I don't get the moral panic around Joker

[Deleted member 58846]

I really do not get it.

The internet is filled with thinkpieces about Joker's moral "hollowness", or the nihilism in the movie having no point, and how all of this glorifies violence and terror, but I can't say I get it at all. I'm going to try to list my points in bullets:

• Just because there is the possibility of some asshole somewhere identifying with a nihilistic terrorist does not mean that you should not make the art you want to (while exercising the requisite responsibility you have as a creator, of course). The "incel community" has also appropriated and taken the exact opposite intended message from The Matrix and Fight Club, among other things. Them fixating on all the wrong things should never stop people from being able to say new things
• Joker as a movie rarely glorifies the character. It makes you feel horrified and revolted and repulsed, and in some cases even bad for how pathetic he is, but you're never rooting for him as the protagonist at all
• It's not like previous movies that tackle similar ideas don't exist, including movies that this one wears on its sleeve as influences (The King of Comedy, Taxi Driver)

Why have we given this one movie all this power? Because some shut-in socially stunted nerds somewhere thought they identified with this comic book villain? Why do we give the alt-right and the bigots so much power, that we let them appropriate otherwise perfectly acceptable symbols and the like to the point that there is widespread hysteria around them? Pepe the frog, the ok-sign, the red pill, Fight Club, Joker... why are we letting these people appropriate all of this symbology? Why is there so much moral panic around an ultimately inconsequential comic book movie? And these are sensible people engaging in this kind of hysteria.

I don't get it.

 

[BDS]

There are multiple threads about this subject.

 

[PanzerKraken]

It's the political climate we live in now.

 

[Ryaaan14]

It sounds like u clearly get it u just want to tell ppl they're wrong. Which is fine just don't claim to not understand it lmao

 

[xxracerxx]

There is another thread that is exactly this same topic.

 

[Deleted member 58846]

It sounds like u clearly get it u just want to tell ppl they're wrong. Which is fine just don't claim to not understand it lmao

Click to shrink...

No, I'm saying I don't get it. Why are we giving this so much power?

There is another thread that is exactly this same topic.

Click to shrink...

Apologies, because I have not seen them

 

[artemis]

It's the society we live in now.

Click to shrink...

Fixed that for ya.

 

[molnizzle]

Yeah man! Freeze peach!!!

 

[Deleted member 2109]

Seems mostly like it's coming from people here in the US terrified about the constant mass shootings we have every week and they went a little nuts over this movie because of it.

 

[Deleted member 58846]

Yeah man! Freeze peach!!!

Click to shrink...

Yes, that's what I am saying, way to read the OP and everything

Seems mostly like it's coming from people here in the US terrified about the constant mass shootings we have every week and they went a little nuts over this movie because of it.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, I'm surprised at how much panic there is in the U.S. around this, though I suppose given how many shootings there are there on a weekly basis, I guess it's better to be safe than sorry.

 

[carlsojo]

I don't understand the fearmongering around here over it either. Like are y'all gonna wig out when Doom comes out later this year?

 

[digitalrelic]

I got you covered on this: https://www.resetera.com/threads/why-has-joker-become-so-uniquely-controversial.145161/

 

[LewieP]

I just saw it and I'm amazed that none of the controversy I saw was about using a notorious paedophile on the soundtrack, who will have been paid royalties for the use of his music.

 

[Okabe]

I don't understand the fearmongering around here over it either. Like are y'all gonna wig out when Doom comes out later this year?

Click to shrink...

Whats funny is that it's only here i'm seeing it get this bad. Everywhere else people are just enjoying the movie

 

[Harry Potter Obama]

It's because the film is so twisted

 

[TacomaSCDisaster]

A couple of things. The rise of incel culture and their adoption of characters like Joker as mascots. The lingering echo of the 2012 Aurora shooting and the shooter identifying with the character. But I don't think any of it should be taken too seriously.

Personally I'm just avoiding it because the director is a "PC CULTURE RUINED COMEDY" dicknose.

 

[Puffy]

Before the film came out there was a leaked impression that called it an incel's wet dream and it snowballed

 

[dreams]

There is something... extremely ironic... about you mentioning people taking the wrong meaning from characters while also having your entire forum persona be based around Walter White.

 

[kadotsu]

It's advertisement and you are the billboard.

 

[Spirit of Jazz]

Please compare the number of threads about the moral panic to the number of threads whining about the moral panic. Also compare the substance of them e.g. Military intelligence vs people whining about criticising a comic book movie over and over and over. There is no real moral panic.

There are people that can see the blatant fact this movie will appeal to the alt right given it's focus on white fragility, entitlement, acts of random violence enacting systemic change, and even how all the PoC female characters are handled. Then there are fanboys that get upset when it's pointed it out.

 

[Deleted member 58846]

There is something... extremely ironic... about you mentioning people taking the wrong meaning from characters while also having your entire forum persona be based around Walter White.

Click to shrink...

I don't idolize Walter White, I think he's an incredibly well executed character. What even is this

 

[jett]

This whole shitshow is the most clear cut example of how some people love to feel outraged, desperate to either manufacture or exaggerate an opportunity for controversy.

What was most amusing to me was people trying to argue that movies can cause real life violence, which is essentially the same argument old fogies use to turn video games into a collective scapegoat, something that is very obviously deeply frowned upon in the gaming community.

 

[IDreamOfHime]

Spooky clowns scare people.

 

[Silky]

I just don't wanna fall for his trick

 

[Einchy]

Please compare the number of threads about the moral panic to the number of threads whining about the moral panic. There is no real moral panic.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, there were undercover cops at screenings for no reason. Lol

 

[Avitus]

A very real portion of people are addicted to outrage and will look for it in every situation, even when it's not warranted. The internet is fucking with us in many ways, this is one of them.

 

[Saucycarpdog]

We already have had like 2 threads on this exact same topic.

 

[Jesse_and_the_rippers]

Already a thread about this earlier in the week, but the biggest difference is pretty obvious to me. None of those other movies are comic book movies, which are at peak cultural zeitgeist right now. Plus the Joker is an iconic comic, cartoon and movie character that everyone from my 3 year old to my 95 year old Nana recognize. So of course it will generate a ton more discussion. There are no Travis Bickle toys at Target lol.

 

[Omegamon]

I understand people having problems with it but it seems some actually want a shooting to happen.

 

[Spirit of Jazz]

Yeah, there were undercover cops at screenings for no reason. Lol

Click to shrink...

What do undercover cops have to do with moral panic? Knowing nothing about it I'd assume that a small number of showings might have highlighted as potential threats due to intelligence based around what some idiots had said on the internet.

Though maybe I'm wrong and cops were in every theatre throughout the country because as an institution they're known for over reacting to appease criticism from the liberals/left.

Either way, undercover cops are totally unrelated to what the OP's talking about. Which I don't really want to get into in any more detail than I already have due to them using their OP to utterly misunderstand dogwhistles despite how often they come up here. They've clearly got no intention of listening to anybody who opposes them and just want to get outraged at what they perceived to be outrage.

Though there's also just a hugely charitable reading of the film in the OP that goes against what it actually has to say. I'd point that American History X glorified Neo Nazis to Neo Nazis and it did far more to make their actions seem abhorrent than the Joker.

 

[Officer Big Mac]

This is a case of left wingers smelling their own farts.

 

[Deleted member 29280]

Yeah, there were undercover cops at screenings for no reason. Lol

Click to shrink...

Because there were people actually talking about shooting up theaters and threatening to do so. Police don't really operate under public concern for better or worse I think

 

[Einchy]

What do undercover cops have to do with moral panic?

Click to shrink...

Because they were there because of the moral panic.

You believe the moral panic doesn't exist because there aren't that many threads about in on Era or because there wasn't a cop in every theater. Like, come on.

This huge story that has been around this film, to the point that the people who made is are being asked about it, just doesn't exist? It never happened? Everyone but you imaged it?

 

[Richiek]

I love how all the finger pointing is towards liberals in these types of threads, when it is the military and police, who are no allies of the left, who were guarding against violence at Joker screenings, lol.

 

[2ndTuXx]

Politicians doing their typical bullshit.

Whenever there's a wave of mass shootings, just pass the blame on anything that's currently popular.

 

[Anthony Hopkins]

Lol, perfect I was just thinking the same thing.
Like the red dragon movie has similar themes and there wasn't all the fuss

 

[JaseC64]

I dont t get it either. Basically I might get shot if i go see the movie. That's the gist I'm getting and i feel if that's the case, incels should be treated as terrorists.

 

[Capra]

How many fucking threads do we need to have bitching about people bitching about the edgy clown movie

 

[Ithil]

It's all highly manufactured.

 

[beelulzebub]

I think it's so nihilistic it's not really about anything at all. It's a pointless film. So I suppose I also don't understand the controversy.

 

[Deleted member 8197]

Era, we need to talk about the number of Joker threads.

Biiiiiiiiiiiig oooooooooof. Yikes.

 

[Volimar]

There are already enough threads on this topic. I suggest continuing your conversation in one of those.

https://www.resetera.com/threads/why-has-joker-become-so-uniquely-controversial.145161/