Joker (Todd Phillips, October 4, 2019) Movie • Page 72

I don’t think it’s bad per se just plodding. There really is no point and to be fair JP isn’t really doing anything all that novel or great here.

 

It’s a character study with no depth of character lol

 

It seems that most people’s defense of this movie is Joaquin’s performance. Don’t know why I’m doing this to myself but I’m watching it again and it’s such a strong case of overacting. Script aside, he’s just really bad. The personification of trying way too hard to elevate material that doesn’t warrant it. He appears to be doing a borderline comedic role in a drama.

 

The alphas are beating up on the hysterical clown on the train. Are we meant to sympathize with him? The jocks are singing Send In the Clowns (not at all on the nose) and we are meant to pretend this is a plausible interaction.

This is so bad

 

Anybody that thinks this is a valid commentary on mental health should seriously consider the mental gymnastics it took to get to that point. This is reductive dogshit. It’s almost impressive that a filmmaker with so little to say could take a swing this big and miss such a low bar

 

Just finished and I think that this movie definitely positions the disaffected, violent man as the antihero. I am not in any away against a problematic protagonist, but the film is clearly made to appeal to jaded males who feel sorry for themselves and that must be why it has resonated with so many people. I can’t imagine defending this unless you, on some level, agree with Arthur’s screed. Pure incel bait and lazy filmmaking.

 

You know what’s funny is, I don’t feel quite this harshly but the movie has so little to say that I also have nothing to argue against this with if I wanted to.

Which is the biggest issue for me, more so than even the writing. There’s so much empty space that the only way of defending the commentary is by saying, “The emptiness is the point!” But you know what? There are movies out there (No Country for Old Men being my favorite of all-time) that use emptiness to grand effect. And they use it to say very profound things. This movie is empty, but it doesn’t say anything profound, and it’s trying to trick you into thinking that THAT’S profound when it’s really just lazy.

Maybe I do feel that harshly after all.

 

No Country is a great example of feeling the weight of time and age juxtaposed with a monstrous human being. It understands the futility of justice and refuses to condescend. I see none of that here

I do think there could have been a Joker origin story that handled the content with nuance but this was like a brick to the face

 

I still think it's a good movie

 

I love JP, didn’t get the obsession with his performance either.

 

Hey Arthur, we cool?

 

Finally saw this. I thought it was entertaining, not much more or less than that. Kept waiting for it to get really crazy like everyone said and kind of felt like... it didn't. Which isn't a bad thing really, just different than I expected.

A sequel is a really really dumb idea though.

I also don't get why everyone is so cool with actors starving themselves like that for roles like this. Like I know they have doctors and stuff but still is it really that important?

 

This was another thing for me. The only scene that disturbed me or really gave me anxiety was the killing in his apartment, and then him having to open the door for his friend right after. I thought that scene was terrific. But even the climax of him killing Murray was blunted by the dialogue for me. Just another area where the film really didn't make me feel much of anything.

 

Almost all performances I saw from all the other movies I watched in 2019 were more impactful than JP.

 

Ya, agreed, that was the only scene that I thought was really disturbing. Like friends came out of the movie telling me they were scarred from it and I was just waiting for it to really get wild and it never came.

 

my hunch is Paul Schrader, he either wrote this or thought Joker was a masterpiece there's no in between

 

that’s such a good guess

I have no idea which directors are in the voting branch but I gotta think that’s on the money

 

It’s a great movie.

 

lol!

 

My class is watching Aladdin right now during homeroom and I find it even more ridiculous that people were saying that it will be in the cultural conversation throughout the year. This could've came out last month or in 2010 lol. It's bad.

 

Your class deserves better than that film lol