Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker had its North American premiere at TIFF last night and we have our first reactions from the screening.
Joker already had a flawless premiere at the Venice Film Festival where it won the Golden Lion, but these reactions coming from Toronto prove that the praise is unanimous for Joaquin Phoenix’s film.
You can check some of the reactions from last night’s premiere below.
JOKER: Guys…it’s good. A simplistic script is saved by Phoenix’s great performance, Phillips’ impressive direction, Hildur Guðnadóttir’s moody score, and Lawrence Sher’a gorgeous cinematography. This isn’t just a dark drama, it’s a full-blown horror movie. #TIFF19
— Chris Evangelista (@cevangelista413) September 10, 2019
#Joker: Wow. Joaquin Phoenix and Todd Phillips summon dark mojo for a descent into madness, for the origin story to beat all origin stories. Forget comic books — this is disturbingly too close to modern alienation to be dismissed as mere fantasy. #TIFF19 pic.twitter.com/LfmcDfAwE7
— Peter Howell (@peterhowellfilm) September 10, 2019
#JOKER feels like the first anarchist blockbuster…? Need a sleep to wrestle with it. Joaquin Phoenix has demons and we’re lucky for it. The guy’s astonishing. #TIFF19
— Nigel Smith (@nigelmfs) September 10, 2019
JOKER: The perfect origin story for a lunatic with no origin. Todd Phillips gives DC it’s first true masterpiece. The Clown Prince has never been more deranged, more dangerous, and more real. A brutal work that will have audiences raving. #Joker #JokerMovie #TIFF19 pic.twitter.com/laz2oiy5iw
— CinemaBlend (@CinemaBlend) September 10, 2019
JOKER doesn’t reinvent the comic book movie, but it’s certainly the scariest one — a taut psychological thriller w/a few horror movie twists. Joaquin Phoenix, though, yikes: Looks like he stepped out of THE CABINET OF DR CALIGARI, or maybe he’s still trapped there. Astounding.
— erickohn (@erickohn) September 10, 2019
JOKER is phenomenal. Joaquin Phoenix’s performance is next level. No other performance this year will be able to top this one. There is so much to digest with this film too including its exploration of humanity & mental illness. A Flawless Masterpiece. #JokerMovie #Joker pic.twitter.com/uNIQ11aShV
— Scott Menzel (@ScottDMenzel) September 10, 2019
#Joker is an extremely ultra violent tale but it’s also a concerning commentary on mental illness, class, feeling ostracized from society. It’s really chilling to watch. #TIFF19 pic.twitter.com/pX6z0DdlI9
— Jason Guerrasio (@JasonGuerrasio) September 10, 2019
Joaquin Phoenix gives a twisted & darkly stunning performance. Rife with social commentary on mental health, violence, social classes & more. It builds upon the discomfort of the audience to really bring home the message behind it. #JokerMovie #Joker #TIFF19 pic.twitter.com/RIlDCcGnHZ
— Ashley Menzel (@AshleyGMenzel) September 10, 2019
#Joker is DARK. Really violent, and Joaquin Phoenix’s performance is astounding. Crowd gasped and said “oh my god” several times. Need some time to think about this psychological thriller. #TIFF19
— Beatrice Verhoeven (@bverhoev) September 10, 2019
The wait just seems too long for this film that’s been dubbed as a masterpiece. A recurring theme out of Toronto is how real and modern the films feels. Also, many critics have cited how the film has various horror elements and that it’s unfair to simply call it a dark drama. As time goes on, we’re realizing that the film is going to be exceptionally darker, perhaps more than what we anticipated at first.
We absolutely loved the film and we can’t wait for audiences to get their hands and dissect the film!
Are you excited to see Joaquin Phoenix in Joker? Comment below and let us know!
Here is the official synopsis for Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker:
Director Todd Phillips’ Joker centers around the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone fictional story not seen before on the big screen. Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck, who is indelibly portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix, is of a man struggling to find his way in Gotham’s fractured society. A clown-for-hire by day, he aspires to be a stand-up comic at night…but finds the joke always seems to be on him. Caught in a cyclical existence between apathy and cruelty, Arthur makes one bad decision that brings about a chain reaction of escalating events in this gritty character study.
Directed by Todd Phillips from a script he co-wrote with Scott Silver, Joker stars Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz, Bill Camp, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Glenn Fleshler, Douglas Hodge, Marc Maron, Josh Pais, and Shea Whigham.
Joker will be released in theaters on October 4, 2019. Stay tuned for the latest news on the Joaquin Phoenix movie!
Source: Twitter
