Joker (2019)

Last night I went to see Joker, and was I pleasantly surprised! I’m reviewing this for popular demand (meaning 2 people 😂), and I’m glad I went to see the film! When I heard about a stand-alone Joker film, I was convinced it would be terrible, I was wrong. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix and Robert De Niro and is directed by Todd Phillips. The film tells the long-questioned origin story of Batman’s longtime adversary, Joker. The protagonist, Arthur Fleck, is a lonely man who works as a clown and is shown to have a condition that causes him to laugh uncontrollably. He lives with his ailing mother, Penny (Frances Conroy), in a shabby apartment. Penny is a fan of The Murray Franklin Show, hosted by Murray Franklin (De Niro). She also used to work for Thomas Wayne, who is running for mayor, and is considering asking him for financial support. Arthur aspires to be a stand up comedian, but sees little success due to his condition. After Arthur commits an action against three obnoxious rich young men, he inadvertently receives a following mostly by working class citizens who want to go up against the rich. Further actions by Arthur lead him to take on the name “Joker”. There’s so much else I could say about the film but considering many of you haven’t seen the film and want to, I have to be vague. I highly recommend this film because it was so amazing to watch and it draws so many parallels to Taxi Driver. No wonder they cast De Niro in the film! The action scenes are highly satisfying to watch and the film can even be funny at times. Despite it being a bit unrealistic at times, it definitely draws viewers into it. I can’t recommend this film more, it’s great! I am proud to rate this film EXCEPTIONAL on the scale.