That such terms should be applied to a populist studio picture from the director of the Hangover movies is perhaps unsurprising. Like Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning turn in The Dark Knight, Joker has an ace card in the form of Joaquin Phoenix’s mesmerisingly physical portrayal of a man who would be king. He dreams of becoming a standup comic but has no idea what other people find “funny” – a lethal combination. We also get an extended sequence pointedly played out against a revival screening of Chaplin’s 1936 classic Modern Times. Add to this an incendiary central performance by Phoenix and Joker looks set to have the last laugh.

Source: The Guardian October 06, 2019 07:00 UTC