Directed by Todd Phillips, Joker is regarded as DC’s most psychologically thrilling film yet. This origin story with Joaquin Phoenix involved a standalone plot that none of the previous movies could be related to. With its melancholy representation of a declining city, Joker provided a grim image of the internal and external struggles of all Gotham citizens.
The film was released on October 4th, 2019, in the United States and collected almost 1.074 billion dollars globally through the Box office. The plot of the DC movie revolves around Arthur Fleck, a clown that has set his heart on becoming a successful stand-up comedian one day. As optimistic as he is, all his hopes are washed down the drain as life throws only failures at him. Arthur eventually turns to violence and nihilism.
The Cast members of Joker consist of great actors like Robert De Niro, Frances Conroy, Zazie Beetz, and Brett Cullen. Since many adaptations of the popular DC villain already existed, Joaquin and Todd Phillips felt there wasn’t a need for a new movie on the character. What made them change their mind was the concept of a completely different and more grounded Joker.
Seeing that there was no specific way Joker was supposed to be, the director took this opportunity to experiment with his creative freedom and produced what could only be called a masterpiece from the DC series. The moody, desaturated Gotham, the sensitive dialogues, and the skilled acting from Phoenix all added up to create one solid hit film.
Joker: Filming Locations of Gotham City
Filming for Joker began in September 2018 in New York City. Most of the depictions of Gotham City are just gritty versions of NYC and New Jersey.
Subway Scenes – Brooklyn & Bronx
Subways are almost always associated with shady things, but this time, subways marked the changing point for Arthur. The scenes where Arthur is using the subway to travel, as well as the protests at the stations, all of these scenes were filmed in various subway stations all over Brooklyn and the Bronx.
These include the 18th Avenue Station and The Bedford Park Boulevard Station. A few scenes were also filmed in the abandoned Lower level of the 9th Avenue subway station. Although the trains were old, they fit right into the movie’s image since it was set in the 20th century.
Newark, Jersey City
Almost half of the movie’s scenes were shot in Newark since the city is still predominantly going through development. Its vintage architecture provided a perfect filming location for various scenes. These include the scene where Joker holds out a sign but is bullied by teenagers. His workplace lies right on one of the main streets. Places like Newark Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard were shut down from September to November for the filming of the scenes.
The place also hosts the Paramount Theatre and the Loew’s Jersey Theatre. These areas are significant because this is the place where Thomas Wayne and his wife are killed by one of the protestors in the dark alley beside the theatre.
Hudson County Superior Court in New Jersey served as the filming spot for Thomas Wayne’s speeches at Wayne Hall and hosted the scene where Arthur meets with him to inform him that he could be his child. Most of the street scenes were filmed in New Jersey. The ending scene where Joker stands on top of a car and makes a bloody smile is filmed at Washington Street, Newark, New Jersey.
Stair Dance Scene – The Bronx
The producers of Joker claimed that one of the hardest scenes to film was the stair scene since people would keep interrupting the shoot. This took place at 1150 Anderson Ave, which lies between two huge buildings in The Bronx. The locals were surprised that such an abandoned alley could become so popular after the release of the Film.
Joker Filming location（仮）
メモ的な。後でMAPでマークします pic.twitter.com/LI3gMgYnNe— IFT (@akaya2099) April 6, 2019
Arkham State Hospital – Brooklyn
What is the Arkham State Hospital in the movies is actually an Annex building of the Brooklyn Army Terminal, which is located at Sunset Park, NYC. Although the exteriors are of the terminal, the interior shots of Arkham state hospital were mostly filmed at Metropolitan Hospital, which is situated in East Harlem. The hospital later becomes a high-security prison for villains of Gotham City.
Murray’s Talk Show Set – Brooklyn
The place where Murray invites Arthur on his talk show was filmed at Steiner Studios, Brooklyn, NYC. The studio is known for being the location where many movies were shot; these include Men In Black 3, Brooklyn’s Finest, When In Rome, and many others.
Other places that were seen once or twice in the movie are the Gotham Savings Bank, which is located in the Financial District of NYC, West Side Highway, NYC, where Ha Ha’s Talent Booking is situated, and the donut shop which we see in the movie is at 3396 Jerome Avenue, The Bronx.
