Joker (2019)

Joker (2019) is a dark, character-driven origin story that follows Arthur Fleck, a struggling, mentally ill clown and aspiring stand-up comedian in a bleak, early-1980s Gotham. Repeated rejection, bullying, and the loss of basic supports push Arthur from fragile hope into a slow, brutal descent where reality and delusion blur. As he sheds his last ties to normalcy, he becomes the violent, charismatic figure the world will come to know as the Joker. Watching the film is an intense, unsettling experience: it's a slow-burning psychological study rather than a conventional action movie. You’ll feel claustrophobic and disturbed as the camera lingers on Arthur’s isolation, his forced laughter, and the small humiliations that accumulate into rage. Joaquin Phoenix’s raw, immersive performance (anchored by a haunting score and stark, grim visuals) draws you into Arthur’s point of view, creating moments of uneasy empathy even as his actions become increasingly horrifying. The movie offers a bleak meditation on mental illness, social neglect, and the hunger for recognition, set against a gritty, decaying urban backdrop. Expect emotional weight, moral ambiguity, scenes of visceral violence, and a deeply provocative, ambiguous ending that asks whether society shares the blame for the monster it creates. This is challenging, powerful cinema designed to unsettle and provoke thought more than to comfort.

Actors: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz

Director: Todd Phillips

Runtime: 122 min

Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller

8.0 /10 59 /100 8.4 /10 7.4 /10