Joker Comedy or Tragedy

It’s been a couple of months since the release of Joker( Joaquin Phoenix starrer), but I hadn’t watched the movie until very recently. I didn’t want to watch a negative movie, of course I was wrong. Nevertheless when I finally saw Joker, it made me do what I was afraid of. It made me think, and I didn’t want to overthink.

I didn’t find the masterpiece what I call negative. When my friends forced me to see the movie, telling me the about the standing ovation he received for his acting, I didn’t sleep before 5 am that night. I was pondering, comparing my life with that of Joker, feeling bad about myself blah, blah.

Yes, Joker is a masterpiece, it is a new standard in the field of acting and drama, a lifetime performance of Joaquin Phoenix, and it is so much more. It is a movie that links the comics to drama, a cinema that unites kids and grown ups, a reflection which everyone can relate to.

Joker is a sad story that is sure. However, through the course of the film, you find yourself taking the side of a criminal, hoping all the movie long that something changes in his life for good. Now that is where it poses a dilemma.
You can look it in a few ways.

The First opinion, and effectively the opinion of the masses, is that Joker was a good person. That it was his life that did it to him. We see him as a victim, a hero, who went through so much of a pain and we feel sorry for him.

However, it’s hard for us to say that it was only he who went through such kinds of situations, but did everyone turned himself into a criminal?

The Second opinion is that Arthur Fleck( Joker) was a weak person. The character can be criticized for portraying the wrong way to handle the life. It is, without question, a cold outlook, where we blame it on Joker, and don’t give a damn about him. If this reaction is a significant part of the world’s thinking, we should be worried, because it can be us, someday, in the need of help and no body will move a twig. undoubtedly, it is his life and he couldn’t have changed if he didn’t want to, but think of a situation where you want to get better and you scream for a little help. He did, and everywhere he was turned down. It is true, with a little help someone can move mountains.

Thirdly, it would have been a good watch to many. It didn’t make them question their fundamental believes. Joker had what it takes to be an interesting movie to watch. The iconic Joker laugh, which Joaquin mastered intricately, his performance as a comedian, the linkage to rejoiced series of Batman and Joker, the appearance of Bruce Wayne, for a short time, as a kid, and finally the madness and revolts.

Yes it was a movie to enjoy. To tell the truth, this is what I try to do most of the times I watch cinema. Just have fun, and be done with it. Overthinking is a tiring business, and if you don’t have to do it, consider yourself lucky.

The last one is a thoughtful outlook. Joker was a victim, yes. He had a tough life, yes, very. We didn’t like how it turned out for him. We know he was no psychic, he did care about the people and he would have made a good human being. We wish he could have been a little stronger and made the best things out of few chances he got. I wish someone stood by him through thick and thin, someone would have told him it will pass and helped him to look at his life more positively.

Not that it was anything positive, I know. The scars to his soul never healed and he got new ones. A tough childhood, a lacking upbringing, he never got the chance to grow up. How can I expect him to face the life, the world? But, still, he did pretty well until things started slipping out of control. The meds were stopped, the psychologist taken back, and his only family stolen from him.

“Put On a Happy Face”

But I’m not worried about him because I’m a philanthropist. Honestly, I’m worried about myself. There are times when I want to talk to someone, anyone, and there is nobody around. I changed cities for my career, my future keeps my present lonely. I find it hard to like my colleagues or  make friends at work. I am afraid that my life can turn out to be the opposite of what I would love it to be. I want to live a normal life, loving what I do and spending time with family and friends. I fear, I would never be able to make it to my like. I fear I might end up all alone. This is what kept me awake all night.