Joker. As in the recent 2019 film where the Joker was played by Joaquin Phoenix. I have seen hundreds of reviews for this film but the fact that it moved me so deeply propelled me to write my own.
Most will be aware that the list of nominated films for the 2020 Oscars was a tough decision to vote for, all had merit and were a great list of nominations, in the end, the chosen best film was "Parasite". I don't want this blog post to be an analysis of the Oscars and why I disagree with the end result and "Parasite" is a brilliant film of unique plot twists, however, I felt Joker dared to go where the other films did not, it revealed a state of existence that many would deny exists, in short, it displayed the fragility and breaking down of the human condition and to me this is a topic of great importance and grows more and more relevant in the times and environment we are living in.
As the saying goes, be careful how you treat others for you do not know what battles each person faces on a daily basis. I have never liked the term "mental illness" but will use it for the sake of discussion and an accepted term in this blog.
I feel the main issue in Joker that has moved so many people's hearts, not just my own, is the degradation suffered and shown within the Joker. The demise of self and worthiness, the vulnerability and helplessness, the eternal spiral of sorrow and loneliness along with the despairing depths of descent into ice-cold isolation is soul wrenching to witness.
How many times in reality has someone reached out for help in society only to be ridiculed for infinite reasons, their behaviour, looks, background, thought process, nervous twitches and so on and so forth to name but a few. The list is endless.
However one chooses to look at it, not only the medical system that is supposedly in place fails those with mental illness of myriad descriptions but loss of compassion and community among fellow beings fails them too. Please note - I am not saying we are all trained to help where medical intervention is indeed necessary but most times and more often than not, we are able to offer some solace and the art of listening if needed.
Some things will never change in light of my thinking about this, such as the system in place meant to help people who desparately need their help, like any other system in place, is governed by money. Cut backs and those with no money to begin with that may seek help face a sombre scenario from the word go. I have seen the demise of such a system, the lack of resources to help even when the help was imperatively required. It is not my intention to place blame and there are those within the structure of so called support that do give their all to assist where possible (insert gratitude where it is due here and back to the film)...
All of the above and so much more is only the tip of a mountainous amount of reasons I feel Joker has moved so many people. It is raw and real, it deals a doomed hand from the beginning and not just because we all know of the Joker beforehand but because the film focused on the character's inconsolable burden of heavy sadness and gave the audience a tangible and astringent deck of emotions to shuffle through.
We live in a time where masks have become as inevitable as lipstick, where people silence their isolation and needs in fear of judgement and laughter. The chilling aloneness is merely one aspect of many to Joker that rips the heart's seams apart.
How many suffer unnecessarily before one's hands can gently catch them mid-fall, how many fight their demons in cacophonic chaos before one can sing a lullaby to their meandering mind?
Joker highlights so many issues that need attention in "real life" and that is why I will remember it as one of the best films I have ever seen. Yes, the usual analysis such as the script writing, acting, performances etc etc are wonderfully executed in the film but for me, the rawness was, still is and perhaps will always be the sheer, stark desolation portrayed that bleeds through to the self and leaves you wandering and wondering for an infinite amount of time, possibly forevermore, after the silence returns and the closing credits have faded from view.
Some would say Joker triggers a personal level of pain for many and they would not be wrong but I can also see a poignant and illuminating aspect to the film that applies to humanity as a whole.....more understanding is needed in order to close the gap of division that has muted each one of us over time as we remain in our own small bubble for fear of reaching out or supporting as and when we can if in our capacity to do so.
I don't think I will easily forget how the Joker film made me feel at the time of watching it nor how it makes me feel now when I reflect back on it. Whether this blog post is considered to be from the perspective of an empath who feels the pain of others and is not excluded from experiencing pain herself through this journey called life or whether it is simply an appreciation of a film worthy of being written about, I have kept a promise to myself to write about what I consider to be a masterpiece of the 21st century.
I rarely write about films as it goes so it has to be kinda special for me to do so ;)
Random Fact - The laughing disorder that the Joker displays in the film is actually called the Pseudobulbar Affect. If you think on this, it brings an interesting slant to the Joker's character.
No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted - Aesop
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