This weekend I saw the new film ¨Joker¨, directed by Todd Phillips, in theaters. Phillips' adaptation of the life and struggles of Batman's nemesis Joker was made very well. First of all, the audio in this movie was very well thought out and adapted. The non digetic audio placed in the film was used at just the right times, and in just the right scenes. All audio in the film fit the tone of the scene it was in just about perfectly. Additionally, lighting key was used very well in multiple scenes of the film, and at the most appropriate times. For example, in one of the first scenes of the movie, Arthur (or the Joker, played by Joaquin Phoenix) is sitting in a psychiatric hospital, solemnly reflecting on past events and describing them to his therapist. Both the main focus of this scene (Arthur) and the background objects are all surrounded by low key lighting, which intensifies the shadows and darkness of the scene. This lighting reflects Arthur's mood - dark, sad, and distressed, due to all of the things hat happened to him / that he did. The directors use of these mise-en-scene elements really enhanced the quality of his film.
Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. Many people who have not yet seen ¨Joker¨ have the misunderstanding that it is a horror movie. However, it is not a movie about an evil and scary joker, but about the life of a mentally ill young man that has endured endless physical, mental, and emotional suffering, leading him to become bad. I think that the intention of leaving the audience confused is what made this movie so great. For example, the film is littered with many crazy events, some of which are real, and some of which were just made up in Arthur's head. Deciphering between which are real and which are fake causes confusion, but that was the directors goal. Another example is at the end, after the joker had gone crazy, killed many people, and set the city into an uproar, a man with a clown mask shoots and kills young Batman's parents. However, the guy in the mask is not the joker that we have been following throughout the film - it is just one of his followers. The fact that the murder of batmans parents is shown yet is not done by Arthur leads the audience to assume a sudden twist - that Arthur, the man who's life was followed through the movie, is not future-Batman's real arch nemesis Joker, but just a random man. While all of this confusion and certainty created throughout ¨Joker¨ may cause some people to dislike the film, I personally enjoy it. Movie that must be watched and put together like a puzzle are the best type, because they cause you to use your head and think outside of the box. Therefore, I would rate the film ¨Joker¨ by Todd Phillips a ¨good-good¨, because it is not only well made, but a great yet confusing story.
- Marina O'Hare
Lots of excellent details in this review, Marina! Love how you zoom in on very specific choices and moments within the film. Opening paragraph gives you the opportunity to flex some of that MES muscle, which is great. Second paragraph isn't actually as different from the first as it probably could be. Consider how to bring more of yourSELF into that subjective review-- emphasis on the character, the twist, the connection to Batman are all still part of the object itself (the film). Use that second paragraph to emphasize what YOU felt/saw/thought about from the film. Would also have liked to see a title for this beyond just the title of the film itself.
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