Top 10 Things Joker Did Right

Making a gritty comic book movie can easily backfire. Films like “Venom” and “Suicide Squad” desperately tried to be edgy, but didn’t even have the guts to go for an R rating. “Joker” dives headfirst into hard-R territory and never looks back. Unlike the “Hellboy” reboot, however, “Joker” isn’t constantly trying to justify its rating with random swearing and gratuitous violence. That’s not to say the movie isn’t graphic. This is one of the most unsettling, depressing, and gruesome comic book adaptations ever brought the screen. The grim tone serves a purpose, though, and doesn’t come off as manipulative. In an era where studio interference is a common practice, you get the sense that Phillips was given free rein to produce a truly adult movie.

It may be tied to the Batman franchise, but “Joker” makes no illusions to the Dark Knight. Sure, the Wayne family does play a prominent role, but it’s never teased that young Bruce will grow up to become the Caped Crusader. You won’t find any scenes where he falls down a well and is bombarded with bats, in fact there aren’t any bats at all in this movie. If you walked into the theater without any knowledge of Batman, Bruce would seem fairly inconsequential. The filmmakers wisely make this a Joker showcase, exploring his demented mind in ways that have never been done before. At the same time, this film cleverly intertwines the fates of Arthur Fleck and Bruce Wayne without making Batman the focus.

Perhaps the biggest surprise about “Joker” is that it actually has some pretty upbeat songs… at least they sound upbeat when you listen to them on their own. For every feel good musical selection though, “Joker” offers up a hopeless alternative. This perfectly matches the personality of Arthur Fleck, who walks a tightrope between comedy and tragedy until he can no longer differentiate one from the other. Just as she did with the miniseries “Chernobyl,” composer Hildur Guðnadóttir creates a sense of dread that never relents. Through her musical score, Arthur feels like a walking disaster ready to destroy everything he touches.

Don’t go into this movie expecting to see the Red Hood origin story. Phillips and co-screenwriter Scott Silver have devised a wholly original backstory for the Joker, although they do take a couple cues from classic “Batman” comics. Arthur’s failed attempts at a stand-up career and troubled home life call “The Killing Joke” to mind. Arthur’s big debut on “Live! with Murray Franklin” is very reminiscent of the Joker’s talk show meltdown in “The Dark Knight Returns.” Even when “Joker” borrows a page from existing material, the film always puts a unique spin on it. This isn’t the supervillain we know from the comics, but the film’s interpretation still gets the core of what the Joker has always been: chaos incarnate.

Before the story even begins, “Joker” transports us back to another decade as the old-school Warner Bros. logo appears. Philips’ atmospheric direction draws comparison to hard-hitting crime dramas like “Dog Day Afternoon.” Everything about his film is bleak and smutty, getting the era down to a T. Cinematographer Lawrence Sher paints a raw portrait of Gotham City that’s grounded in the 1970s and early 80s. It’s fitting that “Joker” takes place in 1981, just a year after John Wayne Gacy was sentenced to death. Gacy was of course nicknamed the “Killer Clown” due to his day job. After watching this movie, those who lived through the Gacy trial can’t help but have flashbacks to a time when clowns officially went from being funny to terrifying.

In this day and age, movies oftentimes seem more concerned about laying the groundwork for further installments rather than simply telling a good story. This most notably applies to comic book movies and DCEU is perhaps the most notorious example. It’s incredibly satisfying and refreshing to see a mainstream Hollywood film based on a popular IP that’s not part of a larger story or cinematic universe. “Joker” functions as a masterful standalone story, conveying everything we need to know about Arthur Fleck in just over two hours. It’s a movie that we don’t want a sequel to, but for all the right reasons. Like “The Killing Joke,” this movie works best as a one-off that can be analyzed and studied for years to come.

Although it takes place nearly four decades ago, this movie was made for contemporary audiences. Gotham is portrayed as a city torn down the middle with tensions running higher every passing day. Protests snowball into riots and the lower class are ready to declare war on the wealthy. Everyone is just looking for an excuse to let out their anger, making Arthur the most dangerous figure imaginable. Above all else, “Joker” is a haunting commentary on the links between violence and mental health. While there’s clearly something wrong with Arthur, society has turned its back on him. When we choose to ignore somebody like Arthur, though, the issue doesn’t go away. It just continues to fester until finally the unspeakable happens.

People had their doubts about a “Joker” origin story, as the character’s mysterious past is part of his appeal. One of the reasons the Joker gets under our skin is because we know so little about where he came from and what exactly drove him to madness. This movie remains faithful to the Joker’s ambiguous nature, however, making Arthur an unreliable narrator. Like Heath Ledger’s Joker, Arthur can never seem to keep his story straight, leaving the audience to fill in the blanks. Unlike Ledger’s take on the character, though, we get to delve deeper into Arthur’s mind and see what exactly makes him tick. In the end, we may not learn everything about Arthur, but we know everything we need to.

While Scorsese dropped out as a producer early on, his influence can be felt in every shot of “Joker.” Arthur is a perfect hybrid between Rupert Pupkin from “The King of Comedy,” Travis Bickle from “Taxi Driver,” and the Clown Prince of Crime himself. Like Rupert, Arthur blurs the lines between fantasy and reality to the point where the audience isn’t sure what to believe. Like Travis, Arthur is a social outcast who turns to violence in his search for purpose. Yet, the film still brings out the colorful personality and twisted mindset that made the Joker special in the first place. Scorsese’s harsh realism doesn’t feel out of place in this environment. Phillips strikes a perfect balance between Scorsese’s style and DC Comics lore.

Although several actors have played the Joker, each one has left a distinct signature. Nicholson portrayed the character as a deranged crime boss while Ledger interpreted him as a domestic terrorist. Joaquin Phoenix’s performance is perhaps the most closely rooted in reality and therefore the most terrifying. Arthur isn’t so different from the psychopaths we frequently see plaguing the news. He’s a lost soul who demonstrates why nothing is more lethal in this world than a madman with a handgun. As despicable as Arthur is, he’s also probably the most sympathetic Joker we’ve seen to date. In another environment, maybe Arthur’s soul could’ve been salvaged. Instead, the world allowed him to become a monster who’ll punish anyone who doesn’t understand his humor.