Moving Pictures says that a movie is made three separate times. Once by the screenwriter, the second time by the director and crew. And finally lastly by the editor in post-production. (Sharman 163) Editors have a lot of control over the final product of a movie. There is a ratio in movie making called the shooting ratio. This ratio is the number of hours of shot vs the amount actually used. It has evolved from a 10:1 ratio to around a 308:1 ratio. Joker’s editing is very conventionally safe. There are no ruptures, mistakes, or shenanigans when it comes to this film’s editing. It’s serviceable and kinda generic when compared to other dramas. It is exactly what you expect from a drama, but nothing like you would expect from a superhero film. This is because of a theme surrounding my appreciation of this film. It’s a drama film first, a superhero film second
There is this scene about halfway through the movie where Arthur is being harassed by three guys in the subway. There is a segment in that scene where Arthur is pushed onto the ground and is getting kicked repeatedly. The lights in the subway flicker as Arthur is being beaten, almost like his lights are about to be blacked out. Arthur then pulls a gun on the three guys and shoots them, illuminating the dark subway. After that, the lights in the subway never flicker again in that scene.
Moving Pictures says that “The soundscape around us shapes our understanding of the world, becoming its own meaningful context for every other sense perception.” (Shaman 190) The original score of Joker is perfect for the film. The score was nominated and won many awards for best original score in 2019. The best scene of the film. The interview with Murray uses music impressively. The shot of the close-up of Arthur telling Murray that he is awful is met with no music, it’s dead silent besides Arthur’s dialogue. It’s tense, without the music telling you it’s tense because there is no music. Your understanding of Arthur thought the film is informing you that something is about to happen. Immediately following that sense of uh oh, the music kicks back in and is ramping up higher and higher. The scene reaching its climax with one of the most extreme sounds known to man, a gunshot.