Honestly, this is not meant to be a contrarian take: this movie is really, really good. Maybe even great. 

We’re all accustomed to standing back from the dregs of the super-hero genre and just complaining about how oppressively mediocre and creatively discouraging they all are. But what do we really want these super-hero movies to be, more than just not what they are now? Do we really have any idea? With this movie and its predecessor, Todd Phillips, of all people, has answered that prompt with two genuinely adventurous, artistically ambitious aberrations that show us a wholly different possibility for this genre. Imperfect as they are.

I can see why audiences hated this movie. It’s not a super-heroic action feast. It’s also weird and not at all what anyone who’s into “Deadpool & Wolverine” would expect. What it is is a gamble. It’s a bet that making a movie about the Joker can just be a starting point, and that everything can just unfold organically from there. So forget virtually all of the Batman lore that still clung to the first “Joker” movie. This one just goes its own way, follows its own path and sees where everything leads us. And it arrives at some unexpected places—some honestly wonderful musical performances from both its terrific leads—and a legitimately unexpected conclusion that doubles down on how little it cares about canon or continuity or what have you. What’s so thrilling about this movie is that it feels almost zero obligation to its franchise forbears. This is not an “episode” in a larger legacy or a corporate marketing plan. It’s an auteuristic expression.

Audiences aside, what bewilders me is how few critics recognized this. Maybe they were just offended by the idea that Phillips would take a silly comic book character to such self-serious depths—that’s something reserved for more legitimate filmmakers and subject matters. I honestly think no one wanted to actually see this movie for the risk that it took. But I predict that in a decade people will have come around to it. Like it or not, this is an artistic success.