The Joker Movie Review

“Angry Guy” reviews The Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix.

The hype is, viewers are being ‘triggered’ and walking out on this movie because it is too dark.  I was triggered into eating a giant 5 gallon drum of popcorn and a large Slurpee. I loved this movie. Then again, I love violence. I always have.

This reminds me of the movie hypes from back in the day. Some horror and thriller movies would hand out ‘Barf Bags’ and warn that pregnant women and those with heart conditions should not see this movie. The new warning should be “Crybabies and Bedwetters should not see this movie.“ 

Joaquin Phoenix is brilliant as Arthur Fleck, a born loser whose life has been going downhill steadily. The movie details what a terrible world we live in and how humans are the worst thing to ever happen to this planet. Or something like that. Fleck is the classic anti-hero, in the vein of Travis Bickle and Paul Kersey. Payback is a bitch. 

Gotham City looks a lot like New York City in the 1970’s. Garbage strikes, rampant crime, filth, corruption and supersize rats. I grew up in dirty NYC of the 1970s. There was no place scarier. At 6 years old, on a random Sunday morning, I was chased by a midget, and saw a 300 lb black homeless lady taking a dump in a garbage can. She threatened to cut me. 

Triggered? Try watching “Earthquake” in “Sensurround”. Imagine sitting there minding your business eating Junior Mints and your chair starts shaking violently as Charlton Heston is overacting. Kids today would drop dead. When I was still in elementary school, my father took me to see “Death Wish” and “Taxi Driver”.  That might explain why I cried when Charles Manson died.

Triggered? Maybe you should stay home and watch the Disney Channel or reruns of the Love Boat. For me, “The Joker” is the best movie I have seen in years and Joaquin Phoenix deserves Best Actor.