Joker released in cinemas across the US on the 4th of October. The reaction has been both somewhat surprising, but at the same time not.

A few months ago, we talked about if the customer is always right when it comes to movie reviews, especially due to the largely unfair critical responses regarding movies such as Venom, another comic-based movie. It seems that Joker has had its own fair share of criticism, this time, of a political nature.

Joker has been described as “shallow” by news outlets.

It is currently facing an uphill battle to remain “certified fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes. Yet, the audience review is currently at 92%… It’s hard to talk about a movie which I myself have not seen (heads-up for a 1-Up Joker event soon!). However, I’m pretty sure that the audience score can give a good idea for how it is.

One of the primary issues with Joker is its violence.

Outlets saying that the character goes too far as if they were expecting a hero. The truth is, that the Joker is one of the most violent comic book characters in history. We’re talking about a guy that shot a woman in the back, disabling her from the waist down, raped her, and then showed photos of it to her father.

The Joker is a disgustingly evil monster. So, I expect no less from a biopic describing him because that’s how he is. The criticism describing the movie as too violent is unfounded. The reality is that if someone wants to be the Dark Knight’s archenemy, he HAS to be a monster.

DC has also been busy preparing for their continuation of the DCEU.

Joker is not part of this ongoing film series. However, it seems that DC still haven’t hung their boots after Justice League due to the resurgence of the franchise due to the all-round good films in Aquaman and Shazam!. There are currently six movies planned, with two in post-production. One of these two dropped its trailer this week, Birds of Prey.

Birds of Prey is a loose adaptation of the comic book team of the same name. The movie will feature Margot Robbie returning to her Harley Quinn character who is on a quest of reinventing herself after leaving Jared Leto’s Joker. She will join forces with the Huntress, Black Canary (both members of the comics Birds of Prey) and Renee Montoya, a detective. The movie will also feature Ewan McGregor as Gotham crime lord Black Mask.

All this is promising us that it will be an amazing movie. We can only wait and see, but we won’t say no to more Margot Robbie and Ewan McGregor.

This movie can easily be more fresh air in the DCEU, same as Aquaman and Shazam!. So thank you DC, more of this, please!

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This film will present the Joker as failed comedian Arthur Fleck, a name never before seen in any Batman media. The film is planned to take a number of creative liberties with the character as the true nature of Joker’s origin is still unknown to even the most attentive super fans. Currently, the only one Joker origin story from the pile has defined the popular imagination. That is the 1988 Batman: The Killing Joke. A one-shot comic that showed how a struggling comedian was tricked into being a fall guy. This led to a horrible accident that turned “Jack” into a psychotic villain.

More of, the film dates back to 1981. This means that it is placed safely outside the current DC cinematic universe which gave greater creative freedoms to the writers. In fact, rather than a classic hero/villain origin story the film is said to be more of a gritty crime thriller.

An interesting theory is that this Joker might not be the one to eventually face Batman. Arthur Fleck is roughly forty years old at the time of the film. That would make him too old to face Bruce Wayne in the here and now. This theory of Arthur Fleck as a precursor to the modern day Joker portrayed by Jared Leto leaves room for both Jokers to coexist as Leto is still set to star in his stand alone Joker movie.

Joker is set to deliver all that we love about villains:

1. Complexity
   As the film is more of low-budget gritty character study, it is expected to deliver on complexity. Even the trailer taps into Arthur’s seemingly unhealthy relationship with his mother, his infatuation with a single mother, social unrest and mental illness amongst other topics.
2. Costume
   Most people noticed the nod to Joker’s classical wardrobe and make-up as portrayed in several comics, during the last scene of the trailer.
3. Unpredictability
   Speaking of the last scene of the trailer, Joker seems particularly happy and victorious. Why?

For some of us perfection can be boring. Not only do Joker, Lex Luthor and the Red Skull run unconstrained by conventional morality, they exist outside the limits of reality itself. Their evil, even at its most realistic, retains a touch of the unreal. There is a general fascination with villains, and the Joker is one of the most iconic. Hopefully October will come quickly.

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