Joker: Bleak and Boring
By ELEANOR DEMPSEY
Rated: R
Score: 1/5
Joker is the psychological thriller centered around the infamous Batman villain’s bleak origins. It begins with Arthur Fleck, portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix, as a freelance clown struggling in Gotham’s broken down society.
Living with his mother as a middle-aged man with a myriad of mental illnesses—the most significant being a condition that causes him to laugh loudly and uncontrollably when he’s upset—Fleck often finds himself mocked and looked down upon. The only things that give him hope are his dreams of being on the Murray show and becoming a standup comedian.
When a coworker gives him a gun, Fleck finally feels he can defend himself against the hateful world that has beaten him down so many times. However, these feelings don’t last when the state stops funding his social worker and he is fired for bringing the gun to work.
When harassed by three wealthy young men on the subway, Fleck kills them, a pivotal decision that sets off a chain of events leading to a movement against the rich. Upon realizing his effect on others and how violence gives him power, Fleck descends further into madness, deciding to seek revenge on everyone who did him wrong.
As the story continues, the violence Fleck carries out becomes meaningless and practically unbearable to watch. Though it may display the hopelessness of society, this is already achieved through the endless use of dark lighting and somber music. Similarly, while the brutality serves its purpose of showing Fleck’s growing disregard for other people, this message is already evident to any viewer by simply following the plot.
Even with all of the action, the movie feels utterly boring. The viewer finds themselves watching the same sequence of events occur again and again; Fleck gets let down or makes an upsetting discovery and the scene cuts to him in a dimly lit room or alley using violence against himself or others to regain some of the power he lost. While at first I was interested in the production choices, they quickly became old when almost every scene lacked any light or color.
Despite their lack of new or profound ideas, it is clear the filmmakers believed they were producing groundbreaking ideas on society. Instead of using this chance to provide a new look into an iconic character, they repeat previously established ideas.
Multiple filmmakers and comic book writers have demonstrated that the Joker craves attention, the writers add nothing to this idea but a slightly deeper look into why. The potent sense of self-congratulations the writing in this movie gives off is simply unwarranted.
Despite the film’s many faults, Phoenix does his best to redeem it with his expert performance. Even as his established characterization goes down the drain throughout the movie, Phoenix adjusts admirably and stays true to the character. He manages to mix the extravagance of the Joker with the deteriorating mind of a man who has lost faith in humanity.
Overall, though this standalone provides the highly anticipated backstory of a notorious character, Joker fans would be much happier rewatching any Batman movie.