Joker Trailer Review: 9 Ups & 1 Down

Ups

9. The Obvious Killing Joke Lean

By the look of it, Todd Phillips is leaning heavily on Alan Moore's seminal The Killing Joke and in particular the now infamous line that explains where the Joker came from:

“All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. That's how far the world is from where I am. Just one bad day.”

Even the most cynical of critics who came out to lambast the idea of a Joker origin would have to concede that Moore's vision for the Joker's story deserved telling on the big screen and the decision to use it so consciously as a reference point will delight a lot of people.

Watching a man break apart psychologically might not make easy viewing, but it's a really, really compelling way to tell this story. And by the look of it, there's no agenda to exploit mental health issues, which is refreshing.