The first trailer for the latest movie in the Batman universe is here: Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix as the mad, made-up villain, seems to head into some very dark territory.
Of course, the comic character, previously made popular by actors Cesar Romero, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, Cameron Monaghan and Jared Leto, has alternated between camp humour and outright sadism. Here, Phoenix seems to be delivering the latter.
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Phoenix is introduced as Arthur, a clown and comedian from Gotham who seems to have fallen on tough times.
After being beaten up and humiliated on the streets and in the subway, he wonders: “Is it just me, or is it getting crazier out there?”
As the trailer goes on, his descent into madness is evident, and at the very end, he shows up in the classic costume-and-makeup ensemble that we’ve seen on all the previous Jokers.
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No sign of Batman — yet.
Joker will be in theatres across Canada on Oct. 4, 2019.