Joker tells the origin story of the infamous villain. Arthur Fleck is mentally ill, down-on-his-luck, and consistently misunderstood and mistreated as he grinds out an existence taking care of his mother. His already-fragile world is turned upside-down after he's fired from his clown job, learns shocking things of his past, and is denied further treatment due to cutbacks in social programs. He needs help . . . and he's not alone. A violent outburst from Arthur one evening unexpectedly brings a show of support from others downtrodden, and the fabric of society itself is strained as the desperate take to the streets in Gotham. There's clearly a problem; what is the solution?
This one is dark, folks. It's more a character study than superhero film- disturbing and cynical, with no hope, and definitely from the Joker's point of view, explaining his pain and (even justifying?) his evil. That perspective grants a degree of sympathy- you find yourself being repulsed by, yet compassionate toward, Arthur Fleck. Joker's character has been handled many times over the years; Joaquin Phoenix does an excellent acting job here, and there are several twists, but the message of the film left me wanting. I'm wrestling with the point: is it saying society causes evil, or leads to justifiable evil reactions by the oppressed? The film certainly merits reflection (which is good), but the darkness and despair that pervades it makes me shy away from doing so. One bottom line we can take away: people are evil, and tend to react to evil with evil. We desperately need a savior.
Rating: C
No comments:
Post a Comment