Based on 962 votes and 271 reviews.
Long, boring and annoyingly loud with the constant psycho laughing. I left the theater in a lousy mood. Would have walked out 30 minutes in but the wife wouldn't so...
An absolutely brilliant film from beginning to end. Phoenix’s descent into madness coupled with a disintegrating society made for a must-watch film. I couldn’t help but wonder if this is what the world will be like in the future. It’s depressing and violent, but at the same time, cautionary. People who aren’t cared for can become monsters in different ways.
Instant classic.
Outstanding movie! Joaquin does psychotic really, really well. The producers picked the right actor to take over in the Heath Ledger style, dark interpretation of the Joker character. I'm hopeful in anticipation of where Joaquin Phoenix will take this character in the future. Creepy, sociopathic clowns play into my deepest fears, keep it coming!
Beautifully filmed. I saw it twice and will purchase it. Joaquin's characterization was excellent. Being a dancer, I found his ease of movement captivating, and an excellent addition to the film. Very dark and sad, this film says what we all need to hear about the way Americans treat, or actually don't treat, the mentally ill.
Terribly made movie and actors
Great Movie
One of the best movies I ever saw.... the social commentary is great ! The damaged individual and his struggle within and at times against society. Hey... Knock knock..... What do you get when you cross a societal LONER with a Society that Treats him Like Shit? BANG BANG ! Super powerful movie..... and performance. It feels like an "art film" from start to finish... a lot of people may not "get it" or "understand it".... I think the dudes in clown masks represent today's ANONYMOUS...seem to have the same agenda? I had to watch this movie twice to get it all and understand it better....still a few mystery unanswered questions to make it more interesting..... def. set up for a possible sequel. I think this will be a CULT CLASSIC ! I think the character JOKER in this film would arouse compassion in all but the deadest individuals. 10 +++
Story line kinda phonie,movie dragged on and on.Good actor.
My husband and I went to see this film and found it extremely depressing. Moreover, everything is caricatured. What could be more normal, you might say, given that it was a depicting the life of a comic book clown? Here, to make things really awful, we sink into the worst possible melodrama. As if psychopaths had all been mistreated during their childhood, mocked in adolescence, misunderstood in adulthood without ever having anyone to help them effectively! But no, the vast majority of them were born with a missing bolt in their heads. Something was wrong in them from the start. Here, the director wanted to make us cry by portraying roughly the most cartoonish misery. Everything is in bold capital letters, underlined and highlighted to be sure that we fully understood that the main character didn't have an easy life and that our society is so rotten that we should all revolt and suicide out of desperation or kill each other to put an end to it all. We’ve even been entitled to the poor dwarf ridiculed by the one who was supposed to be his best friend. In terms of the actor's performance, that's Joaquim Phoenix pushed to the extreme all over. In all his films I remember, this actor plays social misfits, loners unable to make friends, depressive people or on the verge of a nervous breakdown, misunderstood guys, sons rejected by their fathers, rebels, etc. In short, he only plays tortured souls. He even played a guy who falls in love with his computer because he can't get along with a real girlfriend. So it's normal that he knows how to play a crazy clown. Talent? If you will, considering the fact that he seems unable to play much else. This simplistic and gloomy depiction of society has already claimed victims. There are people who dress up as clowns and ransack everything in the streets and cinemas where the film is shown. Anyway, don't believe the good things that are said about this movie.