Comparing & Contrasting Logan and Joker

by Joshua Hess

Logan and Joker are arguably the most emotionally impactful and expertly written comic book movies ever made. Within these films lie heart wrenching dialogue, beautiful cinematography, and some of the greatest acting that I have experienced in a theater setting. These are two of my favorite films of all time, considering I have a love for both comic books and movies. I figured it has been awhile since I last posted on this site, (college & work, sorry), and because I had recently discussed both of these films with my long time friend and co-writer Jared Kluttz, I decided I would go back through these films and figure out how these dark and downright depressing comic book films differ and how alike they are. I strongly suggest watching these movies before reading this article, as they absolutely warrant a watch and should be viewed with a clear mind and no spoilers beforehand.  

Similarities

The atmosphere that these films suck you into feels apocalyptic and chaotic. In Logan, the apocalyptic feeling stems from the fact that the X-Men do not exist anymore because most (if not all of them) have been killed, leaving the only survivors being Logan and Professor Charles Xavier. These characters feel as though they are not accepted in this time, as if they are outcasts in this reality.

You can't mention outcast without thinking of Arthur Fleck, either. Arthur is the definition of outcast. He lives with his mom in a shoddy apartment in a very trashy (literally) area of Gotham. The apocalyptic feeling is again present here due to the bleak color palette and the literal mounds of garbage that can be seen lining the city streets. It's as if this is a horrible alternate reality from the DC world we know, but one that isn't far off from real life, either.

Both of these films depict the death of a parental figure; with Logan's being more figurative than literal. With Joker, Arthur's mother is killed (although it is Arthur that commits the murder, but more on that in the Differences section), and in Logan it is Xavier that dies. I could draw the similarity that both parents are killed due to a "dark side" of the main character, but that might be a bit of a stretch considering Xavier was killed by a clone of Logan and Arthur just gave in to his psychotic and murderous tendencies.

Speaking of murder, both films feature the main characters committing the worst sin in the Bible. Again, I'll touch more on these in the Differences section, but yes, in both of these films the main characters break bad and kill whomever stands in their way, albeit they are for vastly different reasons.

Differences

I'd like to steer away from the obvious differences, such as one is Marvel one is DC, or one is in the 90's and the other is in the near future. Instead, I want to contrast the main ideas and the messages of these films, because I feel like they both have similar messaging. 

One difference that I briefly mentioned earlier is the way that the parental figures are killed. In Joker, Arthur kills his mother, but in Logan, an evil clone of Wolverine known as X-24. As I also mentioned, X-24 is a dark version of Logan, which adds that Joker is the dark side of Arthur Fleck. Arguably, the moment that Joker is fully unleashed is the moment that Arthur smothers his mother to death in his hospital bed. (Side thought: Arthur's mother and Xavier are both killed in a bed, just food for thought.)

Another difference I mentioned was murder. In Logan, the killings feel necessary in a way. This is just the way that Wolverine has always dealt with his adversaries, by showing them their guts with his claws. Wolverine is like a blood thirsty animal, but he has a deeper, emotional side to him that makes him believable and relatable. For Arthur, however, each kill carries weight. Each murder adds to the heavy emotional and mental baggage that this character carries. The fact that he is able to literally dance each kill off is downright bone-chilling and creepy. Arthur only kills when someone has wronged him, but Logan kills whenever someone is blocking his goal.

Of course the main differences would be the endings. Logan is killed at the end of his film, while Arthur lives on, presumably accepting the darkness that is the Joker and continuing his killing spree. In a way, it is almost as if Arthur is killed in this movie, while Joker lives on and takes over Arthur's mind. Something to think about, reader.

I believe that covers everything that I felt like talking about. Did you enjoy this article? Let me know!