madness as he grows as a legend in his own mind.
What i don't like is how every mainstream critic is dead set against liking this film (despite raves from real theatergoers) and the media practically goading some loose cannon to cause trouble at theaters! I don't think they were making such notions when the aforementioned films were in theaters! Or recent movies like John Wick!!
Not every mainstream critic feels that way. I think Mick LaSalle gave it a rave review. There are people still upset over the "Dark Knight Rises" shootings in Colorado 7+ years ago, and can't let go.
Then again, they can't let go of Columbine, and that was 20 years ago........
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