"Joker" - review

Literally soul-shattering

They finally did it.  They finally made a comic book movie so rooted in a stylized yet relatable reality that if you were to remove the comic book elements, the tone, message and themes of the film would not significantly change.  Since "Joker" wisely deviates from canon throughout most of its narrative, the movie has a far greater freedom to be its own unique story.  Instead of yet another recitation of the same tired tale, "Joker" becomes one of the best DC films and one of the best comic book movies ever.  It's an incisive and potent origin story of one of the most volatile, infamous and unpredictable literary villains.

Director Todd Phillips was inspired by the complex character studies of such 1970's films as "Network", "Dog Day Afternoon" and of course "Taxi Driver."  Phillips succeeds brilliantly in translating the gritty vibe of New York's infamous crime wave into the sinister streets and malevolent mobs that terrorize Gotham.  We are here to witness the birth of a madman, to see the Joker becoming, and Joaquin Phoenix's performance as Arthur Fleck is colossal.  Joaquin writhes and sways in deep mental anguish, and his corrosive laugh is like battery acid in the ears.  Arthur Fleck is doomed, and we must watch him fall utterly from grace.

We know how the story ends, but getting there can be the worthier part if you tell it right, and I'm thrilled to say that Phillips and Phoenix have f*cking nailed it.  The sickening spiral into which Arthur Fleck plummets is relentless and brutal.  He suffers every indignity.  Arthur loses it all, and then he loses some more.  Watching Joaquin as Arthur implode into the Joker is staggering.  He contorts his body in ways that seem inhuman, and his face becomes a mask struggling between gleeful guffaws and wails of pain.  At its core, "Joker" is about how the callous cruelties of the world can finally break a person's spirit.

The score is phenomenal.  A tremendous piece of work on its own, and a perfect emotional enhancement for every scene.  The cello is especially sublime.  Certain themes make several nods to previous films, but since they are so low-key they don't distract.  Hildur Guðnadóttir will be someone to watch.  Her choice of instruments, melodies and the succeeding combinations are superb.  The elegiac doom of the strings and the pulsing throb of the synths hybridize into an infernal and infected sound.  Through the surges of instrumental insanity, you hear the inevitable disintegration of Arthur's mind.

The time that is taken to detail Arthur's descent into amoral oblivion is absolutely crucial, and the film inexorably builds toward an ending of propulsive and galvanic psychological impact.  For Joaquin Phoenix, it's a career-defining performance.  I was trembling during several scenes.  The Academy will likely nominate Joaquin again, but I'd be amazed if they gave an Oscar to any actor for playing a character so directly and violently opposed to what so many Academy members represent and hold dear.  For decades, the Academy has consistently failed to choose winners based on actual merit, but I believe that the Joker would know how to handle that.