Joker has officially cracked the top ten movies of all time on IMDB. This is a rather amazing accomplishment, to say the very least of it, for a wide variety of reasons. Not the least of which has to do with the company that the DC Comics adaptation is in.
Currently, Joker is positioned at number nine on the chart, with an average 8.8 rating. Here’s a full breakdown of the top ten.
1. Shawshank Redemption 9.2
2. The Godfather 9.1
3. The Godfather: Part II 9
4. Dark Knight 9
5. 12 Angry Men 8.9
6. Schindler’s List 8.9
7. Return of the King 8.9
8. Pulp Fiction 8.9
9. Joker 8.8
10. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 8.8
As of this writing, Joker has more than 218,000 user ratings, which is a sizable number. It’s also interesting to point out that this is the second DC movie to crack the top ten, with Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight sitting comfortably at number four. That is, in large part, thanks to Heath Ledger’s iconic take on the Joker. Now, it seems, Joaquin Phoenix is starting to cement his place in the history books for his portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime as well.
But IMDB doesn’t tell the whole story here. Joker has been undoubtedly controversial. Not just because there were concerns the film would spark real-world violence, due to its sympathetic view of the central character, a violent, mentally ill murderer, but critics remain divided on it. Over on Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 69 percent approval rating from critics. Though, the audience rating sits at a very solid 90 percent.
The main takeaway here is that the film, directed by Todd Phillips, is working for moviegoers. Aside from the online response, the DC adaptation has already grossed nearly $350 million at the box office, working against a reported $55 million budget. That includes a $96 million opening weekend take, which was good enough to overtake Venom for the all-time October opening weekend record.
With numbers like that, one has to wonder, is a sequel possible? At the very least, Phoenix seems somewhat open to the idea.
“You know, I wouldn’t have thought about this as my dream role. But now, honestly, I can’t stop thinking about it,” Phoenix said in a recent interview with Peter Travers. “I talked to Todd a lot about what else we might be able to do, in general, just to work together, but also specifically, if there’s something else we can do with Joker that might be interesting.”
Here’s the official synopsis for Joker.
“Joker” centers around the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone story not seen before on the big screen. Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck (Phoenix), a man disregarded by society, is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.”
So what do you think? Does Joker deserve to stand alongside movies like Pulp Fiction and The Godfather? Sound off in the comments!
