DEATH OF TRADITIONAL CINEMA

A guys gets stabbed; another one is about to be, and as the latter is about to escape from imminent death, the audience roars in chuckles because of the misfortune, yet by the end of Todd Phillips' two-hour neonoir origin story, not one soul is laughing. The trauma has set in. Or perhaps, a dash of introspection. As the titular character in Joker , Joaquin Phoenix renders a gripping take on DC's clown prince of crime, thanks largely to his unique maniacal laughter, which is a mix of mockery, sorrow, and later, utter abandon. There is empathy for Arthur Fleck, the man who would eventually be Batman's archenemy, as Phillips dives into the character's psyche, by way of Scorsese's Taxi Driver . There is even a visual homage earlier in the film, as Arthur plays with the revolver given to him by his co-worker--- an allusion to that iconic Robert De Niro scene in Taxi Driver . However, an examination of how Arthur Fleck morphed into The Joker does not necessari