Joker (thriller)

Joker was made in 2019 and directed by Todd Philips, it has since received 16 awards. It had a budget of $70 million and made $1.074 billion at the box office, this has made The Joker not only the most profitable comic book movie but also the top R-rated movie of all time. The Joker consisted of an A-list cast, including: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, and Frances Conroy. Common conventions of a thriller are: realistic, suspenseful, and gripping. The opening sequence adheres to these stereotypes whereby we the audience are left on the edges of our seats wanting to watch more. The opening scene sets a serious yet mellow tone, whereby we witness the protagonist getting beaten up by young thugs in the street. 

We can assume the protagonist is going to be “The Joker” due to his prominent feature within the opening scene, additionally, we can gather he is going to be relevant due to the title of the movie alongside the man's makeup, hinting that he is “The Joker”. Although, Jokers are stereotypically happy characters that entertain children, although the Joker was presented with subverts to the common stereotype whereby not only do we see him cry we also gain the understanding that he is working to live, whereby he almost sacrificed his life for his work. The subversion of the stereotype reiterates the thriller genre, whereby the audience wants to watch possibly because they empathize with the protagonist, or just because they're left on the edge of their seats and have little understanding as to what is going to happen next. Joker has previously appeared in 12 movies whereby he is an established character, many fans will want to watch the jokers first solo movie not only because they're a fan of DC but because they want to see Joaquin Phoenix's rendition of The Joker, an antagonist they know and many love. Due to prior knowledge of the Batman movies, we understand it will most likely be set in Gotham, although the use of long shots establishes the American city, suggesting it could be set in New York. Moreover, the costume the extras are wearing alongside the billboards and shop fronts, suggest that the movie is set in the 80s, additionally the reference to Typhoid in the radio report further suggests that its set in New York in the 80s, as at this time Typhoid cases were increasing in NYC.

Furthermore, the use of a diegetic radio recording reiterates the realism in the storyline, as the negativity of the radio references real events that have happened. Moreover, the piano soundtrack starts out non-diegetic and contrapuntal to the scene whereby we see the joker shed a tear, although soon enough we see him dancing on the streets; the soundtrack is now diegetic and parallel as we see the joker dancing alongside a man playing the piano in the streets, the soundtrack is upbeat although the tempo matches the scene whereby as chaos is created the soundtrack speeds up and eventually stops as the joker is beaten up, suggesting a bad ending for him whereby non-diegetic violins play, suggesting sorrow.

We can assume from the opening scene that the narrative will be based around the Joker and possibly his revenge antics, we can gather that he is relatively unstable and lonely. The opening scene is effective at revealing the thriller genre, although there isn't a lot of hints at what could happen, this is effective within the genre as the audience is gripped by the storyline from the offset and are so intrigued in the unknown and want to continue watching.