The Joker is no Laughing Matter

In the months, days, and even hours that led up to the release of “Joker” I’ll be the first to admit that I was excited. Although I had my reservations about some parts of the movie, namely the makeup, the short reviews i had read made up for it all. The critics talked about the film with a new excitement. “Joker” was being hailed as one of the first “serious” comic book movies. It had suspense, they said. It had action, they said. It had drama, they said.

“They” weren’t wrong. If you haven’t seen “Joker” yet, you might want to stop reading right now. Although this blog post isn’t intended to have a ton of spoilers, it might, and I’d rather not piss anyone off.

Still here? This is your final warning.

Okay, here we go.

I’m going to start by pointing out two, solid, undeniable facts. 1.) “Joker” is not a superhero movie. There are no hero’s in tights, no plots to take over the world, and no cheesy one liners. 2.) THIS IS NOT A KIDS MOVIE. No, seriously. This isn’t a kids movie, and you should probably avoid taking them to it. As much as the producers of Deadpool told you not to take your kids to his movies (and they were probably right), you REALLY shouldn’t take them to see this movie.

While “Joker” isn’t a traditional Superhero movie, it IS a welcome and important addition to comic book entertainment. “Joker” pushes the boundaries of cinema. It’s uncomfortable, gritty, realistic, and dark. I don’t know if there was a single moment as I was watching it when I wasn’t feeling some level of anxiety or panic. I don’t say that implying that it’s a bad thing, either.

In my opinion, the tone of the film is meant to make you anxious. It’s meant to make you see it, with it’s low budget special effects, basic makeup, and dark lighting, and make you feel slightly uncomfortable. As I sat in the comfortable seats it took all I had to not reflect on how uncomfortable I really was. Arthur “Joker” Fleck is a deeply disturbed character. Not someone thrown into a vat of acid, or toxic chemicals, but someone who has been ignored by a failing system at a time in his life when he needed attention so badly.

“Joker” exists as a social commentary. A cautionary tale, if you will, about the path that society is taking. It raises a lot of questions, but one, I think, stands out more than any other. What would happen if those individuals whom we have ignored for so long suddenly decided they didn’t have to ignore each other? Isn’t it better to acknowledge the problems we face in the world and help our fellow man before they get to the point where they’re so angry with us for ignoring them, that they do something like this?

It’s no laughing matter. And neither is “Joker”.