"the well educated critics whose keen minds we depend on when analyzing any art"
Miles Mathis, a classic realist artist, writes extensively about the world of modern "art" and the people who inhabit it.
I couldn't do it justice in a summary, save to say the art market is the largest *unregulated* market in the world, and encourage people to read one of his papers- "I Would Like to File a Suspicious Transaction Report on the entire 20th century." https://mileswmathis.com/launder.pdf
Your review of Joker was spot on, it represents the intention of the film well, and hopefully represents what people take home. I don't think the major reviewers missed the point, I think it's precisely their job to herd us away from content like this. I'm happy to say I didn't pay any attention to the criticism and did eventually see the film. What's most surprising is seeing a movie like this being *allowed* to be made in this day and age. I think the fact that it never veers too close to real-world specifics might explain that.
I found your ‘review’ touching and to your point I think, oddly relevant in the ‘but for the Grace of God goes any one of us’ sort of way as I did the when I first saw the film.
You’ve managed to articulate some of what I felt then. I certainly understand the film a lot better now. Your review has really helped, as has having had the time to reflect on the film itself since it’s release.
"...come to conclusions using the amazing thought organs that we possess".
The necessities of evolution have produced a thinking ape that uses that thinking ability mainly for survival and reproduction, or for emergency situations. Until very recently, "thinking" for other than instinct-approved purposes would have been highly disadvantageous for such an ape - instant exclusion from the in-group. Thus the 200,000+ years where proto-man, in Africa, with all the neurological equipment to be great thinkers of every kind, remained in total stasis until a catalyzing event changed the course of prehistory. The "sudden awakening hypothesis" or "trigger event hypothesis" has been well discussed in African Exodus (Chris Stringer) and by a few others... (including me, see KOSMOS). Seems to me however that the natural state of modern man is that he is originally and automatically in that pre-awakening state, constantly reverts to it unless highly motivated (or a bit of a freak like you me and Einstein...) and that each and every individual must him(her)self be awakened, and continually, repeatedly so, to avoid membership in that 80% category (see below). Call it the continued dominance of the necessary in-group / out-group instinctive behavior.
Re: nature vs nurture, see Human Universals - Donald E. Brown - terriffic!
Re: uncaring narcissists. 10% of all populations everywhere. A couple of different flavors, however. Another 10% who just can't be fooled into participation (Einstein, Schweitzer, the biophiles), and 80% who will follow (unthinkingly) whomever presents the loudest propaganda. See Fromm, The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness.
Please excuse my pedantry if it seems to be that, it's all your fault to have stimulated such a display with your excellent review!
To see the Joker for who he really is... in his unescapable humanity requires one to have laid down their own false self and the false narratives we tell ourselves about our families, and by extension, our society. What he needed was to be seen and to experience that appropriate love he craved in its archetypal (healthy) forms; fatherly love, motherly love, love of child, and romantic/partner love. Pathology is created in the absence and/or perversion of these energies where a child throughout their formative years has no "mirror" of appropriate and reciprocal love relationships. This was beautifully explained in the case studies of Adolf Hitler as a child and a famous serial killer of children in Germany in Alice Miller's book-- For Your Own Good. All humans have varying degrees of trauma and the extent of our wounding is reflected in our ability or lack of ability to function in society. Thank you for a wonderful and though provoking review.
Brilliant review. Fleck’s discovered destruction and found a route to agency there. Would agree his father was every inch the criminal, just the legal kind. That was a major point I thought- that the Batman will turn out to be the spawn of a bad man. In most of the Batman myth stories, the parents are saints, unjustly killed. As a further development it might be intro see how Bruce Wayne deals with finding out. That his “goodness” has a criminal side. But maybe that’s implied all along by the guise of the Bat.
"the well educated critics whose keen minds we depend on when analyzing any art"
Miles Mathis, a classic realist artist, writes extensively about the world of modern "art" and the people who inhabit it.
I couldn't do it justice in a summary, save to say the art market is the largest *unregulated* market in the world, and encourage people to read one of his papers- "I Would Like to File a Suspicious Transaction Report on the entire 20th century." https://mileswmathis.com/launder.pdf
In my case, one of Mathis' papers got me hooked and I've gone on to read a large portion of his site. https://mileswmathis.com/updates.html
Your review of Joker was spot on, it represents the intention of the film well, and hopefully represents what people take home. I don't think the major reviewers missed the point, I think it's precisely their job to herd us away from content like this. I'm happy to say I didn't pay any attention to the criticism and did eventually see the film. What's most surprising is seeing a movie like this being *allowed* to be made in this day and age. I think the fact that it never veers too close to real-world specifics might explain that.
Mathew,
I found your ‘review’ touching and to your point I think, oddly relevant in the ‘but for the Grace of God goes any one of us’ sort of way as I did the when I first saw the film.
You’ve managed to articulate some of what I felt then. I certainly understand the film a lot better now. Your review has really helped, as has having had the time to reflect on the film itself since it’s release.
Thank you
Etienne
"...come to conclusions using the amazing thought organs that we possess".
The necessities of evolution have produced a thinking ape that uses that thinking ability mainly for survival and reproduction, or for emergency situations. Until very recently, "thinking" for other than instinct-approved purposes would have been highly disadvantageous for such an ape - instant exclusion from the in-group. Thus the 200,000+ years where proto-man, in Africa, with all the neurological equipment to be great thinkers of every kind, remained in total stasis until a catalyzing event changed the course of prehistory. The "sudden awakening hypothesis" or "trigger event hypothesis" has been well discussed in African Exodus (Chris Stringer) and by a few others... (including me, see KOSMOS). Seems to me however that the natural state of modern man is that he is originally and automatically in that pre-awakening state, constantly reverts to it unless highly motivated (or a bit of a freak like you me and Einstein...) and that each and every individual must him(her)self be awakened, and continually, repeatedly so, to avoid membership in that 80% category (see below). Call it the continued dominance of the necessary in-group / out-group instinctive behavior.
Re: nature vs nurture, see Human Universals - Donald E. Brown - terriffic!
Re: uncaring narcissists. 10% of all populations everywhere. A couple of different flavors, however. Another 10% who just can't be fooled into participation (Einstein, Schweitzer, the biophiles), and 80% who will follow (unthinkingly) whomever presents the loudest propaganda. See Fromm, The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness.
Please excuse my pedantry if it seems to be that, it's all your fault to have stimulated such a display with your excellent review!
Did you review Falling Down?
To see the Joker for who he really is... in his unescapable humanity requires one to have laid down their own false self and the false narratives we tell ourselves about our families, and by extension, our society. What he needed was to be seen and to experience that appropriate love he craved in its archetypal (healthy) forms; fatherly love, motherly love, love of child, and romantic/partner love. Pathology is created in the absence and/or perversion of these energies where a child throughout their formative years has no "mirror" of appropriate and reciprocal love relationships. This was beautifully explained in the case studies of Adolf Hitler as a child and a famous serial killer of children in Germany in Alice Miller's book-- For Your Own Good. All humans have varying degrees of trauma and the extent of our wounding is reflected in our ability or lack of ability to function in society. Thank you for a wonderful and though provoking review.
Here's an example of that 80% Fromm mentions:
The "Obscenely out of touch"
https://www.rt.com/usa/534791-obscenely-out-of-touch-aoc/
Frank Zappa called them "Plastic People". But that was in a kinder age.
That video linked on the reddit thread has been taken down by Youtube 'of course' and a search for it by name doesn't find any other copies.
Brilliant review. Fleck’s discovered destruction and found a route to agency there. Would agree his father was every inch the criminal, just the legal kind. That was a major point I thought- that the Batman will turn out to be the spawn of a bad man. In most of the Batman myth stories, the parents are saints, unjustly killed. As a further development it might be intro see how Bruce Wayne deals with finding out. That his “goodness” has a criminal side. But maybe that’s implied all along by the guise of the Bat.
Again, fascinating analysis of the film and how it naturally makes for obvious things most people missed about the intent.