The initial announcement of this certainly had me not really interested as Jared Leto's portrayal of the titular character in Suicide Squad was still fresh in the mind of many people. Plus, any Joker performance after Heath Ledger's award-winning and iconic performance in 2009 will probably never be topped.
But with the trailers suggesting a new approach to the character, and a surprising win of the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, that's when it got me thinking "maybe this is as much of a masterpiece as the hype is suggesting it is".
With the anticipation well over boiling-point for so many, I was definitely up for this checking this out.
What I got was something was definitely refreshing in its tone as well as a strong leading performance. The structure, pacing and tone was more like watching one a hard-boiled 1970's feature or one of Martin Scorsese's earlier films such as Mean Streets, Taxi Driver and most notably King Of Comedy.
I liked how it covered several topics such as mental disability and the class system and even bringing in some nods to the source material that will please the comic book fans.
But it's first and foremost a character study, and the way it developed it to a strong finale with one particular scene that was wonderfully engaging and unsettling at the same time made it for a satisfying experience.
Joaquin Phoenix really transforms himself in more ways than one into one of the most iconic movie and comic book villains. He's not quite a full-on method actor. But when the occasion calls for it, he can become a totally new person and commit to it.
Despite his character portraying a villian, you can feel sympathy and empathy towards him and find a lot of relatable aspects that I feel a lot of demographics will see as well.
I'm not sure if I would personally give him an Oscar nomination just yet. But I wouldn't complain if he did when the major awards season arrives.
I know a lot of people may find the level of violence unsettling and upsetting. While I do agree with the former, I was never upset by it as the execution and timing of it felt right in the moment. It definitely shocked me. But I admired that it never felt afraid to hold back in order to help develop the story and the character.
I'm really pleased that director Todd Phillips and his crew set out on to do something different and all of it coming together into a very strong piece of work.
I may not be in the 'masterpiece' bracket of rating this film. But I am probably the next one down. It's a very good watch, has strong rewatchability and Phoenix's performance was worth it for all the hard work. I can't quite see it make my top 10 of the year. But it's certainly a film like I would like to own and watch again and again.
Rating: 8/10
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