REVIEW: ‘Joker’ was dark, disturbing and perfect

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Joaquin Phoenix takes on the role of one of the most famous villains in comics as the “Joker.” Phoenix’s performance shows a washed-out comedian slowly descend into criminal madness. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

Jordan Parker

I found “Joker” dark and disturbing but perfect. If your movie spurs police protection during its opening then you’ve already made an impact. Over this past weekend, “Joker” shattered October box office records with $93.5 million, which isn’t a surprise after all the hype that surrounded it. 

I wasn’t sure what I could expect from “a Joker movie” directed by Todd Phillips and starring Joaquin Phoenix, but what I got was the ultimate Joker origin story that I’ve been waiting for since Heath Ledger’s appearance as the character in “The Dark Knight.”  

For anyone that knows Todd Phillips, you’ll know that this wasn’t a typical movie for him to direct. His top projects include the “The Hangover” trilogy, “Road Trip” and “War Dogs,” so I thought it was weird that he decided to take on a project this big, but he nailed it. As for Joaquin Phoenix, his performance was the greatest depiction of Joker since Ledger. 

I’m reluctant to even compare any Joker to Ledger, but I have to say that I was quite impressed by Phoenix’s performance and take on one of the most famous villains of all time.

The reason I’m impressed is that when the concept of a Joker origin story was released, I was excited but at the same time I had mixed views.I’m a huge Joker fan and I also believe in not ruining great performances by past actors. I felt like Ledger should have been the last Joker and that Jared Leto in “Suicide Squad” sucked big time. For the first part, It’s safe to say that I was wrong.

The script was brilliant and executed perfectly by Phoenix. For some that were scared away from this movie because it was Phoenix leading the way, you shouldn’t have been. The man was awesome. 

It was one of the single greatest performances by an actor I’ve seen to date. That claim may seem above and beyond, but the actor of a standalone film makes or breaks the movie. Joaquin Phoenix made this movie big time, in what will likely turn out to be the defining moment of his career considering he hasn’t done much since he played Kenai in Disney’s “Brother Bear.”

Overall, the film was crisp and clean. It’s strange, but I don’t have anything to complain about with this movie. The only negative thing I can say is there could’ve been more scenes of him as the Joker and him taking over Gotham, but at the end of the day that wasn’t the goal of the movie. For short, the movie did its job. I wanted to know how Arthur Fleck turned into the Clown Prince of Crime and that’s exactly what I got. 

For those out there that haven’t seen it or are not sure about it, see it, you won’t regret it.