Joker (2019) reviews

The Fuzzy Mushroom take on Joker

By Fuzzy Mushroom · Updated 11 November 2026 · The Pros 66 · The Punters 97 · Spore Score 72 · How we write our takes

Why The Punters and The Pros split

Joker divides opinion more sharply than almost any comic-book film. The Punters give it 97, close to the top of the scale. The Pros give it 66. The 31-point gap leaves a Spore Score of 72 and a fuzzy verdict. Audiences responded to a superhero film that felt grown-up and dangerous. Many critics admired the lead performance but found the film's ideas borrowed and its message muddled.

What audiences love

Joaquin Phoenix is extraordinary as Arthur Fleck, a failed comedian and party clown who lives with his mother in a crumbling Gotham City in the early 1980s. He lost a large amount of weight for the role and plays Arthur as a man in constant physical discomfort, prone to a laughing condition he cannot control. The cinematography and Hildur Guðnadóttir's cello-led score, both heavy and mournful, give the city a sour, grimy mood. The staircase dance has become an image in its own right. Phoenix won the Oscar for Best Actor, and Guðnadóttir won for the score.

What critics object to

Todd Phillips's film wears its influences openly, especially Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, and Robert De Niro even appears as a talk-show host. Some reviewers felt it borrowed those films' style without their insight. Others argued about whether it sympathises too much with a violent, self-pitying man. The link to Batman, through the Wayne family, feels bolted on.

Who is right?

Your view probably depends on how you feel about the film's politics. As a showcase for Phoenix and as a mood piece, it is very effective. As a study of mental illness and society, it says less than it seems to.

Context

Joker won the Golden Lion at the 2019 Venice Film Festival and became the first R-rated film to take more than a billion dollars worldwide. Its sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux, followed in 2024.

The Fuzzy Mushroom verdict

Worth a watch, Spore Score 72. A towering performance in a film that is not as deep as it thinks. See it for Phoenix.