The Joker

Batman was a great movie. Great...

So, here is a great review of the Joker’s character specifically. World Magazine also has a good review.

From Michael Patton’s review:

“The Joker was everything a villain is supposed to be. Evil, sadistic, ruthless, and cold. But there was something else. He had something that no other villain has. A characteristic which is an anti-characteristic. In fact, the point of the Joker was that who he was made no sense. Why did he kill? Why was he bent on destruction? Why did he hate? What did he hate? Did he even hate? What is his motivation? We know why Batman is who he is (the death of his parents at the hand of a thief), but we don’t have a history on file for The Joker. The movie leads you. It tricks you. It turns you into the Worlds Greatest Detective in that you are seeking, along with Batman, to know why The Joker does what he does. Once you think you have him figured out, once you have answered the “why?” question, you, along with Batman, find out that you took a wrong turn. The Joker was not in the game for money, power, women, fame, or any other hope, good or bad, that you could pin on him. He was not seeking to “win.” There was no “deep down inside . . .” to figure out with him. Each time death presented itself to him, he laughed as if it was simply a continuation of some adventure. In the end, the gruesome realization is that there is no reason why The Joker was who he was. And that was the point of the movie.

“Fascinating. Dark. Frightening. A horror movie unlike any other. Some might even call this movie prophetic. Not prophetic in the sense that we are seeing what our future holds, but prophetic in the sense that this movie reveals with the most vivid illustration ever put on film what utter nothingness looks like.

“In the character of The Joker, our culture looks into the mirror and sees what it is becoming. Nihilism is what it is sometimes called. Nihilism is the anti-philosophy of a world that has no hope, no motives, no standards, and no values. The Joker is the Nihilist who believes in nothing, cares for nothing, and pursues nothing. At one point The Jokers says, “I have no plans. I am like a dog chasing a car. I would not know what to do if I caught it.” There is no rationalism because there is no such thing as order, reason, or ends that create purpose. It is just the moment, and the moment is ruled by randomness.

“Our postmodern culture may see itself in the character of The Joker. Like a person who has not seen his face in many years, we are going to the mirror to take a look.”