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WithJokerhitting celluloid , it ’s time to evaluate how Joaquin Phoenix ’s performance stacks up to all late takes on the Joker . While the movie is wait to do capital concern at the box office , Jokerhas been hide in controversysince it first screened for critic at the Venice Film Festival ( whereJokerwon the Golden Lion ) . Debates continue over the flick ’s discourse of violence , its primal character , and the shock it could have on the wider culture during such politically tumultuous multiplication . really , there are no easy answers here . Jokerwas a flick that was always going to be tough to talk about and mired in unease .
However , the film is still there and deserves to be discussed on its own merits , both as part of and singly from the greater ethnical and political discourse . Jokeris many thing but well-fixed to ignore it is not . One conversation fans have been rub to have since the movie was announced centered on its characterization of the Clown Prince of Crime himself . The Joker has been part of Batman ’s lore since the character was devise , and he remains arguably the most iconic comic Holy Scripture baddie ever create . His stigma of helter-skelter evil , devoid of superhuman ability and rooted in unbridled lawlessness , has endured for decades , even as the character has take in multiple re - imaginings .
He ’s been voice by countless thespian in toon , but is most iconically defined in this medium bythe performance of Mark Hamill . Cesar Romero made him a giggling cut-up as was suit the technicolor ' LX spectacle of the Adam West series . Jack Nicholson slip the show from Michael Keaton in trademark fashion . Heath Ledger redefined the fibre and won a posthumous Oscar for it . Jared Leto leaned into the neon gangster esthetic . And this does n’t even let in people like Tony Hale , Zach Galifianakis , John DiMaggio , andCameron Monaghan , all of whom put their own revenue stamp on the fibre . We ’d be here all Clarence Shepard Day Jr. if we speak about every single Joker actor beyond the grown 1 . But now there ’s Joaquin Phoenix . So , just how doesJoker ’s Arthur Fleck compare to what ’s come before ?
How Can You Even Compare Phoenix’s Joker to the Others?
For many , the Joker is the arrant adversary to the stoical , deeply moral , and ethically focused Batman . This is part what makes comparingJoaquin Phoenix ’s Jokerto the others so foxy . The film and its marketing are so intemperately definingJokeras being its own affair , separate from the wider DC canon ( even though it does take station in Gotham City and the Waynes are identify characters).Jokeris not so much an descent storey for the Joker as it is a possible origin story – one of conceivably many – for a figure who could , under the right circumstances , become a turkey - esque trope .
There areno plans to have Phoenix ’s Joker fight Robert Pattinsonin his coming Batman picture and he still operates outside of the DCEU , where Jared Leto technically remains the canyon Joker . This Joker is not plan to be a unequivocal beginning story for the fiber and its main influences are outside of the comics . All in all , the material actively roots against the impression of comparingPhoenix ’s Jokerto the others , but it ’s also pretty impossible not to do so . As comic book movies become more entrenched in long - race continuity and cement exclusive role player as the only reading of sealed reference ( for representative , it ’s unlikely we ’ll see someone else trifle Iron Man after Robert Downey Jr. , or at least we wo n’t do so for many many years ) , there ’s a novelty in seeing how all these disparate versions pile up , and in particular how different histrion have put their own unique spin on playing the Joker .
Which Joker is Most Accurate to the Comics?
There is no such thing as the singular Batman canon . The narration of Gotham and its unnumerable house physician has develop , been rebooted , rewrite , and vitiate countless times over by hundreds of writers and artists , each of whom put their own stamp on the material . As is often the case with frequently adapted characters and stories , the introductory social organisation of those idea are often used slackly by author as a means to research modern-day concern , alter tastes in amusement , or to cohere to an auteur ’s specific style .
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SomeJokers are also accurate to the comicsof their clock time but would n’t inevitably hold up so for today ’s lector . Cesar Romero ’s Joker in the Adam WestBatmanseries is jolly close to how he was in the comics during the late 1960s when light comedy and a family - friendly appeal was the focus over thematic duskiness . Jack Nicholson ’s Joker is arguably the one who most embodies the great set trait of the character – the purple suit , the laugh , the gag weapon system – but even then , he was yield a unequivocal inception story that the comedian always rejected .
Heath Ledger ’s Joker inThe Dark Knightwas its own creation , one where theatre director Christopher Nolan was more interested in changing the character to suit the movie and public presentation than vice versa . There are subtle elements that feel distinctly rooted in the graphic symbol ’s stemma , especially his bleak sense of wittiness and more optical moments like his Hello Nurse garb - up . Nolan ’s work borrowed factor from the comic strip but scarcely , which is partly what makes Ledger ’s Joker so singular . Jared Leto go more hip - hops mobster for his Joker inSuicide Squad , which is n’t wholly without source material origins , but for many viewing audience , it was too incongruous with what they knew and expect from the theatrical role . Overall , the most accurate would probably be Mark Hamill ’s turn inBatman : The Animated Series , which capture the malign spirit of the fibre through vaporous voice work alone .
Jokerhas obvious inspirations from Batman canyon . The allusions toThe Killing Jokeare evident in how it positions the quality ’s origin as being rooted in his pre - Joker life as a fail stand - up . However , The Killing Jokeis notable for how it cue the audience that this version of events is just that – a version of the past that may be true but it really does n’t count to the Joker or anyone else . Other than that part , Joker ’s biggest influences come not from DC Comicsbut auteur - driven movie theatre such asTaxi Driver , The King of Comedy , andNetwork . In many ways , it ’s a flick that does everything in its power to be as disassociated from the funnies as possible . Accuracy is not what Todd Phillips is aiming for and that may prove controversial to some fans .
Which Joker Depicts Mental Illness The Best?
The connections between the Joker and mental illness have been much debated over the eld , as has the more general question of how “ madness ” is utilized in pop cultivation as tachygraphy for villainy . Some versions of the Joker have him acting “ crazy ” while remaining lucid , and others lean in hard to the notion that he is suffering from some sort of condition that motivates his criminal chaos . There ’s much to be allege on the rightness of this and how far society has come in terms of not demonizing mental sickness . This can be discover in many of the moremajor interpretations of the Joker , which typically lean towards the image of him as tackle “ madness ” more as a force than something that controls him .
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However , Phoenix and Phillips’sJokeris primarily a subject area of mental illness . Arthur Fleck is a Isle of Man chivy by multiple physical , mental , and emotional unwellness for which he receives handling and medicinal drug . The hassle , illusion , and isolation that are brought upon by Arthur ’s mental sickness are motivating factors in his transformative journeying . It ’s for sure a gutsy direction for this story to take with such a familiar character and it ’s one that roots the story in a decidedly anti - comedic affair ( Arthur may want to be a comic but he is painfully unfunny ) .
What bind the Jokers together in this compliments is how none of them are yield official diagnoses by their several narratives . This makes sense with stories where he ’s a more performatively crazy figure , but withJoker , it ’s a major blind spot . Phillips and Phoenix sound out they deliberately did not give Arthur a specific diagnosing , although there are various elements that could be seen as shit him bipolar . This catch - all enactment of “ lunacy ” has striking part in the narrative – the plastic film is at its best when it demonstrate how cold political decisions to junk services like genial health care can have a wide wallop – but it still can not avail but de-escalate the overall story and character given that his mental state and the realistic setting surrounding it is key to the integral movie .
Which Joker Looks The Best?
There is one thing Phoenix ’s Joker has in his recession and that is one hell of a wardrobe choice . Thefinal Joker lookhe dons towards the end of the picture is a striking mix of mirthful al-Qur’an influence , with a hatful of Cesar Romero sprinkle on top . design by Mark Bridges ( the Oscar - winning costume designer behindPhantom Thread ) , the combination of John Wayne Gacy - style make - up , dripping green hair , and retro dapper cause make this Joker one that will make a long-lasting impression .
There ’s a grounds the Joker is such a staple for Halloween costumes : You really ca n’t go wrong with a look that iconic , even as it ’s been reinvented multiple times over . Heath Ledger ’s Joker was a dandy deterrent example of that , a uniform of sorts that seemed at the same time neatly put together and throw on at the last minute ( the stark typification of his ethos , as emphasized by the combination of rocky cicatrice and in haste applied make - up . ) Cesar Romero ’s case was abridge directly from the swinging ‘ 60s ( and made all the in force by his refusal to shave off his moustache , thus leaving it to be covered by make - up ) . Both Nicholson and Hamill ’s looks are straight from the comics with their retro mob boss stylings . Jared Leto ’s Joker lookwas at least complete . There was an obvious system of logic behind the Juggalo mobster intake , the tattoo , and the way , but there ’s a reason most people do n’t deem positive memory of that aesthetic . It seems far too neatly fain and coordinated in a way that lacks true chaos .
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So Who Is The Best Joker?
The wider conversation over which Joker will have the biggest cultural impact and specify the grapheme for years to get along is one that will probably never stop , particularly if DC and Warner Bros. choose to keep making movies and allow new actors take on the role . If nothing else , whatJoaquin Phoenix ’s versiondoes is widen the discourse beyond the confines of a enfranchisement and the often staid expectations station upon such an iconic property .
As for whether or not he’sthe ripe jokester ? As mentioned above , it ’s hard to judge him as such when the standard for his motion picture are so dissimilar compared to the others , but he is for sure a absorbing gain to the line - up . However , it ’s tough to argue with the fact that the most impactful version ofthe Joker is Heath Ledger ’s . He perfectly reinvented the character for a new audience to the decimal point where many people see him asTheJoker , end of story . Regardless of funny book accuracy , Ledger ’s reading is so perfectly balanced for the narrative he inhabits , the Bruce Wayne he opposes , and the Gotham of the change fourth dimension . That will be hard for any actor to contend within the aftermath .
Still , Joaquin Phoenix’sJokeris a film and a lineament that demands to be understood by its own rules and severally of any spacious preconceived notion about the property and how audience conceive he ’s conjecture to act as . That ’s part of the challenge of the film and one that will belike do more than a few arguments . Whether he ’s your in effect , unsound , or middle Joker , he ’s sure enough rugged to blank out .
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