Joker

I finally saw Joker. It's grim and hopeless and full of emotional pain and my word it was good. Joaquin Phoenix is a spectacular Joker. If you want me to rank them, I still prefer Heath, but it's no landslide victory.  

I'm no conspiracy nut but I felt a lot of the dire warnings that preceded Joker's release stemmed from Marvel/Disney using its media clout to try and bury a DC masterpiece. 

I saw nothing in the film that encouraged or condoned violence. Arthur was a damaged man, mentally and physically, and an unreliable narrator. His actions are fruit of that poisoned tree, and SPOILER the mob he inspires uses his image as an excuse for mayhem, not inspiration. END SPOILER

I dont even buy the film as an example of class struggle. It wasn't rich vs poor. It was chaos vs order. The chaos of a pre-Guilanni Gotham/NYC where crime was accepted as the norm, where filth and grime were the decor of the day, where hope was absent. The Joker is that chaos; his future enemy, young Mr Wayne, is the balm of order and respect.

It's a great film, certainly better than anything the MCU has or will create. Go see it.