Joker

We have had many different interpretations of the Joker, but to get the Todd Phillips version was overdue. Not that the other six major Jokers were not good, it just happens that Joaquin Phoenix spoke out the loudest to me. As I’m sure it did to many others. We usually see Joker as a villain, chaos without any real motives. Phillips gives us a sort of a back story on how and why the joker comes to be the way we all know him today, without connecting any of the prior story lines.

            Mark Hamill couldn’t have given Joker a more iconic voice. Hamill being the great actor he is, really knew how to step into Jokers character. The laugh he chose for the character was so mischievous and sinister. Of course, we cannot forget about Cesar Romero and Jack Nicholson who played their fair share to the characters image. I won’t mention Heath Ledger because we could talk about how he was the best Joker, for hours. Then, we have Jared Letto. He gave the character a completely different aesthetic, but I must take into account that he does represent a whole new generation/ story for the character. Not bad to have option on a character but as a fan I don’t fuck with it.

            I’m going to be honest, when I heard they were making a new Joker movie I got really excited. I thought to myself,

“Finally, this movie has been requested for the longest”

            Then I saw the trailer. I didn’t know how to feel after I saw the tone of the movie. From what I had seen it seemed like a really good concept for the character. Yet, at the same time I didn’t know how I felt towards it. Was it going to ruin everything we know now of the Joker or was Todd Phillips going to give Joker justice?

            Well, let me tell you he did. Obviously, it is an origin story so the Joker we see is not the Joker we are used to seeing. The movie does a solid job at focusing on the “real world troubles” Arthur Fleck faces. Phillips shows how unfair his world is, how the lack of compassion he deals with can really take a toll on a person. I am still unsure if the laugh he has is actually a symptom or just a defect he picked up to deal with the trauma he’s endured during his life.

            Still, Phillip’s take on the Joker fit perfect with not only the character but the characters universe. DC comics is known for having a dark tone. And this movie was dark all around. A dark heart- breaking origin, a visual dark tone, and a traumatic ending.

                        “In a world as psychotic as this… any other response would be crazy”