Todd Phillips‘ ‘Joker‘ surprised me. It was something completely different than what I expected from watching the trailers and reading the reviews written by those who saw the film before me. Apparently the film would belong to a genre that I would call extensions of superhero stories and specifically to the prequels sub-genre revealing the origins of some of the characters in these imaginary worlds, tracing the personalities and motivations of their actions before the first printed comic book or the first movie they appear in. The script of this film goes much further and dares much more. ‘Joker‘ not only redesigns the map and image of the mega-city of Gotham, but also anchors it in a dark and violent world that painfully reminds us of our world and the contemporary events around us. The Joker character created by Joaquin Phoenix is a victim who becomes a vicious criminal, and the film is a study of a vicious mind and a journey to the roots of his violent revolt.
The clown is one of the most versatile characters in the history of cinema. From Charlie Chaplin to the horror films written or inspired by Stephen King, clowns have represented the full range of human feelings, from sadness to happiness, from naivety to cruelty, from art to madness. The character created by Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix has all these plus he has something new to add. The aspiring stand-up actor who earns his living as a clown for rent is not only a persecuted and a marginal individual, a victim who rebels (it happened also to Charlot when he was getting upset) but becomes unwittingly a symbol of a collective revolt. Because of his bipolar personality, from a certain moment he does not discern between good and evil, just as we as spectators no longer discern between reality and what happens in his imagination. But his violence in the film is not only accepted but also taken as a role model by one half of the world rebelling against the order and inequality imposed by the other half of the world. I do not think that the film justifies violence in any way, but it does not hide it and it makes us ask questions about its sources.
I don’t know if Joaquin Phoenix will get the Academy Award for his role in ‘Joker‘. Maybe for some political reasons he will not be voted by a majority, or maybe an even more impressing role will show up. I think however that this fantastic role will become a reference and will be studied in acting schools many decades from now. I do not remember seeing such a complex study of a disoriented personality, of a victim becoming a murderer, of the personal downward spiral to hell in parallel with the social ascension in the eyes of some people around. Robert De Niro also has a remarkable supporting role, which makes us forget the actor’s personality to bring to mind the image of the legendary TV anchors of the past. The city of Gotham seems different from the one in the Batman films, it is rather a New York from the early ’80s, full of violent revolts similar to those we are experiencing in the present times. The film is grim and violent, interesting and ambiguous, melodrama and social criticism woven on a story where comic book heroes are just a pretext. My only reservation is related to the final scene, I found it superfluous and little related to the rest, maybe containing a symbolism that I confess I did not understand. Conclusion – ‘Joker‘ is almost a masterpiece.