"Joker" - Why so serious? (with spoilers)

Pop Culture Double Date

When "Joker" debuted in Venice, the word was that Todd Phillips had sneakily remade "Taxi Driver" as a comic book movie. Then just weeks later, the film was condemned as boring, nihilistic and provocative for its own sake. So who's right here? Does "Joker" transcend its comic book origins? Has Joaquin Phoenix delivered a performance to dethrone Heath Ledger's iconic turn as the Crown Prince of Crime? Is this movie dangerous? Does the transformation of Arthur Fleck into the Joker ring true? Join us as we chew over these and other big questions about one of the year's most strangely controversial films.