If what Matt Morrison of ScreenRant and others are pushing about the Joker movie taking place all inside of Arthur Fleck’s head then it would seem that a lot of people were taken for a serious twist and turn since it would mean that the ‘realism’ in the movie is a subjective thing that exists only in a rich fantasy life that the Joker has created for himself. This could be another way to state that the Joker is little more than a demented individual that can’t escape the images inside his head, and thereby is less of a danger since his fantasy life is something that seems incapable of crossing the boundary into reality for one reason or another. If there wasn’t any hint of evidence to this matter then it might be easy to drop it without fail since it could be one of the many theories that develop around certain movies but have little if any real basis. But there are a few moments that seem to indicate that the entire movie is a cleverly devised mind trip that the audience has been taken on and as a result the Joker has in effect become a very bad joke played on the fans that were hoping to see something spectacular. It’s easy to think that not too many people are upset about this idea being true as the movie seems to have drawn a lot of folks in with the simple idea that it’s created an origin story for one of the most notorious villains in history, but in truth it’s kind of a massive cheat to get to the end and think that this is all in his head, an elaborate fantasy that has nothing to do with reality.
I say this is a cheat because it’s been implied since the first trailer came out that this would be something different, something that the fans hadn’t seen before, and it certainly was that. But when Nate Jones of Vulture and many others touch upon the fact that Arthur is suffering from a mental illness in the movie a big red flag should start waving proudly for everyone to see. This means that whatever is taking place in the scope of Arthur’s life isn’t exactly trustworthy since it could all be a figment of his vivid imagination and therefore something that can’t be taken at face value. His relationship with Sophie, which he’s imagined obviously since when she finds him in her living room she seems more than a little unnerved, is also something that is one more hint of how truly disturbed he is. The idea that everything is happening in his head seems stronger and stronger as one takes in the various points that conspire to create a bit of sense within the madness.
It’s easy to have a bias against this movie with all honesty since it’s the type of movie that might be enticing to a lot of people but to hardcore and even just casual comic book fans might seem like it’s not quite holding with the idea of the character that’s being portrayed. The Joker has after all been a very multi-faceted character throughout the years that’s been called crazy, delusional, mad, and many other things that are entirely accurate. But breaking down the character and explaining him as a mentally ill individual that has been beaten down and humiliated by society is kind of simplistic and in some cases grants him an excuse to turn evil largely because he figures that society owes him something. In truth there are still a lot of people that want to believe that the Joker is madness personified and that his origin story is a well-kept secret largely because he’s not the type to allow any type of psycho-analysis to go by without seeking to torture and even damage the person behind the questions. For a long time now the Joker has been a character that might not be the most intelligent being in the DC universe but is still wily and cunning enough to outwit a number of people, Batman being one of them from time to time. It’s hard to predict a madman and as a rule the Joker has been one of the biggest thorns in Batman’s side since he’s nothing short of chaotic and bent on doing as much harm as he can simply because he can.
The idea of the movie being confined to Arthur’s own diseased mind could be advantageous in all honesty since it would mean that the true nature of the Joker is still fairly safe and that any pretenders are bound to go by the wayside largely because they either can’t embrace the full persona or are unfit to carry the mantle. That’s a personal belief really, but in light of the movie being a total mind trip it does seem fair.
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