CNN manufactures ‘Joker’ plot points to link film to Trump
Critics responded to Joker with disdain as audiences are raving about the film, delivering crushing box office numbers and praising Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck performance.
Fleck’s decent into madness and transforming into a version of the famous Batman villain is done in dramatic fashion, with little to no comic book flair, set against some political overtones and rhetoric existing beyond the character. Joker is a vicious nihilist, leaving behind his pessimistic leftist life, blaming others for all of his problems (fairly valid with respective to his mother), as do the other clowns in the film.
With that said, CNN’s article pushed the allegories to insane places, linking the themes to President Trump.
Joaquin Phoenix as Joker
In the new CNN post, “‘Joker’ — a political parable for our times,” they write:
“Joker,” at its core, is the story of the “forgotten man,” the metaphoric displaced and disenfranchised white man whose goodwill has been abused and whose status has been reduced. A man who has been crushed underfoot by the elite, dragged down by equality-demanding feminists and climbed over by upstart nonwhite and immigrant masses.
That second sentence is 100% false.
There is no one fact in that statement.
One may view the abuse by the Wall Street guys on the subway as a way to justify the “man who has been crushed underfoot by the elite” statement, but that is the second instance of bullying in the film…an incident which pushes Arthur to murder, but it’s more about fighting back against physical bullies.
Where are the “equality-demanding feminists” in the film? I don’t remember seeing a bunch of “upstart nonwhite and immigrant masses” at any point.
CNN goes more extreme, as they cite director Todd Phillips remarks against leftism and his exit from comedic work, to setup the link to Trump:
It draws from the same well of resentment that Trump strums with his racist rhetoric at his rallies — the fear of no longer being at the center of the political, social and cultural universe, with everyone who isn’t you positioned at its perceived edges. (After all, being racist, sexist and anti-gay only “pushes boundaries” if you define yourself as “normal” and define nonwhite, non-male and non-straight people as marginalized outsiders.)
At the end of the movie, a triumphant Fleck — seemingly dead, but magically revived by the cheers of a throng of clown-masked rioters — does a grotesque soft-shoe on top of a shattered cop car, literally dancing on the destroyed remains of the rule of law. Imagine Fleck as Trump, shrugging off impeachment, rebounding with his roaring red-hatted supporters, winning reelection against every prediction and probability.
If politics are becoming more tragic, then CNN is clearly becoming comedic,. They are so desperate for ratings and attention that they malign Joker to attack political enemies.
We can only wish it was a joke.
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