Was JOKER a bad movie with a great performance or was it a great movie and I just didn't get it?

[Soapbox Killer]

I get that Phoenix is a great actor and did a marvelous job but I'm not too sure the movie was good. This is a strange feeling for me as I normally walk out of the theater with a very clear impression of what I just watched and how I felt about. I really don't know what I just saw.

 

[Chivalry]

It was a fun movie with a great performance.

 

[Truant]

It was OK. Phoenix carried the entire thing on his back with that performance.

 

[rashbeep]

it was such a nothing movie

phoenix was good though

 

[djplaeskool]

It was alright. Personally, it didn't say or mean much.
Joaquin Phoenix carried it with a fantastic performance.

 

[Toño]

Good movie, impressive performance.

 

[TronLight]

I think I read someone describing it as the "greats actor showreel ever" or something. It's an ok movie beyond that.

 

[Slaythe]

Great performance, pretentious generic ass movie.

Horrible take on the joker. ("he was abused" "people are mean to him" "he's vindicated !" "he's an inspirational hero !" "maybe it's all in his head !" "he has a mental illness !" fucking pick one and also don't try to make the incarnation of Evil a victim, thanks)

 

[Heromanz]

It is a fantastic movie

 

[Deleted member 8468]

I thought the plot was pretty standard fare considering the subject matter, but Phoenix's performance, the cinematography and score elevated it to something more. I can certainly understand some people having issue with where this film could fit in the greater Batman universe, but I ignored all that and treated it as a standalone 'what if' and loved it in that context.

 

[Doggg]

Not bad, not great overall -- but great performance, yes.

 

[FTF]

It was a (just) good movie with an excellent performance.

 

[Inugami]

I think the problem is that it was trying to have something to say about US culture, but it still wanted to draw in that massive comic book audience. Because of this it got confused a few times who it was actually catering towards and would have to jump back and forth sometimes at odd places.

It definitely wasn't a bad movie, but it's not one I plan to rewatch anytime soon either.

 

[SolidChamp]

Great performance, pretentious generic ass movie.

Horrible take on the joker. ("he was abused" "people are mean to him" "he's vindicated !" "he's an inspirational hero !" "maybe it's all in his head !" "he has a mental illness !" fucking pick one and also don't try to make the incarnation of Evil a victim, thanks)

Click to shrink...

Yeah pretty much all of this.

Nolan best displayed how Joker doesn't need an origin or explanation.

This film really felt like someone's attempt at their own pretentious rendition of Taxi Driver.

 

[Ultimate Bear Cub]

I thought it was pretty good. Phoenix had a well done performance, but I have no drive to rewatch it nor find it particularly memorable. I don't think of it as a DC movie either. More like an average tragedy drama story with some light Batman references.

 

[OSHAN]

The movie is so absurd, it's hard to take seriously, and on that note, I think it's a lot of fun to watch, and the performance is great.

 

[Kouriozan]

I remember my mother wanting to see it at the cinema based on trailer, I went with her and we found it disappointing.
Joaquin is a great actor though.

 

[Deleted member 17388]

Don't think about it too much and it's entertaining enough to pass the time.

 

[TheRuralJuror]

It was a pretty good movie with a great performance depending on how you feel about Phoenix. It doesn't have to really be anything specific imo. Your takeaway is just as valid.

 

[-COOLIO-]

good movie, excellent performance.

 

[Prototype Viktor]

a bad movie with great imitation inspiration

 

[TheTyrantShow]

Tried too hard to make him look like a victim
He was garbage all the way through

we don't need an origin for Joker

 

[andrew]

Shitty movie and Phoenix's performance isn't good. it's just loud and a lot so people who think more acting=better acting can be duped easily.

 

[Alavard]

It's extremely well shot and well acted but it doesn't really have much to say.

 

[Dennis8K]

I was a fantastic movie with fantastic writing, direction and performances.

It was also a fantastic success at the Oscars and the box office.

 

[Lothars]

It wasn't a very good movie with a great performance

 

[Knight in Shining Armani]

It's...okay, but too long. Just like most movies nowadays.

 

[Bishop89]

Was only OK once he turned into the joker.
Ledger/tdk still miles ahead

 

[supernormal]

I thought it was wildly overrated. Yes the performance was great, but not unlike anything he's done in the past. Just a different flavor. As for everything else it pretty much feels like what it is, a Joker movie by the guy that made the Hangover trilogy. It's like Michael Bay trying to tackle serious subject matter. He doesn't have the restraint, the subtlety, maybe even the taste to present it properly.

 

[Rehynn]

It's not even Phoenix's best performance in this vein. It's a well-crafted performance, but it doesn't feel inspired at all. Just textbook good acting.

Now check him out in The Master.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

It's extremely well shot and well acted but it doesn't really have much to say.

Click to shrink...

I kind of liked that about it. It was a window into Arthur Fleck's mind and world and nothing more. Sometimes that can be as rewarding as any story with a major message or theme.

The message for me was the emotions I took with me after watching the movie. Sadness, pity, shock, despair. Also made me a bit more appreciative towards people seen as misunderstood.

 

[Lotus]

Bad movie with a great performance seems pretty apt

 

[Vampirolol]

It was a bad movie with a great performance that I still didn't like. Probably the worst experience I had in a theatre, completely missed the point on every mark. I still can't get over how everyone loved it but laughed at The Room when they are the same movie, with the only differences being the acting and photgraphy.

 

[Loud Wrong]

Great movie, even greater performance.

 

[Bedlam]

Great movie with fantastic performances.

Different strokes for different folks.

I don't get the backlash at all.

 

[Jam]

Great performance, pretentious generic ass movie.

Horrible take on the joker. ("he was abused" "people are mean to him" "he's vindicated !" "he's an inspirational hero !" "maybe it's all in his head !" "he has a mental illness !" fucking pick one and also don't try to make the incarnation of Evil a victim, thanks)

Click to shrink...

TIL nuance doesn't exist and we have to take everything is absolution.

 

[Jesse_and_the_rippers]

One of the most overrated movies in recent memory. And the idea of Bruce Wayne's dad being an asshole capitalist/politician/elite was off putting. Is that in the comics?

 

[shaneo632]

It was a good movie with a great performance.

 

[Strangelove_77]

Decent movie with a great performance. I wouldn't say its bad, but its not exceptional either.

 

[jett]

It's Joaquin Phoenix doing his best to elevate the most rote screenplay.

 

[Guzim]

It has wonderful performances and a great score, but I hated the story so much.

 

[SapientWolf]

The universe the Joker film sets up would make for a far more interesting Batman than anything we've seen in theaters so far. Audiences haven't been forced to confront how something as over the top as Batman would play out in a more grounded world.

I also like how the film is an indictment of Gotham (and our society by proxy) just as much as it's a Joker origin story.

 

[JamRock7]

You wouldn't get it

 

[Jombie]

It has probably the best living actor as the lead, so it was watchable because of Phoenix. The movie itself was a surplus of tropes we've seen in much better movies.

 

[digitalrelic]

It's just alright. And the crappy last 20 minutes of the film completely override any possible suspension of disbelief.

But Joaquin was flawless.

 

[Vampirolol]

One of the most overrated movies in recent memory. And the idea of Bruce Wayne's dad being an asshole capitalist/politician/elite was off putting. Is that in the comics?

Click to shrink...

"ArE YoU lAuGhinG aT Me??"
The third time they used this plot device, I busted out laughing just like Phoenix.

 

[Alavard]

I kind of liked that about it. It was a window into Arthur Fleck's mind and world and nothing more. Sometimes that can be as rewarding as any story with a major message or theme.

The message for me was the emotions I took with me after watching the movie. Sadness, pity, shock, despair. Also made me a bit more appreciative towards people seen as misunderstood.

Click to shrink...

You're absolutely right, and it's ultimately fine. There's nothing wrong with a story just being told well. I don't even have a problem with the people declaring the movie to be profound in some way (though I heavily disagree). The only real problem I have is the people holding the movie up with some message about mental health or society ignoring its marginalized peoples.

 

[MoonScented]

I thought it was very boring. The acting was fine.

 

[TaterTots]

I liked it. It wasn't a great movie or a bad one. It was just ok. Phoenix always does a good job, but I think his performance raised the movie a little.

 

[rusty chrome]

Best movie of 2019. If you don't get it I think that says more about you than the movie. What's there not to get? It's just a Joker origin movie which people tried too hard to build fake outrage around. Some people on here even seemed like they actually wanted this movie to cause a mass shooting just so they could say I told you so. It's pathetic. It's just a Joker movie.