History Film / Joker2019

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler:Arthur snaps and becomes the Joker, killing several people before confessing to his first three murders and then killing Murray Franklin live on TV. His actions subsequently start a riot that leads to the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne, which puts Bruce down his fated path. Arthur is then arrested and gets locked up in Arkham, having completely lost his mind -- [[CardboardPrison and since he is in Arkham]], he is last seen running from an orderly after apparently killing his therapist and presumably [[HereWeGoAgain escaping the asylum entirely to cause more chaos]]. The only silver lining is that Gotham may be at its breaking point now, but one day, [[Franchise/{{Batman}} a protector]] [[RayOfHopeEnding will rise up when the city needs it most]].]]

Although originally envisioned as a one-off with a clear beginning, middle, and end, Phillips indicated that he had ideas for a sequel if Joaquin Phoenix was on-board for it -- and while he refrained from making any promises, the actor stated that he was interested in further exploring this iteration of the character. In light of the film's success, discussions regarding a sequel began as early as a few months after its premiere.

Plans for development on the sequel were announced in May 2021, and the sequel was officially confirmed in June 2022, with Phillips returning as director, him and Silver returning as co-writers, and Phoenix returning in the lead role. Further reports have also indicated the sequel will be [[GenreShift a musical]]. The title of the film is ''Film/JokerFolieADeux''[[note]]Named for a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folie_a_deux rare psychiatric syndrome]], its name meaning "madness for two" in French[[/note]], and it is scheduled to release on October 4, 2024 (the film's 5th anniversary, no less). Music/LadyGaga will co-star as [[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harley Quinn]], with Zazie Beetz confirmed to reprise her role and Creator/BrendanGleeson, Creator/CatherineKeener, Jacob Lofland and Harry Lawtey cast in additional roles.

Plans for development on the sequel were announced in May 2021, and the sequel was officially confirmed in June 2022, with Phillips returning as director, him and Silver returning as co-writers, and Phoenix returning in the lead role. Further reports have also indicated the sequel will be [[GenreShift a musical]]. The title of the film is ''Joker: Folie à Deux''[[note]]Named for a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folie_a_deux rare psychiatric syndrome]], its name meaning "madness for two" in French[[/note]], and it is scheduled to release on October 4, 2024 (the film's 5th anniversary, no less). Music/LadyGaga will co-star as [[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harley Quinn]], with Zazie Beetz confirmed to reprise her role and Creator/BrendanGleeson, Creator/CatherineKeener, Jacob Lofland and Harry Lawtey cast in additional roles.

* DrivenToSuicide: Played with. During his rehearsals to appear on Murray's show, Arthur ends them with pretending to shoot himself, implying he intends to commit suicide on live, national television. [[spoiler:However, he ultimately changes his mind, deciding to murder Murray on live, national television instead.]]

* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: It's implied Murray's team getting Arthur on a show is kind of making up for their initial mockery... and it's also what gets Murray murdered on live television and really triggers Arthur's change into the Joker.

This work is the first [[Franchise/TheDCU DCU]]-[=inspired=] live-action film not to be a part of the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse since it began in 2013 (it is, however, still produced by the same movie division, Creator/DCFilms). Instead, it is an {{Elseworlds}} story that uses elements of ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' lore to tell an original story. Phillips described the film as an "exploration of a man disregarded by society [that] is not only a gritty character study but also a broader cautionary tale."

* OriginStory: For the Joker, but in a twist the movie also depicts the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne and thus the origin of Batman.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
** Randall never gave Arthur a holster for his gun. As a result, it slips out of his pants while he stomps his feet during a clown performance at a hospital.
** Immediately afterward, Arthur scrambles to pick the gun up, but kicks it away due to his oversized clown shoes.
** After Arthur [[spoiler: kills the Wall Street punks, it doesn't take long for the police to suspect him due to them discovering things such as him getting fired for bringing a gun to work and people noticing his off behavior. Likewise after Arthur Kills Murray, he is quickly shown to have been tackled by security and is arrested.]]

Set in the backdrop of [[{{Elseworld}} an alternate version of Gotham City]] in [[TheEighties 1981]], it stars down-on-his-luck Arthur Fleck, a mentally-ill clown-for-hire who lives in poverty with his mother Penny and tries to fulfill his dreams of making people smile by being a clown by day and a stage comedian by night -- the latter prospect of which is failing to pan out. To make matters worse, Fleck gets fired and loses access to his medication and therapy to budget cuts. Penny insists that billionaire mayoral candidate Thomas Wayne will save the city if he is elected, while Fleck himself idolizes Murray Franklin, host of popular late night talk show ''Live! With Murray Franklin'', and dreams of getting on his show one day. Depressed by his lot in life, a fateful series of events sets Fleck on both a downward spiral and an increasingly dark path of self-discovery...and Gotham will never be the same.

This work is the first [[Franchise/TheDCU DCU]]-[=inspired=] live-action film not to be a part of the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse since it began in 2013 (it is, however, still produced by the same movie division, Creator/DCFilms). Instead, it is an {{Elseworlds}} story that uses elements of ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' lore to tell an original story. Phillips describes the film as an "exploration of a man disregarded by society [that] is not only a gritty character study but also a broader cautionary tale."

* ActorAllusion: Creator/JoaquinPhoenix's checkered history with talk shows and interviews, up to and including his disastrous 2010 appearance on ''Series/TheLateShowWithDavidLetterman'', done in character for his film ''I'm Still Here'', has led many to joke that the scene where Arthur gets interviewed by Murray Franklin contains his "second-worst late night performance".

Set in the backdrop of [[{{Elseworld}} an alternate version of Gotham City]] in [[TheEighties 1981]], it stars down-on-his-luck Arthur Fleck, a mentally-ill clown-for-hire who lives in poverty with his mother Penny and tries to fulfill his dreams of making people smile by being a clown by day and a stage comedian by night -- the latter prospect of which is failing to pan out. Depressed by his lot in life, a fateful series of events sets Fleck on both a downward spiral and an increasingly dark path of self-discovery...and Gotham will never be the same.

Set in the backdrop of [[{{Elseworld}} an alternate version of Gotham City]] [[TheEighties in 1981]], Arthur Fleck tries to fulfill his dreams of making people smile by being a clown by day and a stage comedian by night -- the latter prospect of which is failing to pan out. Depressed by his lot in life, a fateful series of events sets Fleck on both a downward spiral and an increasingly dark path of self-discovery...and Gotham will never be the same.

* ThereAreNoTherapists: A sad subversion. There is a therapist and Arthur desperately wants help, but since she has been burned out by a thankless job, she is terrible at it. Then, she loses her job as well, screwing her and Arthur over.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Easily the darkest live-action ''Batman'' and comic book film ''ever'' filmed. Its version of Gotham is truly in the depths of despair, haunted by economic depression and squalor. The primary conflict consists of a man going FromNobodyToNightmare due to constant mistreatment. There are almost no positive characters around (save for Sophie and Gary), and no positive resolution. The only glimmers of hope for humanity are Sophie, Gary and Bruce Wayne[[note]][[spoiler:And Bruce seems to be quite an unhappy boy even before the death of his parents, which implies that he also leads a bleak life his wealth notwithstanding]][[/note]], but Gary is a ButtMonkey because of his kindness and Bruce is only a little boy in this movie. It is also the most grounded comic book film ever made since ''ComicBook/ThePunisher'' flicks -- there are no fantasy elements of any type at all to be found, apart from the throwaway "super rats" joke.

Plans for development on the sequel were announced in May 2021, and the sequel was officially confirmed in June 2022, with Phillips returning as director, him and Silver returning as co-writers, and Phoenix returning in the lead role. Further reports have also indicated the sequel will be [[GenreShift a musical]]. The title of the film is ''Joker: Folie à Deux''[[note]]Named for a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folie_a_deux rare psychiatric syndrome]], its name meaning "madness for two" in French[[/note]], and it is scheduled to release on October 4, 2024 (the film's 5th year anniversary, no less). Music/LadyGaga will co-star as [[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harley Quinn]], with Zazie Beetz confirmed to reprise her role and Creator/BrendanGleeson, Creator/CatherineKeener, Jacob Lofland and Harry Lawtey cast in additional roles.

* ActorAllusion: Creator/JoaquinPhoenix's checkered history with talk shows and interviews, up to and including his disastrous 2010 appearance on ''Series/TheLateShowWithDavidLetterman'', done in character for his film ''I'm Still Here'', has led many to joke that the Murray Franklin scene is his "second worst late night performance".

* BriefAccentImitation: Arthur says a few words in Gary's British accent after Arthur kills Randall but spares Gary.

Plans for development on the sequel were announced in May 2021, and the sequel was officially confirmed in June 2022, with Phillips returning as director, him and Silver returning as co-writers, and Phoenix returning in the lead role. Further reports have also indicated the sequel will be [[GenreShift a musical]]. The title of the film is ''Joker: Folie à Deux''[[note]]Named for a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folie_a_deux rare psychiatric syndrome]], its name meaning "madness for two" in French[[/note]], and it is scheduled to release on October 4, 2024 (the film's 4th year anniversary, no less). Music/LadyGaga will co-star as [[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harley Quinn]], with Zazie Beetz confirmed to reprise her role and Creator/BrendanGleeson, Creator/CatherineKeener, Jacob Lofland and Harry Lawtey cast in additional roles.

Plans for development on the sequel were announced in May 2021, and the sequel was officially confirmed in June 2022, with Phillips returning as director, him and Silver returning as co-writers, and Phoenix returning in the lead role. Further reports have also indicated the sequel will be [[GenreShift a musical]]. The title of the film is ''Joker: Folie à Deux''[[note]]Named for a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folie_a_deux rare psychiatric syndrome]], its name meaning "madness for two" in French[[/note]], and it is scheduled to release on October 4, 2024. Music/LadyGaga will co-star as [[Characters/HarleyQuinnTheCharacter Harley Quinn]], with Zazie Beetz confirmed to reprise her role and Creator/BrendanGleeson, Creator/CatherineKeener, Jacob Lofland and Harry Lawtey cast in additional roles.

* {{Irony}}: The rich are shown watching Creator/CharlieChaplin's ''Film/ModernTimes'', a classic film to highlight how "cultured" they are to contrast the lower class rioters. ''Modern Times'', however, is entirely about the struggles of the poor and unemployed, with the elite in that film depicted with some scorn.

* PowerWalk: Arthur is seen triumphantly walking in slow motion from the subway station where a brawl between the protesters and the police force has broken out.

* ChekhovsSkill: Arthur's habit of banging his head makes for a weird example. In one brief flashback, we see him banging his head against a door at a mental hospital, and after being fired from his clown job we see his head is strong enough to crack the glass wall of the phone booth he's in. [[spoiler:It comes up later when, as he's struggling to pry his mom's hospital records from a clerk's hands, him smashing his head against the barrier between them gets the clerk to loosen his grip out of shock.]]

-->"You were the only one that was ever nice to me."

* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Arthur's exact words to Gary as to why he doesn't kill him.

* BloodierAndGorier: Compared to the previous live-action ''Batman'' movies, where most of the violence is BloodlessCarnage, the amount of blood, bruises and realistic wounds makes it one of the more graphic DC and ''Batman'' (or ''Batman''-related) movies, earning the film an R rating. The film also lacks the stylised {{Gorn}} of most other R-Rated comic-book media such as ''Film/{{Watchmen}}'' and the ''Film/{{Deadpool|2016}}'' [[Film/Deadpool2 films]], instead presenting the violence in a much grittier and more realistic manner akin to ''Film/{{Logan}}''.

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler:Arthur snaps and becomes the Joker, killing several people before confessing to his first three murders and then killing Murray Franklin live on TV. His actions subsequently start a riot that leads to the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne, which puts Bruce down his fated path. Arthur is then arrested and gets locked up in Arkham, having completely lost his mind -- [[CardboardPrison and since he is in Arkham]], he is last seen running from an orderly after apparently killing his therapist and presumably [[HereWeGoAgain escaping the asylum entirely to cause more chaos.]] The only silver lining is that Gotham may be at its breaking point now, but one day, [[Franchise/{{Batman}} a protector]] [[RayOfHopeEnding will rise up when the city needs it most]].]]

** The meeting between Arthur and Bruce. In the film itself it shows how detached Arthur is becoming, as he doesn't see anything wrong with a grimy stranger playing with and touching a random child, even if his intentions are innocent, and both Bruce and Arthur know nothing about the other. But anyone who knows anything about the characters will be aware this is the pivotal moment where the future Batman first meets the person that will become his arch-nemesis, the Joker.