When I was a kid, I was really into comic books. I collected all sorts of comics and magazines. I read everything from Spider-Man to Mad Magazine. I probably spent more money in grocery stores and comic book shops than I should have.
I still have some boxes of my old favorites. I’m not quite sure if they’re worth anything, but one can hope!
I was always drawn toward Batman and I’m not really quite sure why.
Although Batman isn’t featured in the film “Joker,” I decided to give it another watch this week.
The 2019 film stars Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, a failed clown and stand-up comedian who loses his mind and descends into madness while Gotham City crumbles around him.
Full disclosure: “Joker” is a very dark film, which was masterfully directed and produced by Todd Phillips. “Joker” is an alternative origin story for the DC Comics character.
When the film begins, it’s 1981. Gotham is dirty and disgusting thanks, in part, to a garbage strike. There’s also a ton of crime and unemployment. Fleck dresses like a clown and does whatever his boss asks him to do. The first time we see Arthur in action, he’s spinning a sign outside a music store. A group of young punks steal Arthur’s sign and run off with it. As Arthur gives chase, he runs down an alley, where he is promptly hit with the sign and then beaten. As Arthur writhes on the ground in pain, director Phillips gets things off and running.
Arthur has a medical disorder that causes him to laugh at odd times. He breaks out into a freaky laugh several times over the course of the film, each time more awkward than the next. Arthur lives in a broken-down apartment building with his mother, Penny (Frances Conroy). To say their relationship is odd doesn’t even begin to describe it. Penny once worked for Thomas Wayne (Brett Cullen), one of Gotham’s elites — yes, those Waynes. She sends letters to Thomas every day, hoping to get a response that never comes.
There are many different layers to “Joker.” Sure, the plot revolves around Arthur as he slips slowly into madness, but there are many other subplots at work. We see Gotham as an absolute cesspool. In addition to the garbage strike, people are angry, mean and sometimes violent. “Is it just me or is it getting crazier out there?” Arthur asks his social worker.
After getting beaten up by the teenage thugs, Arthur is given a handgun from one of his co-workers to protect himself. As you can imagine, this is a very bad idea. Arthur immediately takes to the gun. However, he’s never had a gun before and while playing with it one night, fires a bullet into the wall of his apartment. He gets very comfortable with the weapon, which comes into play later in the film.
In addition to being obsessed with Thomas Wayne, Penny and Arthur watch talk show host Murray Franklin every night on television. Franklin is an homage to Johnny Carson of “The Tonight Show.” There’s an Ed McMahon lookalike on set, and even the curtains resemble those of the old NBC show. Arthur obsesses over the show and even fantasizes about being in the audience and eventually meeting Murray.
It’s interesting that Phillips cast DeNiro in the role of Franklin because DeNiro played a failed comic in a dark comedy called “The King of Comedy.”
There are a lot of fantasy sequences in “Joker,” so pay close attention. You never know what’s real and what’s imagined.
Arthur is a complex character. He’s a clown who desperately wants to be a stand-up comic. We don’t necessarily like him, but we feel for him. He commits crimes, yet some of them are justified. He’s been screwed by the system and completely left behind. As Gotham burns, Arthur revels in it. There are scenes throughout the film that will remind you of the summer of 2020 in America. And there is a scene at Gotham City Hall that is eerily familiar of the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol.
“Joker” is a wonderful piece of filmmaking. In addition to Phoenix’s chilling Oscar-winning performance, there is a haunting score and soundtrack that sticks with you long after the movie is over. The end leaves things open for a sequel, which is in the works.
“Joker” is rated R for graphic violence, adult language, adult themes and disturbing images. It is available on Xfinity OnDemand, HBO Max, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, Google Play and Vudu.
Chris Morelli is the managing editor of The Centre County Gazette.
