In Gotham City, mentally troubled comedian Arthur Fleck is disregarded and mistreated by society. He then embarks on a downward spiral of revolution and bloody crime. This path brings him face-to-face with his alter-ego: the Joker.
Arthur Fleck works as a clown and is an aspiring stand-up comic. He has mental health issues, part of which involves uncontrollable laughter. Times are tough and, due to his issues and occupation, Arthur has an even worse time than most. Over time these issues bear down on him, shaping his actions, making him ultimately take on the persona he is more known as...Joker.Written by
grantss
Joaquin Phoenix has won nearly every award he has been nominated for his role in this film, including Best Actor at the Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Screen Actors Guild. See more »
Goofs
Arthur manages to ditch the two detectives on a train by wearing a clown mask. However other passengers are also wearing them and Arthur sticks out by wearing his red suit while the others don't. It should had been impossible for the detectives not to find Arthur in the crowd. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
News Anchor:
[on radio]
The news never ends. This is 1080 GCR. You get all the news you need, all day long. Good morning. It's 42 degrees at 10:30 on this Thursday, October 15th. I'm Stan L. Brooks, and here's what's happening.
See more »
Crazy Credits
The Warner Brothers logo is the Warner Communications logo used in the 1970s and early 1980s, in fitting with this film's 1981 setting. See more »
White Room
Written by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown
Performed by Cream
Courtesy of Polydor Records Ltd.
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises See more »
User Reviews
A psychological study, rather than a superhero flick
I have seen Joker yesterday at Venice an early ill-fated screening. We had some trouble with audio that lead to a near-hour delay, but it definitely was worth it.
Joker deserved to be presented at Venice Film Festival, an event that regards cinema as a form of art, because this film is far from a blockbuster or a mere entertainer movie, as most films in the genre are.
It focuses on the psyche of the main character, as it slowly crumbles under the pressure of society. And thus, Joaquin Phoenix does a wonderful performance, earning almost surely a nomination at the oscars at least.
It's a take on the Joker that differs from Ledger's, but I'd say that both are equally as good. The main difference might be that Ledger's joker is a rational that acts insane, while Phoenix's is insane to the root.
Despite being a movie about a superhero villain, Joker is much superior to most of the movies of the genre (I'd exclude the Dark Knight Trilogy only, but Joker is easily as good as Nolan's movies, or at least very close). It is a small-scaled film, with a distinct style and cinematography (that cannot but be appreciated) and a set of very cinephile references that however do not feel too forced or overly opressive. (most notable are the similarities to Scorsese's 'Taxi Driver' and his 'The King of Comedy', but also Chaplin's 'Modern Times' is somewhat referenced).
I am eager to see more non-comedic efforts by Todd Phillips. This movie was so far probably the best of 2019 (at worst contested so far only by Dolor Y Gloria or Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), and that should be very convincing.
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I have seen Joker yesterday at Venice an early ill-fated screening. We had some trouble with audio that lead to a near-hour delay, but it definitely was worth it.
Joker deserved to be presented at Venice Film Festival, an event that regards cinema as a form of art, because this film is far from a blockbuster or a mere entertainer movie, as most films in the genre are.
It focuses on the psyche of the main character, as it slowly crumbles under the pressure of society. And thus, Joaquin Phoenix does a wonderful performance, earning almost surely a nomination at the oscars at least. It's a take on the Joker that differs from Ledger's, but I'd say that both are equally as good. The main difference might be that Ledger's joker is a rational that acts insane, while Phoenix's is insane to the root.
Despite being a movie about a superhero villain, Joker is much superior to most of the movies of the genre (I'd exclude the Dark Knight Trilogy only, but Joker is easily as good as Nolan's movies, or at least very close). It is a small-scaled film, with a distinct style and cinematography (that cannot but be appreciated) and a set of very cinephile references that however do not feel too forced or overly opressive. (most notable are the similarities to Scorsese's 'Taxi Driver' and his 'The King of Comedy', but also Chaplin's 'Modern Times' is somewhat referenced).
I am eager to see more non-comedic efforts by Todd Phillips. This movie was so far probably the best of 2019 (at worst contested so far only by Dolor Y Gloria or Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), and that should be very convincing.