[RiGOD]

JOKER - 2/5

Disappointing plot and underwhelming storyline. It was such a good opportunity to start of a promising franchise and alas it was well wasted. Joaquin Phoenix did great, but his solo performance could never carry the movie to an above average level, blame the bad storyline and script.

Would the movie have got any better if anyone else played Joaquin's part? I don't think so.

[deathwalkr]

Crawl:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8364368/

Surprisingly ok movie to watch on a rainy night. 3/5

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by neofromcapone

How would the movie turn out if Heath Ledger could've done the role instead of Phoenix?

Wouldn't have made one bit difference, it had nothing to do with the acting. The movie would've done better had it not alluded itself to Joker or Batman franchise.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by ranjitnair77

There is a whole lot of building up but nothing really happens.

Originally Posted by mayankk

There's too much development, too much background, too much humanizing of the joker.

Originally Posted by PPS

Thought it was a thriller & there would be some twists & turns, but nothing of that sort happened.

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

It's a pity both the director and actor have declared they don't see Joker crossing paths with the new Batman.

Was worried about this. What is the point of the Joker unless it is in relation to Batman?! However great the performance, Ledger, Nicholson, and I have no doubt Phoenix has done a great job (haven't watched the movie yet), and however great the story line, the whole point of any Joker story line is a lead up to his battle(s) with Batman, right? So remove the Batman element and I don't think the Joker on it's own will make a very compelling character.

Could be wrong, will go watch anyway.

[mobike008]

Joker

This movie is full of darkness, self-pity, tense and sad to a large extent. The whole movie is carried forward by just one person, the Joker (Joaquin Phoenix). Joaquin (pronounced as Waa-keen) not only acted out of this world but, also seemed to have physically transformed to add more reality to the character surely deserves an Oscar for this role and it would be a shame if he does not get it

Even though the movie is slow in every aspect but, is still quite riveting and will never let you doze off (if you happen to go after a heavy lunch) and keeps you on tenterhooks to know what happens next

Many may say it is over-hyped but, you should simply go watch it for character detailing and it's execution and will any day be better than the dozen's of meaningless sci-fi movies that Hollywood makes

At the end you will end up in a confusion whether to empathize or condemn Joker for his behavior/actions and like one of the other reviewer mentioned-it is gut wrenching for sure

It deserves a watch for sure !!!

4/5

[libranof1987]

Watched Joker last night.

First things first, as unfair as it might be, one can't help but compare this movie to Heath Ledger.

As a performer, Joaquin Phoenix has done a spectacular job. As a movie, it wasn't exactly outstanding.

Coming to Joaquin: while he has portrayed the character with an alarming level of familiarity, his Joker didn't have the layers of character that Ledger's Joker did. Heath's Joker had intense insanity, that changed from lunacy to sarcasm to psychopathic behavior. There was a new layer to him when he was at Wayne's party or when breaking into the bank, or crashing the mob's meeting or even when he was walking away from the hospital and the bomb clicker didn't work. Joaquin is mostly always sad, except maybe when's doing his dance.

As a movie, it is probably an unfair comparison considering The Dark Knight had Christopher Nolan as director and Hans Zimmer for the background score. Joker is pretty slow as well.

A decade later, there's so much about The Dark Knight's Joker that one will remember; be it the mannerisms or the immensely hard-hitting dialogues. I don't think I'll remember much of this Joker. In fact, after getting out of the theater, a bunch of us came home and watched The Dark Knight!

3/5

[arindambasu13]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Watched Joker last night.

First things first, as unfair as it might be, one can't help but compare this movie to Heath Ledger.

I suspected as much and hence have not queued up for tickets. Heath Ledger has left an indelible mark on the DC universe with his portrayal of the Joker and that act will be hard to beat. Phoenix is a great actor in his own right, but this role is particularly difficult one to enact, especially after a legacy like Health Ledger has made the character immortal on the big screen.

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Watched---SNIP ---and watched The Dark Knight!

3/5

Originally Posted by arindambasu13

I suspected---SNIP--- legacy like Health Ledger has made the character immortal on the big screen.

Thats the problem.
Heath Ledger played a brilliant Joker.
Joaquin played a brilliant Joker.

However, Heath's joker is a villain, while Joaquin's is one who is just a person with mental health issues and subsequent violent tendencies.
The slightest inkling of a connection is at the end of the new movie, but that is just not enough. Can this joker put a knife into Gambol's mouth? I dont think so.
In delving so deep into the what is the most mysterious origins story in any comic verse, they seem to have forgotten that there is already a perception of the Joker in people's mind which does not fit in at all to him having a family, or that he is is capable of getting distraught when he finds out about his family history.

[SoumenD]

Did Ad Astra release anywhere in India? I was waiting for it but couldn't find it in theaters. Been more than 2 weeks since its world-wide release.

Specially after the promo video that surfaced wherein Brad Pitt had a call with an astronaut in ISS & mentioned about Chandrayan, I was hoping this will definitely release in India

[harry10]

Wanted to see Joker. Sadly not one multiplex is playing it near me. Not even PVR. Effect of War releasing alongside. However, after reading all reviews here and reddit etc. I guess I will wait for it to come to streaming platforms in couple of months.

Also, I doubt Dark knight Joker as a character can be outperformed. It created a benchmark for Joker as the Top villain in madness and cunnigness which is hard to beat.

[GTO]

Watched Joker last evening & hated it. 0 / 5 stars. I wouldn't even watch it on TV. Too dark for my tastes & way too slow.

[tchsvy]

The comic universes are obsessed with origins these days, the Joker is such movie which goes back to the origins of the antagonist Joker. Now that, the joker is a psychopath who hates the rich, they tried to bring out the reasons for that behaviour. At the same time, Joker is also suffering from mental illness, in one way the makers are also portraying the effects of untreated mental illness.

As this is prequel, this has happened long before the emergence of the Dark Knight, and they have already faced each other in the 'sequel' The Dark Knight. Hence they will not cross their paths one more time, well, at least not until DC decides to produce the Batman series one more time.

[ajay_satpute]

Most of us are carrying too much baggage from the Dark Knight trilogy while watching Joker. Except few subtle references to Bruce Wayne, there is nothing common or comparable with Dark Knight and Heath Ledger. It was well established before that this is no Dark Knight and no action sequences.

We need to consider this movie in its exclusivity and not compare with previous Jokers. I do agree it is a bit slow and sometimes, director tries to play the victim card for the Joker, but its a fabulous movie in terms of giving us a glimpse on the pre-Batman era and how the Joker became what we saw in Dark Knight or Batman series. Some movies are best experienced in slow pace. Another such example is Dunkirk. Dunkirk in spite of being a war film, was slower and there were hardly any famous or larger than life characters. But it was such a well made movie.

I think Joker is going to fetch all the possible awards to Joaquin. Masterful performance !

[Maverick5490]

Joker was a treat to watch in IMAX. Although it's slow but the detailing, cinematography and the acting is marvelous! As a movie that portrays the evolution of Joker, it really works well! 4/5

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by ajay_satpute

Most of us are carrying too much baggage from the Dark Knight trilogy while watching Joker.

Gotham, Arkham State Hospital, Wayne family are few obvious references I can remember, there might be more than a DC fan might now.

The makers of Joker, have done a Swift Dzire and saying don't compare with Swift?

IMO they went in the wrong direction trying to justify Jokers' behavior by mental health issues. The Joker portrayed is too meek. The movie has enough complaints of being dark, but I'd say its not dark enough.

Reciting 'I have bad thoughts' through the movie doesn't make one a bad person.

I think Joker is going to fetch all the possible awards to Joaquin. Masterful performance !

He sure will