Killing Joke: A Study of the Carnivalesque Discourse in Todd Phillips’ Joker

Abstract

Todd Phillips’ Joker (2019) is the latest cinematic portrayal of the notorious clown prince of Gotham City. Although the previous film adaptations would usually picture him as a villain to Batman’s hero, this version depicts him as a lonely man who has to cope with depression and struggles to be accepted by and fit in the society. Therefore, this version of the character carries a marked aura of socio-political consciousness. The present paper aims to analyze Todd Phillips’ Joker through the lens of the carnival ritual as put forward by Mikhail Bakhtin. The paper will discuss different carnivalesque elements present in Joker, and illustrate how the movie takes full advantage of them to mount an attack against the prevalent, official culture of Gotham. Moreover, it will argue how Joker forms a utopian condition where the constant anarchy results in freedom.