People in the film community, from Steven Spielberg to that guy you sat behind at an Avengers movie that one time, have been predicting that the superhero bubble is going to burst for about 8 years now. It’s probably true that, like the western, interest in these comic book characters will wane and popular culture will move on to something else. But in 2019, it seems the brand is strong with some exciting and wildly diverse films making their way to the screen.
Enter JOKER. Batman has always been a popular character, but when Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight hit theaters in 2008, Batman became something he had never been before. Batman wasn’t just for fun anymore, and neither was the Joker. Portrayed by Heath Ledger, whose real-life death added an extra layer of mystery to the on screen persona, the Joker was cooler, more mysterious and more dangerous than ever.
It makes sense that when Todd Phillips approached Warner Brothers about doing a low budget, R rated period set origin story about this hot property, the studio jumped at the idea. Joker is truly different than any studio released superhero film, it will be the most popular Halloween costume this year and it will no doubt be in the conversation come awards season.
But the question still remains, what is this film? Joker exists in its own world and. Its protagonist’s descent into madness is relayed to us by an unreliable narrator, but does that give it the freedom to live by its own moral code? Phillips describe his vision of the film as the inversion of the typical superhero origin story where, “as Arthur becomes the Joker, there’s a point where it impossible to keep rooting for him; and that point is going to be different for everyone.”
Indeed, some won’t be on board with this character from the start, while some will stick with the film’s “kill the rich” mindset for perhaps too long. No matter where you start to see Joker and stop seeing the man underneath, everyone who watches this film will see the masterful performance by Joaquin Phoenix. Joker will give another dimension to the superhero film, but whether it’s going to keep the comic book movie alive or bring the bubble a bit closer to bursting, we’ll have to wait and see.
***TIFF 19***
Riley Shingler is a film critic and writer who can be found on Letterboxd and at shinglerfilms.com
