Joker

   Joker is a stark reminder that a person who is neglected by society would later become a nihilistic criminal. 

   Todd Phillips' interpretation of the iconic villain makes us question our compassion towards people who suffered from mental illness. It stirs our outlook to those people who are considered "outcasts" from society. 

   Joker got an eight-minute standing ovation and won the Golden Lion award at the 76th Venice International Film Festival. This low budget film has grossed $333.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $729.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $1.063 billion. It is the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2019 and the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time, as well as the first R-rated film to pass the billion-dollar mark. It polarizes the film critics and moviegoers. 

   The film shows Joker's perspective in much darker, gritty and depressing ways as if we are diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder. Gotham City is reminiscent of New York City in the 80s to mid-90s where New Yorkers became too indifferent to city crimes, violence, and poverty. 

   The film sets in the early 80s, but its cinematography and production design mirror the contemporary predicaments. Its musical scoring gives a haunting auditory experience as though we just woke up from a nightmare. Joaquin Phoenix's performance offers chills to the bones especially when he does his creepy laugh. Joker, as an unreliable narrator, posts lots of questions and creates confusion, which heightens the film's sense of terror. 

   "Is it just me or is it getting crazier out there?" – Joker said to the social worker, as he questions his own sanity. It's one of the memorable scenes in the film because it foreshadows his descent to madness, which is molded by Gotham's uncaring environment. 

   "You don't listen, do you?" Joker reiterates his point to the social worker. Somehow, the social worker empathizes to Joker as she tells him that their program is being cut. But do we really listen to a person like Joker? As the film progresses, he is willing to do the extremes to get noticed. 

   Although there are films that deal with mental illness (like Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, which became the inspiration of Todd Phillips), the film is notable for its portrayal of Joker as the hero for the social outcasts – a character study worth studying.