There’s a moment when the film could have
charted a different path toward a deeper
character study. Instead, it gets on with what
needs to happen, the chaos necessary to unlock,
with a cold-blooded smothering and point-
blank shooting. Arthur’s pain and psychosis
has been offered up, in the end, not to lead
to any understanding of his condition, but for
its violent release, and to link to the required
comic-book architecture.
It’s a testament to the potency of Phillips’
vision that “Joker” has already become such a
talking point. Phillips and Phoenix have made
something to reckon with, certainly, and that
alone makes it a bold exception in a frustratingly
safe genre. But its biggest danger is in not
illustrating but catering to a world gone mad.
You have to ask, in the end, why so serious?
“Joker,” a Warner Bros. release, is rated R by the
Motion Picture Association of America for strong
bloody violence, disturbing behavior, language
and brief sexual images. Running time: 122
minutes. Two stars out of four.