Joker(2019)

2h 2m

Release Date: Oct 4, 2019

68%
88%
B+
8.3

Arthur Fleck, a party clown and a failed stand-up comedian, leads an impoverished life with his ailing mother. However, when society shuns him and brands him as a freak, he decides to embrace the life of chaos in Gotham City.

Release Details

Oct 4, 2019 | Wide

Oct 4, 2019 | Wide

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appletv+

Box Office Results

2025-03-30T10:37:14.347Z

Results

Opening Weekend US & Canada:
$96,202,337
Total US & Canada:
$335,477,657
Total International
$743,480,625
Total Worldwide:
$1,078,958,629

Current Showtimes

orround

Sun Sep 6
Mon Sep 7
Tue Sep 8
Wed Sep 9
Thu Sep 10
Fri Sep 11
Sat Sep 12

Director & Top Cast

Todd Phillips
Director

Joaquin Phoenix
Arthur Fleck

Robert De Niro
Murray Franklin

Zazie Beetz
Sophie Dumond

Technical Specifications

Sound Mix: SDDS,Dolby Atmos,Datasat,Dolby Digital

Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1

Other Details

Country of Origin: United States, Canada, Australia

Language: English,German

Summaries

Plot Summary

Arthur Fleck is a professional clown and aspiring stand-up comedian who lives with his mother, Penny, in the crime- and recession-ridden city of Gotham, New York. He suffers from a neurological disorder that causes him to have random, uncontrollable laughing fits, requiring medication he depends on social services to obtain. One day, after Arthur is attacked by street youths while on the job, his co-worker Randall gives him a revolver for self-defense. Arthur pursues a relationship with his neighbor, single mother Sophie Dumond, and invites her to see his routine at a comedy club.Arthur drops the gun on the floor while performing at a children's hospital, leading to his firing. While riding home on the subway and still wearing his clown make-up, he is mocked and assaulted by three drunk businessmen from Wayne Investments. He fatally shoots two of them in self-defense and murders the third as he attempts to flee. Their employer, billionaire mayoral candidate Thomas Wayne, condemns the killings, but protesters begin sporting clown masks in Arthur's image. Budget cuts shut down the social services program, leaving Arthur without his medication.Sophie attends Arthur's stand-up routine, which fails due to his disorder and his jokes falling flat. Arthur intercepts a letter from Penny to Thomas apparently revealing that he is Thomas's illegitimate son, and berates his mother for hiding the truth of his parentage. He goes to Wayne Manor, where he meets Thomas's young son Bruce, but flees after a scuffle with family butler Alfred Pennyworth. Penny suffers a stroke and is hospitalized. Arthur's idol, popular late-night talk show host Murray Franklin, presents clips of Arthur's failed performance on his show and mockingly calls him a "joker".Arthur confronts Thomas at a movie theatre. Thomas denies being his father, claiming that Penny is not his biological mother. In denial, Arthur visits Arkham State Hospital and reads Penny's file, which states she was a delusional narcissist who adopted Arthur while working as a housekeeper for the Waynes. She developed an imaginary intimate relationship with Thomas, which included Arthur being their biological son. At the same time, Penny raised Arthur with an abusive boyfriend who physically and sexually abused him, which Penny ignored, leading to his neurological disorder. A distraught Arthur enters Sophie's apartment unannounced. Frightened, she kindly asks him to leave, revealing their relationship to be a figment of Arthur's imagination. The following day, Arthur smothers Penny with a pillow at the hospital.Arthur is soon invited to be on Murray's show. He subsequently plans to kill himself with his revolver during the broadcast. While crafting a clown-inspired persona, he is visited by Randall and another ex-colleague, Gary. Arthur fatally stabs Randall, but spares Gary for being kind to him in the past. Two detectives investigating Arthur's involvement in the subway murders pursue him onto a train filled with clown protesters. Arthur incites a brawl, during which one detective accidentally shoots and kills a protester. The other protesters, in turn, beat the detectives while Arthur escapes.At the studio, Arthur asks Murray to introduce him as "Joker", a reference to his earlier mockery. As the show goes live, Arthur tells morbid jokes, confesses to the subway murders, rants about societal neglect on the downtrodden, and berates Murray for ridiculing him. After a final joke, Arthur shoots and kills Murray during the live broadcast. Arthur is arrested, and riots erupt across the city. Looters in an ambulance crash into the police car carrying Arthur and free him. Meanwhile, one rioter corners the Wayne family in an alley and murders Thomas and his wife Martha, sparing Bruce. Arthur stands atop the police car, dances to the cheers of the crowd, and smears blood on his face into the shape of a smile.At Arkham, Arthur laughs to himself about a joke during a session with his new therapist. He declines telling it to her, affirming she would not understand it. After the session, he leaves behind a trail of bloodied shoe prints as an orderly chases him down.

Storyline

A socially inept clown for hire - Arthur Fleck aspires to be a stand up comedian among his small job working dressed as a clown holding a sign for advertising. He takes care of his mother, Penny Fleck, and as he learns more about his mental illness, he learns more about his past. Dealing with all the negativity and bullying from society, he heads downwards on a spiral, in turn showing how his alter ego, "Joker," came to be. — crisspaggos In the early 1980s, Arthur Fleck, a struggling stand-up comedian passionate about making people laugh, wears his smudgy makeup daily to make a living in corrupt Gotham City. Instead, people mock and bully him. As a result, the more Arthur teeters on the brink of despair and insanity, the more the tragic comedian's slippery grip on reality loosens. Now, the drugs don't work, and a loaded revolver has entered the picture. With the world craving violence and blood for entertainment, is Fleck's audience ready for the emergence of the grinning Joker? — Nick Riganas Forever alone in a crowd, failed comedian Arthur Fleck seeks connection as he walks the streets of Gotham City. Arthur wears two masks -- the one he paints for his day job as a clown, and the guise he projects in a futile attempt to feel like he's part of the world around him. Isolated, bullied and disregarded by society, Fleck begins a slow descent into madness as he transforms into the criminal mastermind known as the Joker. — Jwelch5742 In addition to being a clown at work, Arthur Fleck wants to perform stand-up comedy. He struggles with mental health concerns, some of which include fits of uncontrollable laughter. Because of his troubles and line of work, Arthur is having it considerably harder than other people. Over time, these problems weigh heavily on him, influencing his behaviour and finally leading him to assume the identity of the Joker, for whom he is better known. 2 more All

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