How The Joker Smashes Our Political Narratives

The Joker movie has been causing outrage in mainstream media channels, and it is not clear why at first glance, and so I break down some of the narrative structures to show how the movie smashes the Overton window by constantly breaking the expected political narrative.

My links:

The unofficial facebook discussion group:

The outro to my videos was written by Matthew Wilkinson

The music at the opening is Russian Eastern Overture, by Rimsky Korsakov.

[freakunleashed]

The Joker movie is a gigantic mirror that allows society to see it's reflection & see the black truth. which is, we suck as neighbors and we've lost our way

[LoremLorem]

It's freaking people out because it's real. There's a truth within.

[DoubtX]

I really appreciated how Joker serves as a two-sided warning: it warns the individual of the danger to their soul that turning to brutality poses, and it warns society to not create brutal individuals. The realistic portrayal of both Arthur and the characters around him confronts the audience with the fact that they are playing both roles and lays the responsibility at their feet.

[streglof]

I remember Jordan Peterson once saying that the Joker is also a jester. The jester is the only one who is allowed to tell the truth in the King's court because he is beneath contempt.

[hotpotato]

“A fire broke out backstage in a theatre. The clown came out to warn the public; they thought it was a joke and applauded. He repeated it; the acclaim was even greater. I think that's just how the world will come to an end: to general applause from wits who believe it's a joke.”
― Soren Kierkegaard

[RSanchez]

Postmodernists: "We want deconstruction!"

The Joker: *exists*

Postmodernists: "TAKE IT BACK TAKE IT BACK"

[danielb]

In german fleck translates to stain or smudge. The phrase "a stain on society" comes to mind.

[weltubergang]

So what you're saying is that a fictional movie about a clown contains more truth than the news?

[spearshaker]

He laughs when distressed cry’s when happy is funny when being serious and sad when being funny. I loved how his whole being was just inverted.

[roonbare]

The joker... A wild card... Can turn the odds of a game on a whim, making established strategies obsolete... Indefinable... Doesn't fit into your box... A personification of chaos.

[resurrectingman]

This movie is a must see. It is the greatest cinematic critique of our culture from the past decade.

[redtrek]

Instead of Batman involuntarily creating the Joker, the Joker involuntarily creates Batman. It's a nice play on the idea that they are always two sides of the same coin--the same way chaos and order can emerge from each other. There's also tons of meta-knowledge, double meaning, and inversion in the scenes--the duality of what Joker knows vs what others know, the "right" response vs the actual result, and the overall ambiguity leading to multiple legitimate interpretations. There's definitely a lot to think about in this movie.

[johnbuckner]

Joker
"The card that has no category."

Hm. That's insightful. Someone that you can't label, box into an in-group and comfortably explain away; as they mock your sacred cow.

[jonah]

In case no one noticed, there is a photograph shown on screen of Arthur's mother when she is younger and it is signed, "Love your smile! - T.W." or something to that effect, (this scene is not too long after Arthur suffocates his mother) which lends credence to Arthur's mother's version of events -- it is highly unlikely that a man such as Thomas Wayne would have created such a keepsake for a staff member rather than a lover. Also, there is absolutely a physical resemblance. And the movie's symbolism backs this up: Arthur is "Kid A" and Bruce is "Kid B", both potential Kings who grow up without their rightful father and who are mirrors of one another -- both the "light" and the "darkness" coming into existence at the same time.



Arthur is a king in exile, a king cast aside, a king forced to doubt his own identity. And there is something to be gained from going through this process. He is a "hero" to a certain type of person, emboldening them to act out the disaffection and malice that has festered in their hearts. Which is to say, he is a "villain".



Over the course of the film he is learning how to become no one, saying goodbye to both identities foisted upon him by the circumstances of his existence: Wayne's bastard and potential heir to the Kingship or simply a crazy lady's adopted toy -- both identities become worthless to him over the course of the film. This is why he is Batman's perfect foil, because while he has given up his story and his attachments Batman is defined by them.


Furthermore, there is a large element of unreliable narrator here -- and this plays into the concept of the Joker perfectly. The point is what really happened, and whether or not he is Wayne's illegitimate son is irrelevant now; he has passed from being Arthur Fleck the man into the Joker, embodying an archetypal being all the way to his core.

[DarthDani]

"You're just one bad day away from being me"

[martinezga]

The line "nihilism is on no one's side" made me understand everything.

[karolinasz.]

it's incredible how much discussion this movie is generating

[CrystalMouse]

Watching Joker yesterday was like reading my diary. I’m autistic and in a wheelchair with crazy parents. It’s literally my cry to ask “why can’t people just be nice?”

[lukeannettdj]

It also smashes the idolisation of victimhood that our culture currently practices. Joker is the ultimate victim who is also the ultimate evil.

[annatardlordofderps]

Attention readers: Everytime he says "people" Jonathan means critics. Joker has a 56 critical score but a 93 viewer score.
The people love the film. One of the largest things the movie Critiques didn't like the movie.