This is a very interesting take on the joker that just works so well. The character Arthur Fleck becomes a very interesting character from the moment he appears onscreen. You can see he's someone who wants to be heard but no one listens, he wants to be understood but no one does understand him and he's just a lonely man who people see as a freak and stay away from.
Now in my personal opinion, there will never be a joker like Heath ledger. However Joaquin Phoenix comes incredibly close. He is perfectly cast as Arthur and he brings such commitment to the role. You can see the weight Joaquin lost brings impact to the role and that laugh becomes creepier the more he does it. You can clearly tell he's a psychopath but at the same time, he's someone who wants to be noticed and you can't help but feel for him.
The rest of the cast are fantastic. Robert De Niro is great as Murray franklin, Brett Cullen plays Thomas Wayne well as a despicable liar and you can see why a lot of people hate him but the real standout is Frances Conroy as Penny Fleck. She is instantly believable as Arthur's mother and there's a certain creepiness about her.
The slow pace for this film suits it really well. I really love films that study it's characters and spends time to develop them and this is what Joker does so well. It takes it time to develop Arthur and the story which makes total sense for his character. As the story goes on, it becomes more interesting as Arthur descends further into psychopathy.
However there are two real standouts; first Director Todd Phillips expertly crafts and explores the character really well. From beginning to end, everything that happens just feels right for the character and theres a lot of twists that are a little predictable and are very unexpected. It really feels like he knows the character and you can just tell by watching this film, he really wants to do it right.
The second standout is the cinematography from start to finish. What's interesting is the cinematography changes a lot. When Arthur is in my apartment, the camera follows him like it's documenting his life. There's one scene where he's on a bus and the camera zooms into him and you can see the eerieness in his eye's. The best scenes though is when he kills people who have wronged him. The train scene is shot fantastically with the ominous soundtrack supporting it. The scene where he kills someone in his apartment is incredibly tense and unpredictably chilling. It is a full on joker moment.
As the film builds up towards the final act, it does not disappoint. The moment he slaps on the makeup, you feel he's the Joker. The scene where he murders Murray Franklin is brilliantly because he finally gets Gotham city to listen to him about what his life is like and whats it's like to be him. The script is so hard hitting because everything he's says is so true. Mental health in the 80s and even in this day and age is overlooked so easily and not taken as seriously as it should be.
By the end of the film, Joker makes his impact in Gotham City and it really feels his story has been told and fulfilled. He has his followers which stays true to the comics and it's quite satisfying to see he finally has people who understand him and he is no longer alone. What is also very clever is it's his actions that leads to the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne, starting Bruce Waynes journey as Batman.
I think my only criticism for this film is Arthur does these dances an awful lot during the film which start off as nicely but the more he does them, it becomes laughable and cringeworthy.
Overall, Joker is a dark, slow paced expertly acted and directed film that's takes the most iconic character from DC comics and gives him the origin story that he deserves.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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