Directed by Todd Phillips
Written by Todd Phillips & Scott Silver
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Douglas Hodge, Dante Pereira-Olson, Carrie Louise Putrello, Glenn Fleshler, Bill Camp, Shea Whigham, Marc Maron, Leigh Gill, Josh Pais, Brian Tyree Henry, Bryan Callen, Justin Theroux
Soundtrack: Hildur Guðnadóttir
To steal a quote from Fake Jeff Goldbum, Joker is stunningly bleak, darkly intimate, and, most of all, human.
Now, much like the film, I say that with equal measure seriousness and silliness. Not that Joker is a dramedy. Oh, no; it is rightfully classified as a psychological thriller, but there are moments where it is genuinely funny, just as there are moments where it’s sad, haunting, melancholy, and disturbing. As you might expect, most of this comes down to Joaquin Phoenix’s tour de force performance. While the movie as a whole may not live up to the arthouse hype it was receiving pre-release (I wonder if film festival audiences saw a slightly different cut with less DC imprint), Phoenix’s acting in a role that’s been well worn in Hollywood history is to be commended.
Inspiration-wise, it’s no secret that Scorsese’s The King of Comedy is a huge influence, not to mention Taxi Driver, Michael Winner’s Death Wish, and even a splash of Friedkin’s The French Connection and Walter Hill’s The Warriors for good measure. In fact, despite the fact that Joker takes place in the fictional Gotham City (in the year of our Lord 1981, according to Blow Out on a marquee), it’s probably one of the better New York movies we’ve had in a while (though shout-out to Newark, NJ for standing in as well), but I digress.
The common refrain about The Joker as a character is that he works best without a backstory, and for the most part I agree, but this film does an excellent job at providing an origin tale that feels extremely grounded and more than real enough for a comic book world (and on the whole it’s significantly better than the recent Killing Joke adaptation). And as I said, it’s largely a small, intimate story, which I appreciate.
That said, it’s magnificently captured for the big screen. The cinematography is at a high level and the attention to period detail (not unlike Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) is award-worthy.
My only real criticisms are that the storytelling becomes a bit heavy-handed in the third act, it ends four times when once is enough, and it seems like DC came in with last-minute studio notes to make sure people understood it’s their property. And, I don’t think it’s quite as successful as the films that inspired it at creating a snowballing sense of dread.
Other than that, Joker is a fine effort from writer/director Todd Phillips, whose pivot away from bro comedies began with War Dogs. Is it an utter masterpiece? Not quite. Is it Best Picture worthy? No. Is it worth seeing if you’re the least bit curious? Yes; and see it on the biggest screen you can.
Just don’t expect a barrel of laughs; ’cause it’s a glass case of emotion.
Rating: ★★★★☆
P.S.
No stingers.