Welcome to the latest installment of GS Review. Today I'm reviewing the newly released

Just to start off if you want a much better review than this will be, go check out @theamazingspidey's review of the movie. It's a fantastic review, and I pretty much agree with everything he says, but I have a few view points of my own that differ. And I will link that review here. I hope you don't mind I linked it here. I'll take it down otherwise.

Anyways, onto the review. There will be spoilers ahead, so as usual, if you don't want to be spoiled, don't read on. If you have seen the movie or don't care about spoilers, then read ahead.

Synopsis

The Joker, directed by Todd Philips, stars Joaquin Phoenix as he portrays the former mental patient and aspiring comedian Arthur Fleck. Fleck lives with his mother Penny Fleck, played by Frances Conroy, as they reside in a run down apartment in the crime riddled town of Gotham. As events start to happen in his life we follow Arthur's decent into madness into becoming the titular character, the Joker.

Pros

Acting: Right out of the gate, everyone nailed every single role they were given in this movie. Frances Conroy plays the not so right in the head mother. Her chemistry with Joaquin was done very well. Brett Cullen played what I imagine most politicians would seem like in real life in Thomas Wayne, rich, powerful, saying the right things on TV but an absolute jerk in person. Zazie Beetz plays the love interest in Sophie Dumon, and her "interactions" with Arthur. Robert De Niro could really play a two faced talk show comedian if he wanted. But aside from everyone as a supporting cast, Phoenix was a spectacle.

Phoenix: Joaquin was absolutely incredible in this movie. I have a soft spot for him since he played Johnny Cash in Walk the Line, (big Cash fan here). I feel he is a very underrated actor. Every time he was on screen he stole the show. The subtleties of things like just how he carried himself in the beginning, walking hunched over, almost skiddish. Him truggling with his laughing condition that just caused him pain and something he seemed so insecure about. His disturbing dances and all that to help cope with his problems almost. And eventually to him practically not so much overcoming his issues, but embracing them to when he finally becomes the Joker. You see the glimpses in his psychosis, hallucinations and his breakdowns and all that. You just see that shift in character and swagger. And his dedication to the portrayal in becoming so thin and emaciated looking. Everything Joaquin did in this movie shows he was 100% dedicated to this role and absolutely killed it.

Cinematography and Soundtrack: All the shots were great. The scenes and backgrounds done so well. And the music was near perfect for every scene. No complaints.

Writing: One thing I was very hesitant with this movie originally was the fact I didn't want to feel sympathetic and glorify the Joker. He is nothing to glorify. He's a monster of a human being if you can call him that. With that said, you do feel sympathy for Arthur and the world is just utterly shitting on him. Every one in this movie does something to him and you finally see that snap. And when he does these heinous acts you don't root for him. It's an introspective on "this could be anyone" after all the stuff he went through. Just one bad day away from being him. The pacing was well done, but I felt it kind of a got bit rushed at the end, which I will cover more later. Philips did a great job directing, and Joaquin did a magnificent job portraying that. And I loved the Dark Knight Returns reference with him killing Murray. So well done.

Cons

With this movie, I didn't really have any major cons. What might piss some people off is I didn't think this movie was much a of comic book movie. It was just a movie portraying the psychosis of a mental patient that turns into a killer based on what happens in his life. It was very much like Taxi Driver and Kings of Comedy but they just had to throw in a bit of Batman lore like this movie just so happened in Gotham. And this guy just happened to become the Joker. And even then, I didn't really feel like he was the Joker. I get it's an origin film, but he never came across as being the real Joker to me. He seemed kind of simple at times and never completely in control of the room. Never came across as that mad genius that the Joker is. Like he could kill a few guys in the room, and do some heinous things but isn't commanding the space. And in the vain of it being a grounded film, Heath's Joker did command the room, but Joaquin's didn't despite both supposedly grounded takes on the Batman mythos. So I don't want that excuse, it doesn't fly with me. And I felt some of the comic stuff they threw in didn't fit either, like the Wayne's died in this movie too, even going so far as to show the pearl necklace. It felt kind of forced and a bit rushed to remind you this is a comic book movie. I just didn't see the movie as a comic book movie, IMO.

In Conclusion:

The movie is fantastic. The movie is a great introspective movie and very much a mirror up to society. It is thought provoking and I will say each person will respond a little bit different to it. But I think it is a little too general in the concepts used to really say it is a total Joker movie. Regardless, Joaquin is a fantastic Joker and really makes the role his own. Heath would be proud.

Final Rating: 8.5/10