Joker
Cast & Key People
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Our Review
Cast & Key People
▶
Our Review
Joker (2019) is a crime and drama film from Movies. It runs about 122 minutes. It premiered on October 4, 2019. Viewers rate it 8.3 out of 10.
What Joker Is About
Taking place in the year 1937 on the eve of World War II, the story involves a mysterious spy training organization known as the “D Agency”. The organization is established by Lieutenant Colonel Yuuki from the Imperial Japanese Army. His ideals lead him to recruit people beyond military academy graduates and personnel, while training them to become skilled agents in arts of manipulation. These agents would become a specialized team to conduct operations. One such antihero agent, under the name Jirou Gamou, goes on a harrowing mission to uncover secret documents titled “Black Notes”, while battling forces from within and without his own ranks.
What to Expect When You Watch
It runs about 122 minutes and it leans into its crime/drama roots while leaving room for the quieter character beats.
Performance-wise the film leans on Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro and Zazie Beetz to carry the emotional weight, with the rest of the ensemble filling out the world around them.
Cast and Creative Team
Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy and Brett Cullen lead the cast.
Key roles include Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck / Joker; Robert De Niro as Murray Franklin; Zazie Beetz as Sophie Dumond; Frances Conroy as Penny Fleck; Brett Cullen as Thomas Wayne.
Why It Stands Out
Fans of crime, drama and thriller have a clear reason to give this one a shot. It sits comfortably alongside Movies’s other originals, a 8.3/10 audience score puts it in steady company and it commits to its premise instead of hedging between tones.
Released in 2019 and carried by Movies, it lands hardest with crime and drama viewers.
How Joker Compares
If Joker lands for you, the next stops are Breaking Bad, The Wire and The Sopranos, which share its crime/drama lean.
Each of those sits at a different point on the same spectrum, so they make a natural follow-up once you finish the run here.
Where to Stream
Joker comes from Movies. Check your preferred platform for current availability, since regional rights move around.
Disclosure: We may earn a commission if you sign up for a streaming service through links on this page. This helps support our independent reviews.
On the whole Joker is the kind of film that rewards a patient watch, with Joaquin Phoenix and Robert De Niro doing the heaviest lifting, a tone that stays true to its crime/drama roots, It has held up since 2019 and so if the premise sounds like your lane, the execution holds up.
The Bottom Line
Joker is a safe bet for anyone already inside the crime and drama lane, the audience score holds around 8.3/10 and so there is little risk in starting it tonight.
Verdict: 8.3/10. Watch it if you want crime/drama you can settle into.
Seasons
Season 1
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