Actor Joaquin Phoenix gave a bizarre leftist speech as he accepted an award at the Oscars for his role in the movie &#8220;Joker,&#8221; suggesting that humans use the resources that cows provide because humans believe that they are superior to cows.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve been thinking a lot about some of the distressing issues that we are facing collectively, and I think at times we feel or are made to feel that we champion different causes,&#8221; Phoenix said. &#8220;But for me, I see commonality. I think whether we&#8217;re talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we&#8217;re talking about the fight against injustice.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re talking about the fight against the belief that one nation, one people, one race, one gender, or one species has the right to dominate, control, and use and exploit another with impunity,&#8221; Phoenix continued. &#8220;I think that we&#8217;ve become very disconnected from the natural world and many of us, what we&#8217;re guilty of, is an egocentric world view, the belief that we&#8217;re the center of the universe.”
&#8220;We go into the natural world and we plunder it for its resources,&#8221; Phoenix continued. &#8220;We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and when she gives birth, we steal her baby. Even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. And then we take her milk that&#8217;s intended for her calf and we put it in our coffee and our cereal. And I think we fear the idea of personal change because we think that we have to sacrifice something to give something up but human beings, at our best, are so inventive and creative and ingenious, and I think that when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create, develop, and implement systems of change that are beneficial to all sentient beings and to the environment.&#8221;
WATCH:
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Who had inseminated cows on their bingo card <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AcademyAwards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AcademyAwards</a> <a href="https://t.co/hPCdQr4ASj">pic.twitter.com/hPCdQr4ASj</a>
&mdash; Ben McDonald (@Bmac0507) <a href="https://twitter.com/Bmac0507/status/1226721626420441088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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“Now, I have been &#8212; I&#8217;ve been a scoundrel in my life,” Phoenix continued. “I&#8217;ve been selfish, I&#8217;ve been cruel at times, hard to work with and I&#8217;m grateful that so many of you in this room have given me a second chance and I think that&#8217;s when we&#8217;re at our best, when we support each other, not when we cancel each other out for past mistakes, but when we help each other to grow, when we educate each other, when we guide each other toward redemption.”
“That is the best of humanity,” Phoenix continued. “I just I want to, when he was 17, my brother wrote this lyric, he said, ‘Run to the rescue with love and peace will follow.’ Thank you.”
WATCH:
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An emotional Joaquin Phoenix concludes his acceptance speech by remembering his brother River Phoenix: &quot;When he was 17, my brother wrote this lyric. He said, &#39;Run to the rescue with love—and peace will follow.&#39;&quot; <a href="https://t.co/8kz7m5vtnF">https://t.co/8kz7m5vtnF</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Oscars?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Oscars</a> <a href="https://t.co/rg89eYCyLK">pic.twitter.com/rg89eYCyLK</a>
&mdash; ABC News (@ABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1226723729905987584?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Far-left animal rights organization PETA praised Phoenix for his leftist speech, <a href="https://twitter.com/peta/status/1226723427945345026">writing</a>, &#8220;JAW DROP. Sending a HUGE congratulations to #vegan Joaquin Phoenix for winning Best Actor! Joaquin has dedicated his life to ending speciesism and that speech was proof that he is never afraid to speak up for ALL beings. #Joker #Oscars #EndSpeciesism&#8221;
&#8220;THIS is why Joaquin Phoenix is a star in animals’ eyes,&#8221; PETA <a href="https://twitter.com/peta/status/1226728239479033856">added</a>. &#8220;While the entire country was watching, Best Actor winner Joaquin Phoenix took his #Oscars acceptance speech to talk about the cruelty in dairy.&#8221;

US-OSCARS-ARRIVALS

Joaquin Phoenix: ‘We Feel Entitled To Artificially Inseminate A Cow,’ ‘We Steal Her Baby,’ ‘We Take Her Milk’

Hollywood

Joaquin Phoenix

Joker

Oscars

Most right-leaning people don’t care about the Academy Awards. I know this because every Oscar night, I see a flurry of Facebook status updates and Twitter posts from my fellow conservatives boldly announcing their disinterest in the awards ceremony (often going out of their way to denounce liberal virtue signaling in a cringe-worthy display of irony).
The Oscars are not very well-regarded in film critic circles either. Many view it as an industry popularity contest in which, with rare exception, the mediocre studio offerings ultimately beat out the more influential and groundbreaking films. From “Citizen Kane” to “Apocalypse Now” to “Saving Private Ryan” to “The Social Network,” Oscar history is littered with unrewarded classics, leading people to wonder why an Academy Award is so important in the first place when it so regularly goes to films and performances of lesser quality.
I find the Oscars valuable mostly for academic purposes. The nominees and winners prove to be an interesting snapshot of their time. One need only look to the nominees from 1976 to get a picture of the changing American culture. “All the President’s Men,” Bound for Glory,” “Network,” and “Taxi Driver” – four films that turned a cynical eye toward the cultural landscape – lost to John G. Avildsen’s “Rocky,” an inspirational film that suggested the American dream was alive and well. The message was clear. After Vietnam and Watergate, the Academy seemed willing to acknowledge the divisions within the country while ultimately affirming its strength and inspiration.
This year has yielded an interesting crop of Best Picture nominees. Some are epic while others are intimate. Some are inspiring while others are cynical. It will be interesting to see what future Oscar historians are able to conclude about our current culture based on these nominees.
Ranked from worst to best – based on my own personal preferences, of course – these are the 2019 nominees for Best Picture.
9. Joker
Despite a truly remarkable performance from Joaquin Phoenix, Todd Philips’ “Joker” is a letdown. The film is directed with the gusto of somebody utterly convinced of his film’s importance, but whose every choice is as broad and obvious as a teenager’s one act play. A film that purports to explore mental illness, it instead exploits it, treating its main character’s sickness not as a genuine tragedy but as a way to morally subsidize his monstrous actions. Covering the well-trod ground of “Taxi Driver” and “Falling Down,” the film’s cliches are elevated by a committed and heartfelt performance from Phoenix, who proves once again that he is one of the most vital and exciting actors working today.
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8. Ford v Ferrari
A rip-roaring good time from director James Mangold, “Ford v Ferrari” is a solidly-made – if overlong – film in the tradition of “Moneyball” and “The Martian.” Featuring enjoyable performances from Matt Damon and Christian Bale, it’s a big budget mainstream American film for grown-ups that also contains subtle themes about uncompromising individualism in the face of corporate assimilation. To put it in car terms, it may not be flashy, but it is sturdy and reliable.
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7. Jojo Rabbit
Director Taika Waititi dips his toe into the tumultuous waters of political satire and emerges with a film that is largely toothless but extremely endearing. With a refreshing manic energy and an appealing cast, Waititi tells the story of Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis), a rabid young Nazi at the end of the war who is so dedicated to the cause that his imaginary friend is none other than Hitler himself. As the soldiers around him resign themselves to an eventual loss, Jojo befriends a young Jewish girl who forces him to question his entire belief system. What it lacks in edginess, it makes up for in heart.
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6. 1917
Since his Oscar win twenty years ago for “American Beauty,” Sam Mendes has reinvented himself as a solid action director, having helmed the two most recent James Bond films. He brings those sensibilities to his real time World War I thriller “1917,” about two British soldiers crossing enemy lines to warn their fellow troops of an impending German trap. With virtuosic camerawork by the ever-exciting Roger Deakins, the film is a cinematic marvel. However, while this technical meticulousness is undeniably impressive, it can keep the viewer at arm’s length. Nonetheless, while so many movies fall into a predictable, by-the-numbers pattern, it’s nice to know there are still films like “1917” out there willing to be ambitious.
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5. Little Women
It must be difficult adapting classic works of literature. Many such adaptations have a tendency to be stodgy and unengaging. Thankfully, Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women” is youthful and vibrant, bringing much-needed energy to Louisa May Alcott’s oft-adapted novel. With a likable ensemble of actors, including Saoirse Ronan, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, and Timothee Chalamet, the film remains reverential to the original book while employing modern filmmaking techniques – such as non-linear editing – to make it relatable to the viewer. With now two solid films under her belt – 2017’s “Lady Bird” being her directorial debut – Greta Gerwig has emerged as refreshing new voice in filmmaking.
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4. Marriage Story
It would be easy to watch Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story” and see it simply as a stagy, depressing family drama. It is those things, but it is also undeniably human, both in its goals and its execution. It does what too few films do these days; it approaches an all-too familiar aspect of our culture and asks why we’re all so comfortable with it. His story of a young couple’s divorce and bitter custody fight is told with the heartbreak that should accompany the dissolution of a marriage. In a country where divorce has become so commonplace, Baumbach – along with a stellar cast that includes Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson – chooses to reopen that wound to let the audience contemplate the daily tragedy that we’ve long since stopped mourning, but probably should.
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3. The Irishman
For four decades now, Martin Scorsese’s mob films have crackled with exciting and dangerous energy. Scorsese always seemed more interested in recreating the sociopathic, ultraviolent appeal of the gangster lifestyle, choosing to leave the operatic tragedy to Francis Ford Coppola. With his new crime epic “The Irishman,” however, Scorsese has made a film that looks back at a life of crime with introspection and regret. Telling the story of real life mob enforcer Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro) and his unlikely friendship with union boss Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino), “The Irishman” creates a sense of impending, inevitable doom. Gone is the gleeful, frat boy energy of “Goodfellas” or “Mean Streets”; Scorsese frames the events of Sheeran’s life with a tone of existential disgust. Not since Clint Eastwood made “Unforgiven” has a director worked so hard to recontextualize his previous work. A mature, somber, clear-eyed film from one of history’s best directors.
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2. Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood
Quentin Tarantino has always unapologetically told stories of lowlives and hitmen, underlining the appeal and coolness inherent in that lifestyle. The flashiness of his characters and dialogue has always been his hallmark. But, much like Scorsese, it would seem that Tarantino has chosen to look inward in 2019 and has, in turn, produced a film that is surprisingly meditative, and a bit melancholy. The story of an aging Hollywood star desperate for a comeback could be considered less-than-compelling to most Tarantino fans. But, set against the historical backdrop of the late 1960s and the imminent rise to prominence of Charles Manson, the film begins to take on the epic proportions suggested by its iconic title. In the end, the film is about the desperate, narcissistic, redemptive nature of art and its ability to provide a brief reprieve from the cold, brutal reality we inhabit. A beautiful, elegiac work from one of the unlikeliest of sources, “Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood” marks an astonishing leap forward in Tarantino’s already-formidable career.
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1. Parasite
There is no perfection in art. How could there be? While concepts of aesthetic beauty, realistic fealty, and editing rhythms are tangible, the larger idea of emotional resonance is not. It’s all subjective. As such, critics tend not to use a word like “perfect” when describing a movie; it’s just too definitive. So when I write that Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” is perfect, I recognize that it’s not a quantifiable term, but an instinctive one. Every choice that the director makes seems so complete in itself, yet such an intrinsic part of the larger whole, that it’s hard to discuss any single element of his film by itself. The deliberate editing and camerawork help to fully realize the story of a poor South Korean family meticulously infiltrating the home of a well-meaning rich family. This long con requires multiple layers of deceit, underneath which lies a deep-seated insecurity and fear, which the actors pull off beautifully. The film manages to operate as a thriller, a drama, and a comedy all at once, modulating these different components according to the requirements of each narrative beat. The final product is a film that is tremendously entertaining, coldly intelligent, and deeply emotional. It being a South Korean film, many Americans likely won’t watch it. Those who do, though, will be treated to a well-crafted, engaging film that, if not perfect, is still a genuine masterpiece.
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So there you have it! My rankings of the Best Picture nominees. Of course, I can only rank the ones that are there. I’d gladly include “Uncut Gems,” “Ad Astra,” and “A Hidden Life” into the discussion, but I’m sadly prevented by the Academy from doing so. Nonetheless, it’s a pretty solid slate of films.
What are some of your favorite films of 2019? Whom are you rooting for – if anybody – at this year’s Oscars? Leave your comments below!

Oscars.

SMITH: Ranking The Best Picture Nominees

Todd Philips&#8217; &#8220;Joker&#8221; garnered a total of 11 Academy Award nominations this week, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor. Though fans have expressed delight over the accolades, some in the media have either argued that the film&#8217;s presence during awards season further advances the narrative of white male dominance or that the makers of &#8220;Joker&#8221; manipulated their way into the top slot by painting themselves as victims.
Over at <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/scaachikoul/joker-oscar-nominations-todd-phillips-joaquin-phoenix">BuzzFeed</a>, Scaachi Koul argued that &#8220;Joker&#8221; getting nominated is especially insulting in light of the fact that women and people of color were underrepresented this year. She further argues that the makers of &#8220;Joker&#8221; invented a victimhood narrative surrounding the film&#8217;s success by acting as if the world was out to sabotage the film:
<blockquote>There are other movies and actors taking up this space, but it’s more infuriating for Joker to do so, since it’s a movie that posits that women — black women particularly — are holding white men back. Look, The Irishman bored the sh** out of me, but it’s not a movie that suggests that maybe if women weren’t so f***ing rude when some dude just wants them to love him, he wouldn’t have to go on a killing spree, oooo-kay???
Joker’s commercial success — and now, its critical success — makes the filmmakers’ self-victimization even more absurd. What have Phillips and Phoenix been complaining about this whole time? Their movie has made hundreds upon hundreds of millions of dollars. They’re both nominated for Oscars after being nominated for Golden Globes. Like Arthur, they’re both operating in a version of the world that doesn’t exist: one where they don’t get what they think they deserve, when, in fact, they’re doing just fine. The makers of Joker aren’t responsible for the lack of nominations for women and people of color. They’re not the reason why the movie business is so reluctant to include anyone other than white men. But their response to any criticism at all — defensive, childish, prickly, even when things are going their way — is telling. Even when they win, they’re worried it won’t last.</blockquote>
A similar sentiment was echoed by Stephanie Zacharek over at <a href="https://time.com/5764725/joker-oscar-nominations-underdog/">TIME</a>, who said that &#8220;Joker&#8221; successfully painted its rise as some kind of underdog story that wasn&#8217;t.
<blockquote>That’s not to say that a movie adapted from a comic book can never be a work of artistry. Black Panther, also a crowd pleaser and the only other comic book adaptation to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, was a beautifully made picture with a generous spirit. But even if its many supporters were passionate, the discourse around it never reached the level of acidic aggressiveness that’s been swirling around Joker since its release. Everyone wants to be the put-upon underdog, and both Joker and the success of Joker play to that self-centered impulse. In a recent interview in the Paris Review, Anna Wiener — author of the newly published memoir Uncanny Valley — said, “I think people are incredibly reluctant to surrender that underdog identity, regardless of how true it was, then or now.”</blockquote>
Some responses to the film&#8217;s success have strictly focused on its quality, such as Dan Kois of Slate, who flatly said that &#8220;Joker&#8221; is just &#8220;dumb&#8221; and earned the accolades by feigning grittiness without much else to say:
<blockquote>Joker poses as a movie interested in exploring the anomie and alienation of contemporary manhood, the rage of the underclass, the fragile equilibrium of our cities. Joker is not actually interested in any of those things. It is interested in shocks and thrills, in valorizing its antihero’s put-upon haplessness, in exploiting potent and crucial protest messages for the lulz.
This, in the end, is what I find stupidest of all about Joker: how convinced the movie seems that it’s daring, that it’s showing us something we’ve never seen before.</blockquote>
Kyle Turner of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/01/13/oscars-love-mediocrity-thats-why-joker-got-11-nominations/">The Washington Post</a> hailed the film as a mediocrity that captured Hollywood&#8217;s impulse to appear in line with the cultural zeitgeist. Erik Kain of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2020/01/14/people-are-upset-over-jokers-11-oscar-nominations---heres-why-theyre-wrong/#47eb9dc16be5">Forbes</a>, however, argued that those upset by the film&#8217;s 11 Oscar nominations have missed the overall point that &#8220;Joker&#8221; is indeed a solid film, even if some people cannot quite figure out its themes.

The ‘Joker’ Best Picture Nomination Has Sparked Some Intensely Divided Reactions

Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese, hot off his <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/martin-scorsese-shreds-marvel-movies-says-theyre-not-cinema">controversial take</a> on Marvel movies, has now taken a swipe at Todd Phillips&#8217; &#8220;Joker.&#8221;
Speaking to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/02/movies/martin-scorsese-irishman.html">The New York Times</a> for an interview published Thursday, Scorsese said he has not seen many films this year, including &#8220;Joker.&#8221; And he has no plans to see the film, calling it just &#8220;fine.&#8221;
“I saw clips of it. I know it. So it’s like, why do I need to?&#8221; Scorsese said of &#8220;Joker.&#8221;
“I get it. It’s fine,&#8221; he added.
As noted by the Times, &#8220;Joker&#8221; contains many homages to Scorsese&#8217;s own work. Moreover, &#8220;The Irishman&#8221; director passed on an offer to executive produce the film.
Moviegoers are not on the same page. Phillips&#8217; &#8220;Joker,&#8221; starring award-winning actor Joaquin Phoenix, became the highest grossing R-rated film in history.
&#8220;With $788.1M worldwide, Warner Bros./Village Roadshow/Bron Studio’s &#8216;Joker&#8217; has just passed Fox’s &#8216;Deadpool&#8217; to become the highest grossing R-rated movie of all-time,&#8221; <a href="https://deadline.com/2019/10/joker-worldwide-box-office-record-r-rated-movie-1202764732/">Deadline</a> reported in October. &#8220;That Marvel pic ended its run with $783M. By the end of the weekend, it’s expected that &#8216;Joker&#8221;s global tally will stand at $825M. At least a $900 final tally is expected with a profit after ancillaries at $464M.&#8221;
In October, Scorsese caught the scorn of Marvel fans when he said the high-grossing films are &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/martin-scorsese-shreds-marvel-movies-says-theyre-not-cinema">not cinema</a>.&#8221;
“I tried, you know? But that’s not cinema,” Scorsese said of the movies, according to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/oct/04/martin-scorsese-says-marvel-movies-are-not-cinema?fbclid=IwAR3kKvhPWrStEctCAMaapI-t7AWP13VzKnl9RlNQPJ-KAm4U083cAAipSVM">The Guardian</a>. “Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks. It isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being.”
As noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/martin-scorsese-shreds-marvel-movies-says-theyre-not-cinema">The Daily Wire</a>, famed director James Cameron is also not a fan of the Marvel universe.
“I’m hoping we’ll start getting ‘Avenger’ fatigue here pretty soon,” Cameron said <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/james-cameron-right-about-superhero-movies-enough-paul-bois">IndieWire</a> in 2018. “It’s just, come on guys, there are other stories to tell besides hypergonadal males (men who produce too much testosterone) without families doing death-defying things for two hours and wrecking cities in the process. It’s like, oy!”
“I’ve found myself as a father of five starting to think about what would an ‘Avatar’ story be like if it was a family drama. What if it was ‘The Godfather?&#8217;” Cameron continued. “It’s a generational family saga. That’s very different than the first film. There’s still the same setting and the same respect for the shock of the new. We still want to show you things that you haven’t even seen or imagined, but the story is very different.”
“It’s a continuation of the same characters … but what happens when warriors who are willing to go on suicide charges and leap off cliffs, what happens when they grow up and have their own kids?&#8221; he added.
Though Scorsese is in no rush to see &#8220;Joker,&#8221; he did enjoyed &#8220;Parasite.&#8221;
&#8220;Scorsese was circumspect when asked about movies from the past year that he had enjoyed, pleading modesty and the fact that he still needed to watch a lot of films, though he did say he had seen and liked Bong Joon Ho’s dark satire &#8216;Parasite,'&#8221; the Times noted.

Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese Takes Swipe At Todd Phillips’ ‘Joker,’ A Film He Passed Up Producing

Martin Scorsese picked a terrible time to trash comic book movies.
The Oscar winner mocked Marvel films earlier this year, proclaiming they weren’t “cinema.” The comments sparked a weeks-long outcry. That’s hardly shocking in our uber-sensitive age.
The ironic part? This year’s best movie hails from the pages of a DC Comic book.
Todd Phillips’ “Joker” stands as the <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/ct-ent-joker-highest-r-rated-movie-20191025-yxwa3nu2kndhbcj55eqnxh43xa-story.html">top grossing R-rated movie</a> of all time. It’s more than that, though. Joaquin Phoenix’s sublime performance gave us an all-new look at the supervillain mind. You didn’t have to be a Comic-Con geek to appreciate its soulful storytelling, the macabre compositions or the captivating score.
It helped, of course.
Here are the best films of 2019 in order, starting with the creme de la creme.
JOKER
“All I have … are negative thoughts,” Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck tells his counselor. He’s not kidding. This tale of one man’s moral spiral is a triumph, a reboot of comic book myth that taps directly into our cultural nightmares.
Adjectives seem insufficient when it comes to Phoenix’s performance. There’s already talk of a sequel, naturally, but wouldn’t it be grand if “Joker” existed all by itself, a marvelous slice of 21st century storytelling?
JOJO RABBIT
You could write a book about all the ways this jet black comedy could have failed. Instead, writer/director Taika Waititi crafts a fabulous ode to humanity during the darkest of times. And did we mention it’s the funniest movie in a not-so-funny year for films?
Give co-star Sam Rockwell a smidge more screen time and he’d be a favorite to win his second Best Supporting Actor trophy. As is, he’s part of a marvelous cast down to Waititi himself as a petulant Der Fuhrer.
ONCE UPON A TIME … IN HOLLYWOOD
Director Quentin Tarantino gives us a dozen dazzling moments, if not more, per film. That doesn’t mean his movies are equal to his outsized gifts. His ode to late ’60s Hollywood, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, is one big, beautiful exception.
Where should we start? How about that confrontation between Pitt’s character and Bruce Lee (Mike Moh)? Or the extended visit to the Manson camp? Try the heartbreaking scene where DiCaprio’s struggling actor meets his artistic match — a measured pre-teen co-star.
There’s so much to savor, from the sublime production design to yet another killer soundtrack. “Hollywood” captures the very best of Tarantino without qualifiers.
RICHARD JEWELL
Leave it to an 89-year-old legend to nail the zeitgeist better than his peers. The FBI and the media tag-teamed to make the title character’s life a living hell back in 1996. It’s like Eastwood absorbed the Fake News era, along with certain text-based love notes, and transferred it to the big screen.
This isn’t a case of a conservative film critic cheering a conservative tale for ideological reasons. “Richard Jewell” is impeccably crafted from start to finish. Bravura turns by Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell (again!) and Kathy Bates power the ultimate David vs. Goliath tale. Eastwood could have painted Jewell as a portly hero who stood tall against the government. Instead, it’s the most layered character of the year, a Mama’s boy who too snugly fit the profile the FBI craved.
NO SAFE SPACES
It’s the most important documentary you’ll see all year! It’s the movie we need now more than ever! Exhausting, right? Not this time. It’s frighteningly accurate on both counts.
Dennis Prager and Adam Carolla tour modern academia, a place where woke students can chase professors off campus for having the “wrong” opinion. Free thought is under attack, and the villains will soon enter the real world with sizable axes to grind. A trio of liberal voices, including a profound Van Jones, plead for Americans on both sides of the aisle to unite against a common foe. Sadly, too few liberals are willing to join the fight.
MARRIAGE STORY
Director Noah Baumbach (“The Squid and the Whale”) shows us a couple going through the final stages of a failed marriage. This isn’t romantic, kind or even bittersweet. It’s a slugfest, one that will permanently wound all parties involved.
Sounds excruciating, right? Oh, it is. It’s also beautifully realized, raw and delicately rendered. A dash of dark humor lightens the mood, but only by a few degrees. Both Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson are sensational as ex-partners clinging to the last shards of their relationship.
The best art affirms life even when we see humanity at its worst. Baumbach’s latest proves just that, even when the couple’s lawyers go for the jugular.
WAVES
Remember the names Kelvin Harrison, Jr. and Trey Edward Shults. The star and the creator of “Waves” have bold, bright futures, but it’s the here and now that’s equally thrilling.
Harrison plays a high school athlete who has it all – a beautiful girlfriend, doting parents and talent to burn. Sometimes that isn’t enough, as we learn after a series of body blows sends his plans dramatically off course. It’s just the beginning of a story that stretches across a family in chaos.
Shults takes some creative risks at every step, and his instincts prove true with every tough call.
TOY STORY 4
It’s a cash grab! No, it’s a corporate no brainer! It’s all of that, of course, plus another remarkable example of Pixar being Pixar. And when it comes to animated stories, nobody does it better. Still.
The old toy gang returns, of course, but this tale offers bright new heroes we can’t wait to see again. Plus, “Toy Story 4” blends sight gags for all ages with a third act twist just for the adults. What more could you want?
A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Fred Rogers takes a back seat to a grumpy journalist who thinks the TV star is beneath his talents. That angle makes “A Beautiful Day” hard to embrace at first.
Be patient. Tom Hanks is pitch perfect as the man in the red cardigan sweater, revealing a flesh and blood human beneath that aw, shucks exterior. Matthew Rhys trusts the audience to rally to his journalist character’s side, and it’s well worth the effort. Plus, Chris Cooper excels as the journalists’ dad, a role tailor made for cliches that never arrive.
FORD v FERRARI
Oscar-bait films too often come in one, predictable flavor. It’s tasty, all right, but it can be a bit tiresome. It’s why James Mangold’s fact-based story is such a treat. It’s got all the bells and whistles of an awards contender, but gosh is it a gas.
Christian Bale lands the flashier role of Ken Miles, the race car driver who steers Ford into the ultimate grudge match against Ferrari Motors. Matt Damon is his boss, protecting him from Ford’s snarling bureaucrats.
Their bond is fascinating but tricky to process, and the final race at Le Mans is as good as you hope it’ll be. Throw in a nod to capitalism in all its imperfect glory, and you’ve got enough for several viewings.
Honorable Mention: “Breakthrough,” “The Irishman,” “Dolemite Is My Name.”
A version of this article was also published on <a dir="ltr" href="http://hollywoodintoto.com/">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.

Joker.

TOTO: The Best Films Of 2019: And A Joker Shall Lead Them

So now the Joker is such an agent of chaos that he works to help President Donald Trump get re-elected in the latest Frank Miller comic, &#8220;The Dark Knight Returns: The Golden Child.&#8221;
According to <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/frank-millers-new-dark-knight-comic-goes-donald-trump-1261878">The Hollywood Reporter</a> (THR), the comic features the villains Darkseid and Joker working in tandem to give Trump a second term. Though the president&#8217;s name is not specifically mentioned, the comic leaves no room for subtle interpretations of who the character represents — to the point of having Joker don a jacket with the phrase &#8220;I Really Don’t Care, Do U?&#8221; scrawled across the back.
&#8220;The two are working, basically, to re-elect Donald Trump,&#8221; reports THR. &#8220;The president isn’t directly named in the comic, but he doesn’t need to be; his likeness is used on multiple pages; dialogue from the president is heard at one point and is distinctly Trumpian (&#8216;It’s going to be beautiful! You’re gonna love it! You’re gonna love every inch of it! I’m talking streets so safe you can let your kids go play and not even think about &#8217;em!&#8217;); and the Joker’s jacket, made of the U.S. flag, has the words &#8216;I Really Don’t Care, Do U?&#8217; scrawled on the back. Subtle, it’s not.&#8221;
Darkseid&#8217;s ultimate goal is to have the Joker wreak enough havoc so that humanity will lose faith in itself, making them easier to conquer.
&#8220;For those wondering why the two are working together for this purpose, Darkseid has recruited the Joker as an &#8216;agent of chaos&#8217; to promote Trump’s election, with the ultimate goal of destroying humanity’s faith in itself and thereby being easier to conquer,&#8221; THR continued.
As THR noted, DC Comics&#8217; decision to go full anti-Trumpian is a stark departure from Marvel, which, per THR, &#8220;rejected an editorial by &#8216;Maus&#8217; creator Art Spiegelman and replaced captions in its special 80th-anniversary release out of concern for being too political.&#8221;
For DC to make such a political statement with its comics could prove ultimately disastrous, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/marvel-vp-diversity-our-characters-killing-our-ben-shapiro">as evidenced</a> by Marvel Vice President David Gabriel saying in 2017 that diversity was severely hurting their sales.
&#8220;What we heard was that people didn’t want any more diversity,&#8221; said Gabriel. &#8220;They didn’t want female characters out there. That’s what we heard, whether we believe that or not. I don’t know that that’s really true, but that’s what we saw in sales. … Any character that was diverse, any character that was new, our female characters, anything that was not a core Marvel character, people were turning their nose up.”
However, as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) moves into &#8220;Phase 4,&#8221; producer Kevin Feige has already promised a more diverse offering of characters.
&#8220;There’s been an avalanche of news coming out from this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, but arguably none are as huge as the many revelations about Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe,&#8221; reported <a href="https://uproxx.com/viral/marvel-phase-4-diversity-twitter-reactions/">Uproxx</a>. &#8220;It became quickly evident that — along with news of Doctor Strange and Thor sequels — one thing distinguishes the next batch of superhero movies from the previous three: They’re incredibly diverse, with major roles going to women, to people of color, to people of many ethnicities, and to the LGBTQ+ community.&#8221;

New York Comic Con 2019 – Day 1

The Joker Helps Trump To Get Re-Elected In Frank Miller’s ‘Dark Knight’ Comic

2020 Election

Donald Trump

The Hollywood Reporter

The Golden Globe nominations were released on Monday, delivering one of the least woke lineups yet between the nomination of controversial film &#8220;Joker&#8221; for Best Picture and the snubbing of several female directors.
&#8220;No female directors were nominated by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for the 77th Golden Globe Awards,&#8221; reports <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/golden-globes-no-female-directors-nominated-2020-1260287">The Hollywood Reporter</a> (THR).
The list of nominees for Best Director includes:
<ol>
<li>Martin Scorsese for &#8220;The Irishman&#8221;</li>
<li>Sam Mendes for &#8220;1917&#8221;</li>
<li>Todd Phillips for &#8220;Joker&#8221;</li>
<li>Quentin Tarantino for &#8220;Once Upon A Time In Hollywood&#8221;</li>
<li>Bong Joon-ho for &#8220;Parasite&#8221;</li>
</ol>
The lady directors not included this year that some believed were snubbed by the Hollywood Foreign Press are:
<ol>
<li>Lulu Wang for &#8220;The Farewell&#8221;</li>
<li>Lorene Scafaria for &#8220;Hustlers&#8221;</li>
<li>Greta Gerwig for &#8220;Little Women&#8221;</li>
<li>Marielle Heller for &#8220;A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood&#8221;</li>
<li>Olivia Wilde for &#8220;Booksmart&#8221;</li>
</ol>
According to THR, no female director has been nominated for the top prize since Ava Duvernay in 2015 for &#8220;Selma.&#8221; Since then, the lack of female directors represented every year has prompted some A-list talent to speak out. In 2018, as Natalie Portman announced the nominees for Best Director, <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-no-excuse-not-nominating-female-directors-year-1163406">she prefaced her</a> intro by saying, &#8220;and here are all the male nominees.&#8221;
&#8220;The trend continued in 2019 when no female directors were nominated in the category. Alfonso Cuarón ultimately took home the honor in the all-male category for &#8216;Roma,&#8217; continued THR.  &#8220;Barbra Streisand remains the only woman to ever win the best director prize. She was the first female director to be nominated and won in 1984 for &#8216;Yentl,&#8217; and was again nominated in 1992 for &#8216;The Prince of Tides.'&#8221;
People online have since been expressing outrage over the lack of lady directors nominated this year.
&#8220;This year was great for movies but awards season is looking terrible cause they’re leaving aside all of the great films that made the year great to recognize white male directors who are making the worst movies of their careers,&#8221; said one Twitter user. 
&#8220;And so we have amazing female directors, resilient against the odds, triumphing artistically, telling new unique stories, and they never get recognized accordingly. meantime, all male directors need is a decent movie and they are heralded as geniuses,&#8221; said another user. 
&#8220;The [Globes] noms just broke my heart. I didn’t want to care, but Finding the people of color is an unfruitful scavenger hunt. All white, male directors. Whoever nominates needs the bubble they occupy popped ASAP. WHERE IS WHEN THEY SEE US? Oh right, they don’t,&#8221; tweeted Logan Browning. 
The biggest surprise of all is the presence of &#8220;Joker,&#8221; which earned for itself a Best Actor nomination (Joaquin Phoenix), Best Director nomination (Todd Phillips), and Best Picture nomination (Drama).
&#8220;Bombshell,&#8221; which chronicles Gretchen Carlson&#8217;s account of sexual harassment at the hands of former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes, received only an acting nomination for Charlize Theron, who portrayed Megyn Kelly.
Ava Duvernay&#8217;s Netflix series &#8220;When They See Us,&#8221; which chronicles the Central Park Five, also received no Golden Globe nominations, prompting severe backlash on social media.
&#8220;When they see us being snubbed by the Golden Globes is consistent with the way people can’t talk about our stories. It was &#8216;too hard to watch,&#8217; yet it is our reality. Proud of  [Ava] and the Exonerated 5. Never stop telling our stories,&#8221; said Aurora Perrineau.

US-ENTERTAINMENT-FILM-JOKER-POLICE

Golden Globe Nominations: All Male Directors, ‘Joker’ For Best Picture

Feminism

Golden Globes

The joke&#8217;s on those who thought they could sabotage a worthy movie at the box office through carefully crafted whisper campaigns about incel violence in unsuspecting theaters because &#8220;Joker&#8221; is now the top-grossing R-rated movie of all time.
&#8220;The Warner Bros. film has become the top-grossing R-rated film of all time, not adjusted for inflation, with a global box office haul of $788.1 million. It is expected to cross $800 million Friday or Saturday,&#8221; reports <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/box-office-joker-passes-deadpool-as-top-grossing-r-rated-pic-all-time-1250055">The Hollywood Reporter </a>(THR). &#8220;To date, Joker has earned $258.6 in North America and $529.5 million internationally,&#8221; continued THR. &#8220;It is expected to ultimately take in close to $900 million globally, with some thinking it has a shot at approaching $1 billion.&#8221;
The box office grosses surpass that of &#8220;Deadpool,&#8221; which surprised audiences and critics alike when it smashed records by earning $783 million worldwide, passing &#8220;The Matrix Reloaded.&#8221; &#8220;Deadpool 2&#8221; and &#8220;Deadpool&#8221; still hold the number 2 and number 3 spots, respectively, followed by &#8220;The Matrix Reloaded,&#8221; &#8220;It,&#8221; &#8220;Logan,&#8221; and &#8220;The Passion of the Christ.&#8221;
As reported by Emily Zanotti of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/51517/joker-movie-slammed-social-justice-warriors-emily-zanotti">The Daily Wire</a>, social justice warriors began taking swipes at the film weeks prior to its release for allegedly glorifying “incel violence” and giving such people a platform for empathy:
<blockquote>According to leftists on social media, “Joker,” which has yet to see a global release — meaning most average theatergoers are still waiting to see Joaquin Phoenix’s take on the iconic Arkham Asylum resident — the film glorifies “incel violence” and “paints mass murder as the logical conclusion” of a “neurodivergent white man being failed by the system.”
In other words – words regularly used by people who haven’t wasted money on a gender studies degree – “Joker” allows “incels,” or the movement of mostly young white men who consider themselves “involuntarily celibate,” to relate to a mainstream character, and explains – and even, they say, justifies – a descent into violence.</blockquote>
The controversy over the film became so intense that the film&#8217;s director, Todd Phillips, became rather aggressive in his defense, even going so far as to blame the criticism on far-left fanatics.
“I’m surprised,” Phillips told <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/joker-director-the-far-left-can-sound-like-the-far-right-when-it-suits-their-agenda">The Wrap</a>. “Isn’t it good to have these discussions? Isn’t it good to have these discussions about these movies, about violence? Why is that a bad thing if the movie does lead to a discourse about it?”
“I think it’s because outrage is a commodity. I think it’s something that has been a commodity for a while,” he added. “What’s outstanding to me in this discourse in this movie is how easily the far-left can sound like the far-right when it suits their agenda. It’s really been eye-opening for me.”
Actor Joaquin Phoenix even <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/joaquin-phoenix-flees-interview-when-questioned-if-paul-bois">walked out</a> of an interview at one point when a reporter questioned him if the film would inspire violence.
When the movie finally came out, critics then shifted the focus away from the film&#8217;s violence and more toward some of its alleged underlying messages about white male victimhood. Jeff Yang of CNN, for instance, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cnn-op-ed-joker-validates-white-male-resentment-that-made-trump-president">said the film affirms</a> the straight white male rage that led to President Trump’s success.
“While many reviewers have focused on [Arthur] Fleck as an ‘incel’ hero – his status as a sexless loner who turns to violence – the true nature of the movie’s appeal is actually broader: It’s an insidious validation of the white-male resentment that helped bring President Donald Trump to power,” wrote Yang after the film&#8217;s release. “‘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.”

57th New York Film Festival – “Joker” – Arrivals

‘Joker’ Becomes Top-Grossing R-Rated Film Of All Time Despite Sabotage Campaign

Chris Pratt is a sexist — or so the media would like you to believe.
In the latest smear against the openly Christian actor, The Independent ran a piece highlighting the supposed &#8220;backlash&#8221; to Pratt&#8217;s lighthearted take on his wife&#8217;s cooking disaster.
&#8220;People are calling Chris Pratt sexist after he mocked his wife&#8217;s cooking,&#8221; the headline read.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
People are calling Chris Pratt sexist after he mocked his wife&#39;s cooking <a href="https://t.co/nwJIe5qJ4m">https://t.co/nwJIe5qJ4m</a>
&mdash; The Independent (@Independent) <a href="https://twitter.com/Independent/status/1186693742117429249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
However, in reality, the claims of Pratt&#8217;s &#8220;sexism&#8221; seems to be a ginned-up controversy by the outlet, considering The Independent itself cited a mere five Twitter accounts with a handful of followers as purported evidence of the &#8220;backlash.&#8221; The posts critical of Pratt received a grand total of nine &#8220;likes&#8221; as of Wednesday afternoon — a day after The Independent published the piece. 
The &#8220;sexist&#8221; post from Pratt included a photo of a bagel-bite his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, attempted to cook by heating it in the microwave.
&#8220;Proud of my darling for trying to cook tonight,&#8221; the &#8220;Guardians of the Galaxy&#8221; star posted to Instagram. &#8220;Did it go well? No. No it did not. Not at all.&#8221;
&#8220;To quote Rocky Balboa, &#8216;It’s not how many times you get knocked down, it’s how many times you get up &#8230; and keep moving forward,'&#8221; Pratt joked. &#8220;As you can tell from the lump of coal in the center of the plate, this bagel bite never stood a chance.&#8221;
&#8220;I honestly simply cannot imagine what went wrong here,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Pretty simple. Microwave. 2 minutes. Maybe she thought it said 2 hours.&#8221;
&#8220;But I want to commend her for her effort. This is a big step babe. Proud of you,&#8221; the &#8220;Parks &amp; Rec&#8221; actor added.
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</a> 
 <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B30Kbh7J9Q6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">Proud of my darling for trying to cook tonight. Did it go well? No. No it did not. Not at all. To quote Rocky Balboa, “It’s not how many times you get knocked down, it’s how many times you get up&#8230; and keep moving forward.” As you can tell from the lump of coal in the center of the plate, this bagel bite never stood a chance. I honestly simply cannot imagine what went wrong here. Pretty simple. Microwave. 2 minutes. Maybe she thought it said 2 hours. But I want to commend her for her effort. This is a big step babe. Proud of you.</a>
<p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/prattprattpratt/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px;" target="_blank"> chris pratt</a> (@prattprattpratt) on <time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime="2019-10-19T21:34:34+00:00">Oct 19, 2019 at 2:34pm PDT</time>
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Moreover, Schwarzenegger jokingly <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B30Kbh7J9Q6/?igshid=vzedwy9e2aab">responded</a> to the post, &#8220;Looks like my plan to just have you do the cooking is working out very well.&#8221; The newlywed doesn&#8217;t sound too offended, either, just like every other (sane) person.
Pratt&#8217;s &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tv-guide-warns-readers-about-chris-pratts-james-barrett">problematic</a>&#8221; lifestyle, which includes the absolute horror of attending a traditional Christian church, hunting, and wearing pro-America t-shirts, has opened him to repeated media hits.
In July, for example, Yahoo! wrote a &#8220;<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/amphtml/entertainment/why-people-have-an-issue-with-chris-pratts-tshirt-142825294.html">story</a>&#8221; about Pratt wearing a &#8220;Don&#8217;t Tread On Me&#8221; T-shirt, which claimed the shirt featured a &#8220;controversial symbol&#8221; and highlighted Pratt&#8217;s critics.
As previously outlined by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chris-pratt-criticized-wearing-white-supremacist-t-amanda-prestigiacomo">The Daily Wire</a>, the imagery on the shirt is basically a version of the Revolutionary War-era Gadsden flag, which was recently re-popularized by small government conservatives of the Tea Party movement. Plainly put, it has no racial connection. Still, Yahoo! included a Twitter user claiming symbol is a &#8220;white supremacist dogwhistle.&#8221;
Moreover, last December, TV Guide wrote a hit-piece on Pratt &#8220;warning its readers about his &#8216;<a href="https://www.tvguide.com/news/chris-pratt-problematic/">problematic life offscreen&#8217;</a> that is sure to offend their (presumably left-wing) sensibilities, including that he once mocked &#8216;outrage culture,'&#8221; <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tv-guide-warns-readers-about-chris-pratts-james-barrett">The Daily Wire</a> reported at the time.
One of the problematic aspects of Pratt is that he hunts and eats lamb, TV Guide&#8217;s Kaitlyn Thomas complained.
&#8220;Pratt, an avid hunter who has often spoken about his love of hunting, currently raises lambs on his farm,&#8221; she wrote. &#8220;The enthusiastic tone he took when speaking about &#8216;eating fresh farm-to-table lamb&#8217; in an Instagram video earlier this year — &#8216;They are the happiest lambs on the planet, they are so sweet and then one day they wake up dead and they’re in my freezer&#8217; — sparked backlash from a number of fans, and not just those who are vegetarians or vegans. The next day, Pratt posted a photo of several pieces of fresh lamb meat and even compared said lamb’s death to something as easy or trivial as &#8216;unplugging a TV.'&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tv-guide-warns-readers-about-chris-pratts-james-barrett">TV Guide Warns Readers About Chris Pratt’s ‘Problematic’ Offscreen Life</a>
H/t <a href="https://twitchy.com/sarahd-313035/2019/10/22/you-know-the-drill-the-independent-tries-to-stir-up-outrage-over-chris-pratt-joking-about-his-wifes-cooking-comes-up-pathetically-short/">Twitchy</a>

Chris Pratt

Media Push Notion Chris Pratt Is ‘Sexist’ After Joke About Wife’s Cooking. Nope.

Sexism

This review contains no spoilers.
There’s been a lot of digital ink spilled over the new film Joker, but what’s fascinating to me about it is how much of what the critics said is simply absurd. To be sure, artistic works, like life itself, are open to interpretation, but in both cases — works and life — you’ve got to stick to the facts to get at the truth.
Joker is, for all intents and purposes, a comic book remake of the 1976 Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driver. It’s the story of a troubled loner’s descent into violence. I should say up front that I don’t like comic book movies very much and I didn’t like Taxi Driver very much, so I wasn’t the film’s most sympathetic audience. That said, I found Joker stylish, watchable, and well-done with some enriching plot ambiguities. I also found it tonally monotonous and overly derivative.
But the panic the film set off among leftist critics may be the most interesting thing about the movie. To be sure, the film’s talented director Todd Phillips taunted the leftist Outrage Beast when he gave an interview criticizing the humorlessness of woke culture. The left responded by being humorlessly woke, proving the guy’s point. After that, Phillips had a target on his back.
But it was the left’s political reaction to the movie itself that was so strangely (or maybe not so strangely) off base. “It&#8217;s an insidious validation of the white-male resentment that helped bring President Donald Trump to power,” said Jeff Yang of CNN. Anti-Trumper Max Boot wrote a WaPo piece also linking Joker to Trump and headlined, “‘Joker’ nails the nihilism and opportunism of populist firebrands.”
And in a thoroughly unhinged rant, Richard Brody of The New Yorker called the film “a blatant and brazen distortion of the most substantial historical elements at which it winks. &#8216;Joker&#8217; is the comic-book Green Book, twisting history for the sake of a yarn.”
That last review really is the giveaway. Because, with some caveats (the movie doesn’t deal with race at all), the film’s historical perspective is pretty damned accurate. And that perspective condemns the left where it stands.
No matter how you feel about the movie’s protagonist, the one thing Joker is not is a Trump voter. He’s a leftist: a self-pitying victim; a hater of the rich; a man who takes no responsibility for his own actions but instead blames the unfairness of society. In fact, all in all, the movie is a thoroughly justifiable satire of leftist talking points. It is not — like the excellent Dark Knight trilogy — a philosophical kick in the groin to leftism in general. But it does hold the mirror up to leftist culture — and the image in the glass is not pretty.
The Gotham of the movie is late 1970’s New York, a toilet of pornography and violence. I lived there. I remember it. It was, like today’s crap-strewn and disintegrating San Francisco, a city the left made. A city that put the tender loving care of criminals above the safety of decent citizens. A city that would not get the homeless off its streets. A city that would not restrict or condemn pornography and prostitution on its main thoroughfares. Its lawmen were handcuffed by left-wing Supreme Court decisions that made it harder to investigate and prosecute the bad guys. And journalists were silenced by racial “sensitivity” because a lot of the people committing the crimes were black and no one wanted to seem racist.
So the city went to hell. Leftist hell.
That’s where Joker takes place: Leftist hell. And because Gotham’s left-wing government does not really care about treating real problems like mental illness, Joker goes nuts.
The movie does depict the rich as insensitive louts. If anyone can be said to represent Donald Trump in the film, it’s millionaire Thomas Wayne, Batman’s father. But the people’s inchoate rage and hatred against the wealthy literally turn them into a mob of clowns. And if “mob of clowns” is not a metaphor for today’s left, I don’t know what is.
No wonder the leftist critics feared this film. It’s a reminder of who leftists are and what they do when you give them power. You can watch it and know everything you need to know about them — and it’s cheaper and safer than a trip to San Francisco.

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