the amount of people that ive talked to that say this movie is too dark and distubing to watch again... I always tell them that its not because its too gory cuz we have all seen worse. its terrifying to them because the portrayal of mental illness in this movie is so spot on and we dont want to admit that there is way too many people being ignored by the system and not getting the help they need
It's a truly disturbing film, that comes from the incredible performance of Joaquin and the masterfully crafted score that made every scene feel sick, and uncomfortable
Definitely. Personally, I was having a pretty bad reality break that even though I was the one that called the hotline I stopped and asked her if she was even real. I don't recall the entire conversation but I know I said something awful. I had been begging for help with my mental health for a while and kept getting denied and minimized. I think the sincerity in her voice is what made me think I wasn't actually talking to anyone. She said she wanted to help me and didn't want me to "fall through the cracks." I told her "well you really can't help that, now can you?" I wish I could apologize to her. And when I watched this movie, it hurt. Especially when he was talking to his case manager/social service lady. I think the movie is wonderful. And, yes, I'm doing much better. That happened a few years ago.
The reason it is disturbing to so many people is because it forces them to spend time with their shadow. Tarantino explains it best in about four minutes here ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-12lKrHqL6Bc.html
@@jameslough6329 I have given it a lot of thought, and have a meticulous list of reasons why I don't like it and think it is a mediocre film at best. A heads up though: it is LONG, like short essay long. If you're interested...
@@redskull378 In a nutshell: 1) The protagonist is overwritten 2) The other characters are underwritten and/or don't have much depth 3) There is no real drama or suspense; the film hits you over the head with each new thing that happens to Arthur, and offers no feeling anything could go down a different way 4) It borrows heavily from Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy and does not do justice to them 5) Several themes are showcased but not done or developed well
1) Arthur's bathroom scene really was improvised. Director Philips didn't like where it was originally going, actor Phoenix thought Joker should dance because he has music in him that's trying to get out (something along those lines was what Phoenix really said) 2) Arthur runs so weird, because he wears clown shoes so much that he forgets he doesn't have them when he's running. 3) Somebody else noticed that Arthur has atleast 4 different types of laughter. Genuine laughter, fake laughter, and the panic induced laughing, there was another type too but I forgot.
Woke up this morning. Lost 50 bucks spent 30 minutes bitching and looking around my house. Even cut my hand. Saw this and felt instantly happy. Knocked it out of the park as usual
I hesitate to say this was the most important film of my life, but I shouldn't, because it may have literally saved it. I'd had, let's say, one *really bad day* coming at a time when I was already fending off depression and coming off the second peak of mourning - I won't get into specifics but it was a repeat of a similar event from the previous year that I knew would lead to the same consequences, namely impending homelessness. I came home, late October 2019, and was more suicidal than I'd ever been, even loitering above my local train platform with fairly self evident intentions as commuters at this small station filtered around me, not a single person acknowledging the pretty disturbing sight. When I realised there were no express trains, I gave up and made my way home, further convinced that my life or death didn't really matter, and downloaded a certain suicide guide I'd had bookmarked since the previous year. Having put off watching Joker because I thought it'd be depressing, I decided it really couldn't dent me that evening and downloaded a pretty terrible cinema bootleg. It was the most cathartic thing I'd ever watched, dark as death but not depressing - invigorating and uplifting. I didn't kid myself that Arthur was a good person, it just didn't matter because it was essentially symbolic in its phoenix...ah shit, unintentional pun...it's phoenix like tale. I was still bitter at the world, and a few people in particular, but in place of the broken emptiness was a seething desire to shove it in their faces by bouncing back. Even the two key songs 'Smile' and 'That's Life' seemed made for that exact point in my life. One of the best things about Joker is how anyone can really project anything onto it, so for me it was this alchemy of death and rebirth, metamorphosis, black silence into fire. Life isn't a movie and so that wasn't the end, I bounced back into optimism, got knocked down again, went from purgatory into hell and had to come within days of my life completely falling apart before finally sticking the landing four months after that day, but even during the hell that was my January 2020, I at least wasn't actively trying to end my life and I don't think I'd have reached that point had I not been put off suicide by a film of all things. Ironically, while most of the world suffered horribly, I had a wonderful 2020 after landing on my feet. The people aren't wrong, that really is life.
I think this is the best movie Joaquin phoenix has ever performed... his best performance of a career filled with outstanding performances all worthy of admiration and praise. Thank you Joaquin Phoenix.
Joaquin really felt like a guy on the way to becoming Heath Ledger 's Joker. Who is paradoxically older but perhaps rejuvenated as a sort of demonic force.
I could only watch this film once and even then I struggled, yet The Dark Knight with Heath Ledger as The Joker I could watch every day. That's the very big difference between Phoenix's & Ledger's performance as The Joker
you need to completely separate this film from every other joker you have ever seen. if possible view this as a film about a man struggling in this modern world.
When i watched dark knight, i felt disappointed by Joker - he did not feel like THE Joker, but merely as some random, yet very intelligent psycho. On the other hand, Phoenix's Joker had not just the "deranged" part of the Joker, but also the buildup - which is arguably more than what Joker in The Dark Knight had. Based on the small screen time Ledger had, he had a great preparation and a magnificent performance - but overall, Phoenix had much more to do due to him being the titular character, and his Joker really did feel like THE Joker - that's why he'll always be better in my unimportant opinion.
I'm a veteran, and honestly, there are very few things and movies that I find difficult to watch, no matter how gruesome the level of violence is. But this movie with Phoenix's performance was incredibly uncomfortable to digest. It was a true masterpiece.
One of my all time favorite movies! Joaquin's performance was phenomenal, and it stayed with me days after watching him portray Joker. I think people are going to be talking about this movie for years to come, definitely a highlight for DC.
@@notverypog DEFINITELY! Matt Reeves really gave us a darker version of the Batman, as well. I was very surprised to have realized that he also directed the last two in the trilogy of Planet of the Apes, another 2 awesome movies.
@@TheCusita93 The entire trick to the “darker” Batman, is that Reeves directs Pattinson, to seem in a darker place, but it really is a front. He even fools Riddler, who believes Batman will finish the “game,” by murdering someone, and letting the rich folks die in the flood. But he doesn’t. Batman shows he won’t take a life. Previous versions kill, or simply refuse to save certain villains. Keaton’s simply does what the moment requires, though his Batman doesn’t have much depth until the second movie. It’s Bruce who show Vicki a dark, broken side, all while still trying to be light and joking here and there. Yet, when he first sees Joker, he isn’t taking cover from the bullets, he’s transfixed on a face that haunts him. Bale takes us through the character from saving the city, through losing it, and being broken, quite literally, then coming back to even give his life. Affleck s is a mean old man, who has lost his rules and principles, years ago, after previous defeats and/or betrayals, then after a misjudgment of Clark, he finds his honor again in Justice League. Reeves gave us a grittier looking Gotham, more real fist fights, and a Batman still learning to disappear completely, as he hasn’t quite separated who Bruce(the disguise) needs to be, so that he(the Batman) can be at his peak. At least, that’s my take on some of it, off the top of my head, seeing all of these movies many times now.
@@CorbCorbin That's a really interesting breakdown of each Batman, and I agree with them all, but you forgot the most unforgettable: George Clooney's Batman. (Jk)
Although the first time I came across Todd Phillips's "Joker" it didn't strike me as anything new and interesting, I've recently rewatched the film and it has made a huge impression on me. I cannot believe I didn't see before these subtle details in acting that build the Joker persona throughout the movie . This yt vid has confirmed what I felt, thank you for that.
This is a fantastic video essay on the nuances of Joaquín’s performance as the joker. A totally unique take on the character and a very carefully structured origin story for The Clown Prince
There are so many great Joker interpretations.. but this is the only one that made me cry, a very strong, focused and emotional tale. Absolute greatness in this, and it doesn't relay chaos and violence is an answer, but showing how a person shunned, laughed at, could be accepted by people, if they only knew their struggles.. I think everyone that saw this movie.. had an empathy, and willing to support the character before they snapped. It's strong, but not a wrong message, its a good one. We are people foremost, and we can relate, it doesn't mean we imitate.
I watched Joker 3 times, Rare for me.. this movie hit my top 10 favorite movies as well. that in itself took over 10 years to happen. His performance as the Joker was legendary. I can't wait for him to do another!!
10:35 is still my fav scene in the movie. went from the greatest moment of his life to the worst and the way you see his face loosen from one to the other..
I can't believe that you didn't touch upon the fact that after joker shoots Murray... he finally let's out a real laugh. Not a fake one. It was finally him in his true form.
Heath Ledger: "I'm an agent of chaos" Joaquin Phoenix: laughing and dancing on a burning cop car smeared with his own blood surrounded by a riot of admirers.
Fantastic video. The structure was good and all the examples to support your points were well used. This movie wouldn't have been nearly as compelling without Phoenix
Incredible analysis as usual. Your each and every video should be watched by experts for their better work. Phoenix’s acting range will be unmatched for generations to come.
I love your videos so much, you're analyzing with tact and never seem judgemental, the editing, the music, everything falls perfectly to a satisfying and almost exhilarating end. I hope you get the success you deserve, and thank you for your hard work.
Excellent analysis. The Joker is such a fascinating character when done correctly. It’s the reason so many actors have won acclaim for the portrayal (Ledger, Hammil, Phoenix).
12:52 - That glance is chilling! Amazing, subtle rage in very little movement. 14:56 "Stopping living with his mother..." - Uh, more like stop his mother from living!
As an actor who's always learning, these videos are really helpful and thought-provoking, so, thank you. I often take the approach of what they call "working from the inside out," but the mechanics of facial expressions and body language - "working from the outside in" - is easy to forget, and hugely helpful to think about. Cheers.
I think this was probably the best acting from Joaquin Phoenix that I've seen in a long time. Especially once I could wrap my head around the fact that this was a stand alone film and not part of the DC universe. One of the few films I watched again in a short amount of time. I think it was two or three days between viewings, which I don't generally do. Also one of the few that I enjoyed even more the second time around.
the fact the man had severe head trauma at an age with an underdeveloped brain isnt talked about enough, it can easily cause all of this as an adult in the bronx/gotham
If you run with large clown shoes you have to overcompensate for the extra length on the shoes resulting in a high knee and stomping motion that Joaquin displays. Same effect with running in swimming fliipers. We don't notice these little details but I believe something happens subconsciously and we connect the nuances resulting in a masterpiece of a performance.
As an addition, Arthur is used to wearing clown shoes. He's likely developed a high level of muscle memory due to that. And that's just another allegorical layer, if we want: he's always trapped as the clown
I'm always impressed with the moment he screams "you get what you fucking deserve!" There is death in his eyes. It's hard to describe, but he's absolutely terrifying in that moment. You know it's over.
Great video. Phoenix’s performance was so good that got me on tension most of the movie, even if I couldn’t explain like you did now, i could feel that uncomfortable feeling. Now I understand better
Dude I absolutely love your articulation and value every bit of. I hope as many people can value your words and their own as you do. Staying true to that sense of value is amazing to see and makes your structured ideas that much more enjoyable to experience with your bits of perception. Btw I love the trinity of themes you apply to every deconstruction; some beliefs of a trinity can be seen as a sense of an infinite or a structure of an infinity, so I find it very interesting when it comes to talking about these creative ideas because they similarly have a sense of infinity
I remember watching this movie with my mother not too long after revealing to her I was depressed. I’d been in therapy and just coming to terms with my emotions. Keep in mind I went into it blind, I loved the Dark Knight. I don’t know if I’d ever felt so uncomfortable and emotional watching that movie, and every time since. It was hard too watch, but captivating at the same time. I wasn’t sure whether to cry, walk out the theatre, or continue to look on in awe.
Brilliant analysis, thank you. This film quickly catapulted into my top five favorites of all time. Dark as it is, I never tire of watching it, because Joaquin is a living, breathing piece of art throughout. And as someone who lives in recovery from mental illness that was undiagnosed and untreated for years, I feel deeply understood when I watch his performance. He captured the despair of deep, clinical depression absolutely perfectly.
Observ- Thank you for teaching me all the little details and their emotional effect. It really made the movie come alive. The first time I watched it, I dismissed it as a pedestrian, dystopian movie with exaggerated pathos. I was unimpressed. The three most elements of your video that showed what I had missed were seeing the text of the script - how bare it was and how Joaquin interpretted them to portray how the scene would actually play out in life. This is an odd skill - intimately knowing the psychology of someone that doesn't actually exist and is very different to anyone we have ever seen. The quick clip of a man who truly had Pseudobulbar Affect changed my perspective on the pathos and realism of the movie. I thought Joaquin's was exaggerated behavior because I was not aware of the real-life medical condition. Lastly the detailed breakdown of the contrasting elements of Joaqin's face were remarkable! Incredible acting. I like your chosen presentation format using three fundamental principles. One possible fourth dynamic to the movie is how it treads the line between the fantasy Marvel world (shallow, flat characters outside of Arthurs, bright colored clothes, hazy rooms, jarring carnival closeups) and a gritty dystopian gray greasy slice of the real-world. Thus the disclaimer - it has some of the style of a Marvel movie, but it's certainly not an action genre at all, but an impressive psychological portrait painted before our eyes.
WONDERFUL video thank you so much, I'm so happy to find you channel and subscribe!! I literally cried both times I saw this at the cinema when it came out, the first time I actually sobbed, was teary for hours after and depressed for days... it truly tapped in to my deepest compassion !! The writing is truly outstanding and Joaquin's jaw-dropping performance clearly stands on the shoulders of that phenomenal writing!!
I have a really hard time deciding if one joker is played better than the other. Unbelievable how much I liked both. The mannerisms of Ledger are awesome and the dance scenes of Phillips were amazing!
*It's an amazing performance by Phoenix... the most realistic Joker this world has ever known. I felt so bad for Arthur being humiliated and mistreated by everyone around him, until he became a sociopathic clown who enjoys chaos out of pure sadism. Oscar deserved.*
You should do Jared Leto's performance of Mobius next. he's defiantly in the running for an Oscar this time, you can talk about the subtle nuances of him saying "It's Morbin Time"
Joaquin Phoenix made this movie so relatable, so real. The anger, that one feels on a, not allways real, but felt cruel world, real. My one message is: Be kind to one another, you don't know who you are talking with. Arthur wouldn't turn in that way if the circumstances would have been others. The movie is shocking, because it is so real!
I saw this in the Cinema. The person next to me was so unsettled that they were squirming in there seat. It's a life experience that not everyone will be comfortable with.
Think how good heath ledger did given the short amount of screen time he had. Phoenix needed a whole film as the main character to beat it. But yeah he did give the best joker on screen so fair dues!
The thing what make this film so unsettling, is that nobody can ever be The Joker, batmans rival and supervillan.. However everybody is just, one realy bad day away from been, Joker..
I can't even dare to watch the movie as it's already affecting me. Was actually excited and immediately watched the trailers, but after watching those, I know I can't handle it. It is breaking my heart.
Joaquin Phoenix taught me what it's like being a method actor through this film, actually I got kind of possessed by Phoenix's Joker after seeing the movie, because I stayed in character all time, then I started behaving and laughing like the own Phoenix in Joker movie. So, I've experienced his state of mind, which was crazy as an actor.
I couldnt help but notice when describing laughing VS crying how much Phoenix looked like Deniro in the scene from the movie The Deer Hunter, Russian roulette
In 2 years ill finally be able to say that ive been watching a channel with over 10 mil subs since before it hit 100k subs and be totally supercool like the other people that comment that.
I always thought the way he walked or ran was as if he was wearing clown shoes constantly. Taking wide steps to accommodate the big soles you would deal with. Alot of his actions in the film are also objectively funny but because we are seeing things from his side. We're hesitant to laugh when he accidentally drops something (the gun), falls on his face, making silly faces at posters, running into a closed door, and especially when he laughs. If you didn't already feel bad, you would chuckle.
Thank you for this insightful analysis. I knew this was a brilliant performance, but you have so beautifully deconstructed HOW AND WHY. Great work! Keep it up! Liked and shared.
