Joker - Review

With the end of an era for comic book fantasy adventures from Marvel’s Cinematic Universe, we are left to pick up the pieces and find the next big thing to drive the genre of stories and films forward in bringing comic book characters/stories to life.  This leads us to DC films along with Warner Brothers looking to finally define their new direction after the moderate success of Shazam! with this grounded and definitive take on the origins and transformation of one of the most iconic villains to grace fiction, Joker directed by Todd Phillips (Old School, The Hangover Trilogy) and wrote this story with Scott Silver, not drawing on any of the comic books or adaptations for the character outside of a few inspired elements like “The Killing Joke”.  It mainly draws many inspirations and somewhat odd similarity to 2 iconic Martin Scorsese films such as Taxi Driver and The King Of Comedy but with the focus on Joker as the lead protagonist to explore and develop from start to finish.  Is it this purported masterpiece of a film or is it really a compellingly dark yet uneven character study that is only salvaged by the strengths of its parts that hold it together?  Let’s dive right into the tragic tale of Arthur Fleck and explore where he is at, in his story.

We follow a part time clown worker/ex-Arkham patient named Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), discussing his shabby, painful days of working and caring for his mother Penny Fleck (Frances Conroy), who was a former secretary of Thomas Wayne (Bret Cullen).  We learn through his daily life routine that he has a neurological condition that causes him to laugh when he feels nervous or stressed, while barely making enough to get by if kids weren’t roughing him up or getting docked for a sign stolen from him.  Arthur cares for his ill mother, while aspiring to be a stand-up comedian like his idol, Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro), a late-night talk show host admired by many in Gotham.  That isn’t helped by the rundown, grimy setting of Gotham City, with people being frustrated with the rich society that refuses to help make their lives better and Thomas Wayne vying to run as Mayor of Gotham City as a way to improve the city for the better.  However, it gets even worse for Arthur Fleck with his job and his life prospects in general.

After being given a gun by a colleague and accidentally dropping it in the kids’ hospital ward, he gets fired and starts to laugh hysterically of his predicament, when a group of rowdy and rude wall street men harass him.  It gets to the point where Fleck kills them and he realizes in a quiet moment alone, just how powerful and liberating it was to take the life of those that have stepped on and ignored him entirely.  It also seems to bring out his confidence to express his love for Sophie Dumond (Zazie Beetz) and becoming an item to him, as he sees how his violent action has brought about the courage in Gotham City to rise against the wealthy with Thomas Wayne adding fuel to the flame with his dismissal of this movement.  Through revelations, distorted truths, and ultimately an admission from within, this is the seed of change that would transform the introverted Arthur Fleck into the iconic Clown prince of crime, The Joker.

This is not your traditional comic book film at all but more of a solo character study drama that follows from start to finish, Arthur’s transformation from a meek, unstable man hanging on by a thread to a confident, brazen literal incarnation of chaos and anger of a completely lost soul.  His character arc is the driving force that moves with such powerful force, that it keeps the film’s script holding together, despite the inherent problems within the script’s storyline and on the nose, heavy handed dialogue dominating the few moments of subtle, impactful nuance that does exist here and there.  This is coupled with the extraordinary, heavy instrumental score and committed lead performance that makes this character of Arthur Fleck a compelling return for the introverted character and transformation arc that dominated much of 1970’s cinema.  It is for those reasons that elevate the film as well as bring to light the importance of mental illness in lieu of character development and to the overall point the film makes regarding the character becoming the Joker.  But the real strength of this film, exudes the same intention and creative drive as Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins, to reinvent the character and find a way to ground him while staying true to the core elements of the character and they pull it off with the personal character story they have at work here.

Where the issues reside with the story overall, is within the script and the story created around this character study as well as the dialogue writing at work here.  It is difficult to avoid comparisons to Martin Scorsese and his style of filmmaking, particularly its main inspirations being Taxi Driver and The King Of Comedy with elements of different 1970’s films that can be discerned, notably Sidney Lumet’s Network as a clear example.  It does take certain plot beats and character driven moments of those films and pretty much injects different components of the Joker and Gotham City into it (while still staying true to the core essences of the character and world), it does so to a less impactful or remarkable effect than its source materials.  There are also times, through the dialogue that the film tends to be heavy handed or untrusting of the audience’s intelligence to spell out the themes and emotions of the character at times.   This doesn’t take away from the moments that do work and despite how thin and ultimately shallow the story is, the personal journey of Arthur Fleck into the Joker is what keeps the entire film afloat. 

The main driving force of this film and why it works effectively well is from the brilliantly, transformative lead role of Arthur Fleck played by Joaquin Phoenix.  His dedication to the acting craft as well as his own research into making his performance authentic is nothing short of stunning to see it play so well into making a character, we can empathize with but also despise for what he truly becomes by the climax.  As the meek yet passive Arthur Fleck, we truly feel for his journey to find his place in the grimy, uncaring Gotham, while dealing with his uncontrollable mental illness of laughing caused by the physical abuse to the brain.  When he finally transforms into the Joker, he completely owns his unique take on the character and brings a new dimension to the iconic villain that will no doubt inform the direction of future incarnations down the line. 

Another flawed but commendable aspect of the film is the supporting cast as a whole, ranging from minimal and non-existent to surprisingly effective for the short time present in the film.  The most notable one that utilizes his role completely to the fullest is Robert De Niro as the talk show host Murray Franklin, channeling the swagger and dismissive attitude of the characters he has played, specifically from The King Of Comedy and stands out in the 2-3 major scenes he has throughout the film.  Zasie Beetz as Sophia doesn’t really get much to do in her small screen time as the love interest but she does handle the big twist regarding her connection to Arthur very well.  Even Brian Tyree Henry makes the most of his one scene along with the quick appearance of notable characters of Gotham but really serving to develop Arthur transformation and acceptance of his chaotic self.  Overall, the cast are relatively fine in their bit roles but Phoenix is the one who shines and will get most of the attention for his exceptionally powerful take on this character.

Let’s get right into the look of the film, starting with the art direction and cinematography especially in designing the cityscape and environments featured throughout the film.  It is easy to see the rundown, dilapidated apartment complexes and worn nature of Gotham from hospitals to trains are inspired by the 1970’s grimy aesthetics of New York at that time.  It works effectively in putting us in a city that could lay the foundation for the creation of Batman and Joker, compliments of the talents with production designer Mark Friedberg, set decoration by Kris Moran, and art director Laura Ballinger with their teams to craft this look of Gotham based around the rundown areas of both New Jersey and Sunnyside/Bronx of New York City.  The same can go for the cinematography of the film by Lawrence Sher (shot many of Phillips films including The Hangover trilogy and War Dogs), who absolute draws us into the headspace of Arthur in a very intimate, creepy way that allows us to experience his perspective of Gotham with capturing the aesthetics of crime dramas of the 1970’s period.  The look of this film is truly stunning to watch unfold and captures a balance of the hyper-realism that defines the atmosphere of Gotham City within the streets of New York City, from everyone that worked on the artistic departments for this film.

This is a dedicated section to the costume and makeup artists for this film, especially in crafting a new look for the iconic character as well.  The costume design by Mark Bridges really brings back the workman, poverty-stricken qualities of the 70’s perfectly with the look of each citizen of Gotham contrasting with the outlandish clown getups Fleck wears throughout as well as the classy affluent looks of the wealthy and famous characters in the cast.  The makeup team have also made each character look distinctive and fitting of that time period and setting but they truly out do themselves with a different yet respectful look for the final Joker look that standouts out and maintains the classic look of the character as well as a homage to the Scorsese films that it was inspired from.  It was worth noting the artistry put into making these characters come to life and be different from other interpretations and incarnations that have come before this film. 

Lastly, the editing along with powerful sound design of the film’s effects and soundscape in tandem with the exceptional score that truly feels interconnected to the overall identity of this film.  The sound design team do an exceptional job with instilling a heavy and booming punch to the moments of violence that occur in the last act of the film as well as adding a sense of tension in the quieter moments accentuated by the uncontrollable laughter from Fleck, made impactful by the sharp and concise editing from Jeff Groth, utilizing the 2 hour runtime without feeling like wasted time.  The final compliment and greatest strength of the film is the composer Hildur Guðnadóttir, who provides a very operatic yet naturally haunting acoustic score with only a few pieces featuring synths appropriately but what she has crafted allows for us to really feel the dark and creepy mindscape of Arthur with the visuals (it helps to have also scored the fantastic HBO miniseries, Chernobyl as well).  The crew did an exceptional job in elevating and providing the punch the film needed to resonate effectively, where the film does fall short in and that is a credit to the fantastic teams of filmmakers at work here.

This is quite a film to come back into critical writing for, but it is a credit mainly to how much of a different yet refreshingly grounded take this is for such a remarkably timely yet fan favorite villain of the Batman/Gotham universe itself.  Joker succeeds where it matters, in crafting a grounded character driven tale of how someone like him can exist within our own world, the same way Christopher Nolan redefined Batman for modern audiences but not quite as gracefully as that film.  Mainly from the issues that reside from the heavy handed, simplistic dialogue sprouting the themes and emotions to us as well as the shaky yet violent climax, despite the amazing lead performance for that scene alone elevating past the flaws of the narrative plot in the script.  However, what keeps the film afloat and makes this work is the mesmerizing performance by Joaquin Phoenix in crafting a Joker that will truly define the way this character morphs with future cinematic versions going forward for DC films.

Score: *** out of *****

Joker is a timely yet effective character driven drama of a man pushed to his limits and committing to what he was always meant to be, a Joker.  Taking inspiration from the finest of this type of narrative singular character focused filmmaking, be it from Scorsese films or even other films such as Network and even Falling Down, it follows the structure of those films to the letter, but with the emphasis on Joker and Gotham City itself, along with the key players that live there as well as changed by the Joker in this particular incarnation.  The exceptional and fantastic art direction, aesthetically distinctive and 1970's period influence with the costume/makeup, and wonderfully creepy score elevate the film and give it the impact that makes it work in tandem with the memorable performance from Phoenix himself.  Where the film does falter is it somewhat derivative, weak script writing at work with the logic of the plot being fast and loose by the climax, only scratching the surface of the important themes and mental health issues but only in lieu of the character journey at work here, and not having a stronger story to take full advantage of this Joker until the last act.  This is mainly worth seeing for what will be one of the many remarkable lead performances of 2019 that drives and defines this film’s legacy for years to come.