Joker

Another Requisite Proof that Comic Book Films are not be Underestimated! - 9/10

by Popcult Productions

 Being huge comicbook fans, Joker was and remains to be our unsurpassed rare gem in a Comic Book world of never-ending antagonists. We’ve witnessed numerous interpretations of the clown from the legendary Heath Ledger to Mark hamill’s still lilting voice performance and the Jared Leto atrocious one that we really don’t want to delve into right now. In the most quintessential representation yet to date, and yes we’re talking about Heath Ledger’s work back in 2008, the character wasn’t really in possession of a backstory. And that’s one of the reasons he’s worshiped by millions, he’s the only character that went down in the book of mischievous evil-doers without even bothering to write him a basis for his origin, not even a name. So when a Joker movie was announced back then, an innumerable amount of fans were irritated, which is actually understandable, they just didn’t want to settle for one backstory. But coming off Todd Phillips’ Joker, I’m pretty sure they’ll be having some second thoughts. The Joker was something else here, we’ve seen films before striving towards compelling audiences and pressuring them into generating a feel of commiseration. Nightcrawler did it with Louis Bloom, but it was never perfected to the glorified work Todd Phillips implemented in the Joker, saying that Phillips made us “sympathize” with the Joker character would be an understatement. He really wrote his character in a way that didn’t even bother to give him break, thus not giving us time to breath ourselves. The infamous characters featured in the movie who were also conventionally known for their admirable nature, weren’t even hinted at being the good guys. And that proves how much Todd Phillips throned in narrating a story totally from the point of view of the antagonist. He truly availed us into seeing eye to eye with Arthur Fleck, meaning that he owned us as audience, he owned our attention and directed it towards a man being the literal slave of society’s measures. Not all the credit goes to Todd Phillips here, it’s needless to say that Joaquin Phoenix strikes hard with an unrivaled performance of his career. His chosen laugh, face expressions, and the way he showcases emotions while laughing incontrollably is just inconceivable and at same time painful to witness. We don’t know if it was planned or improvised by Phoenix himself, but we found it brilliant the way he can’t breath while laughing and when he suddenly starts coughing out of pain. We were even boggled to know that the atmosphere was light on set and that Joaquin didn’t cling into method acting. He also revealed that it was fun making the film.. We can’t believe that doing what he did in the movie didn’t leave some kind of print on him. It merely proves how much talent and dedication the guy retains. In addition, the film’s cinematography and score were glorious, the music featured put the clown aspect of the character into use, it even sometimes verbalizes the amount of rebellious sorrow Arthur was squeezing inside. The Production design imparted was incredible too, the look and feel of Gotham city and even the messy interior sets were vital in the film and it really managed to steer us towards being part of the living awful circumstances people like Arthur were forced into. Wrapping up, it’s relieving to see a comic book film like “Joker” hit theaters and even initiate that amount of discussion and debate. “Joker”, “Logan”, and Nolan’s work on the Batman trilogy are requisite proof that comic book movies are not to be underestimated in cinema. “Joker” is a must watch for fans and non fans of the character, so you should definitely make sure to watch it!
 ⚖️ Final Rating: 9/10

Connect with Popcult Productions

Instagram
Facebook
View other reviews by Popcult Productions