WHAT’S IT ABOUT
Joker tells the story of Arthur Fleck (played by Phoenix) as a failed stand-up comedian, who turns to a life of crime and chaos and becomes a psychopathic criminal after failing to be a hit with audiences.
MOVIESinMO REVIEW
Joker is a 2-hour depressingly semi-accurate portrayal of a mentally challenged man being ignored by an unforgiving, cruel, and almost lawless Gotham City. What Arthur has to endure daily is worse than most people can stomach to watch. This movie has never portrayed itself to be something it’s not. It is not a DC comics film. It is not a superhero/supervillain film. It’s not an action movie. Finally, it is not, nor does it have anything to do with Batman. Joker is about Arthur Fleck, the person who, in the comic books, ultimately becomes The Joker, but not in this movie. Although he was called a joker and wanted to be introduced as Joker on a late-night Tonight Show-esque talk show, he was never the character (that didn’t exist yet) The Joker. In this movie, he is Arthur Fleck, a man with mental issues trying to make a living in the worst place I’ve ever seen – Gotham City. He takes his meds every day. He visits his doctor. He cares for his mother, and he has a job – as a clown. He also has the worst luck ever because every bad thing that could happen to a person seems to be happening to him. He gets robbed, jumped, beaten, falsely accused and ridiculed. At this point, if you don’t feel sorry for Arthur, something is wrong with you. Joker presents us with a startling realization. This could be anybody, mentally challenged, or not. Watching Arthur get bullied is very reminiscent of what kids are dealing with in school these days. And just like in the film, nobody does anything until it’s too late. But that’s only one problem Arthur has. As I stated earlier, he has mental issues that he keeps in check through various medications. His mother appears to have some mental challenges, as well. The city is a cesspool of crime and corruption with a clear line of what and who the elite are and what they control. As the movie progresses, you watch Arthur assimilate and give in to Gotham until he becomes Gotham. The seemingly lawless city where the underprivileged and criminally insane virtually control the streets while the rich and pampered live behind walls and gated communities in self-righteous bliss. Joker showcases the realistic beginnings of a serial killer. And for some people, it may be a bit too real. Joker is a great movie as long as you know what it is not and an even better movie once you understand what it is.
OUR RATING – A MUCH NEEDED DC 8.5
Media
- Genre – Drama
- Street date
- Digital – December 17th 2019
- DVD/Blu-Ray/4K – January 7th 2020
- Video – 1080p
- Screen size – 2.39:1
- Sound – English Dolby Atmos, English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
- Subtitles – English SDH, Spanish, French
Extras
- Joker: Vision & Fury(HD, 23 min)
- Joker: A Chronicle of Chaos(HD, 3 min)
- Please Welcome . . . Joker!(HD, 3 min)
- Becoming Joker(HD, 1 min)