Tulip posted:

The Batman stuff felt pretty tacked on and non-essential. Thomas Wayne felt like this unholy Ed Koch-Michael Bloomberg-Jeff Bezos character, and he's very comprehensible as a representation of "financiers who got into politics as a means of hurting poor people," but the superhero elements didn't add a lot.

Roman posted:

- In the scene with Bruce standing over his dead parents, a Wolfen poster on the wall. Maybe a reference to when Arthur says "They just think we'll just sit there and take it like good little boys, and we won't werewolf and go wild."

Pirate Jet posted:

The best bit is right after that when it implies that news stations are just straight up airing the footage of Murray getting shot.

Pirate Jet posted:

The best bit is right after that when it implies that news stations are just straight up airing the footage of Murray getting shot.

Roman posted:

But bleeping out the naughty word

Roman posted:

Another thing to get off my chest: One critique I keep seeing over and over is that Arthur, a mentally ill uneducated uncultured loner, was incoherent and had nothing profound to say on Murray's show. I would argue that him not delivering some eloquent "clever" Aaron Sorkin speech was a sign of good writing, as opposed to bad.

I also liked that his attempt to look cool and clever by stealing Murray's "That's life" catchphrase was cut off by the Please Stand By screen.

Roman posted:

But bleeping out the naughty word

Inceltown posted:

Donovan Trip posted:

The lengths by which people will go to say they hated this movie, my goodness

Prince Myshkin posted:

Can't believe some people didn't like a movie!

Brazilianpeanutwar posted:

Has anyone thought that Arthur was never actually the real joker?

Sinteres posted:

I don't buy that interpretation just because if the ending is saying that none of what you watched actually happened, what was the loving point? Unreliable narration can be used to good effect, but shrugging off the entire plot isn't that.

Brazilianpeanutwar posted:

Has anyone thought that Arthur was never actually the real joker? Just a mental patient in a psych ward who hears about a guy dressed as a clown commiting crimes from the news and TV and just gloms onto the idea that he’s the joker?
And it’s happening in all the other wards to the other patients,the real joker’s out there somewhere,a jack nicholson type or a heath ledger type,maybe even a caeser romero type,depending on which patient you ask and what mood they’re in.
Like a mass hysteria for mental patients.

Roth posted:

Seeing this movie tonight, what's it about?

Roth posted:

Seeing this movie tonight, what's it about?

Roth posted:

Seeing this movie tonight, what's it about?

Sinteres posted:

I don't buy that interpretation just because if the ending is saying that none of what you watched actually happened, what was the loving point? Unreliable narration can be used to good effect, but shrugging off the entire plot without revealing any layers underneath isn't that.

Tulip posted:

It's pretty obvious which parts are Arthur daydreaming and which parts actually happened.

It's also pretty obvious that Arthur isn't 'the joker' in any specific batman move canon but that's b/c it's pretty clear that 'the joker' isn't a singular person and also b/c it isn't seamless with any current batman canon.

quote:

"At the BAFTA Awards on Sunday night, Joaquin Phoenix used his acceptance speech for Best Actor to call out the industry's prominent diversity problem. Phoenix won the award for his performance as Arthur Fleck in Joker, about a man with mental illness mistreated by society, who spirals and slowly forms an alter ego, the Joker. While the film takes place in Gotham City, a key location in the DC Universe, Fleck is not a character found in the comics.

The BAFTAs got a lot of backlash this year for the evident lack of diversity in its nominees. The acting nominees were all white, the directors included no women, and some people took issue with Margot Robbie being nominated twice in one category. Other award shows, like the Academy Awards, have faced similar criticism. This year's Oscar nominations ruffled feathers for paying too little attention to diverse films.

According to Deadline, Phoenix gave a powerful speech about the lack of diversity at the awards, and what needs to be done to change it. Instead of celebrating his win, Phoenix spoke of his conflicted feelings on the "privilege" he experiences. He calls out the BAFTAs in particular.

I think that we send a very clear message to people of color that you’re not welcome here. I think that’s the message that we’re sending to people that have contributed so much to our medium and our industry, and in ways that we benefit from.

BAFTA spoke out themselves after the initial nominees were announced, citing their own disappointment and stating that there will be an internal investigation into the voting process.

Phoenix also seemed well-aware of his role in this system of privilege, saying that he is "ashamed," acknowledging that he is"part of the problem." He then put a spotlight on everyone in the room and stated what needs to be done to create change.

We have to do the hard work to truly understand systemic racism. I think it is the obligation of the people that have created and perpetuate and benefit from a system of oppression to be the ones that dismantle it. So that’s on us.

Many people have called out the obvious diversity problem at the awards throughout the past few years, but there's been little visible change. The last time a woman was nominated for Best Director at the BAFTAs was when Kathryn Bigelow had the honor back in 2012. As for the Oscars, Greta Gerwig was nominated in 2017 for Lady Bird, but was shut out of the category this year, despite her film Little Women being nominated for Best Picture, and five other awards. Only five women have ever been nominated for Best Director in the history of the Academy Awards.

Phoenix's film, Joker, has gotten a lot of attention for its portrayal of mental illness and society. The movie was a box-office hit, but it had mixed reviews, some praising it, with others calling it damaging. But no matter what people think of his film, Phoenix has been using the attention it's bringing to highlight the systematic issues within the entertainment industry. By pointing out what needs to be done and admitting that he knows he is a part of the issue, Phoenix's words will hopefully inspire others to examine their privilege."

https://screenrant.com/joaquin-phoenix-baftas-diversity-problem-speech/

MizPiz posted:

French firefighters are officially the coolest municipal force in the western world

https://twitter.com/liz_franczak/status/1222643635994292224?s=19

https://twitter.com/redfishstream/status/1222467921924018176?s=19

Bust Rodd posted:

It took like 5 years for people to realize Ledger’s joker was just a 1-1 Tom Waits impression, I’m excited for 2026 discourse to be all excited about the kid from Modern Family playing Joker and everyone realizing Phoenix’s Performance is just “Andy Kaufman”

The MSJ posted:

There's like 4 kids in Modern Family now, you have to be more specific.

Bust Rodd posted:

It took like 5 years for people to realize Ledger’s joker was just a 1-1 Tom Waits impression, I’m excited for 2026 discourse to be all excited about the kid from Modern Family playing Joker and everyone realizing Phoenix’s Performance is just “Andy Kaufman”

Bust Rodd posted:

It took like 5 years for people to realize Ledger’s joker was just a 1-1 Tom Waits impression, I’m excited for 2026 discourse to be all excited about the kid from Modern Family playing Joker and everyone realizing Phoenix’s Performance is just “Andy Kaufman”

Necrothatcher posted:

I like how much criticism Joker gets for taking inspiration from cool things. "It's just Taxi Driver / King of Comedy / Andy Kaufman... Etc"

...good? Those things are awesome.