‘The People’s Joker’ Blu-Ray Review – A Subversive, Personal Recontextualization Of Comic Book Archetypes

This revolutionary DIY parody film and hilarious reimagining of the classic autobiographical coming-of-age story follows an unconfident, closeted trans girl as she moves to Gotham City to make it big as a comedian by joining the cast of UCB Live – a government-sanctioned late night sketch show in a world where comedy has been outlawed. As mainstream success eludes our heroine, leading her to unite with a ragtag team of rejects, misfits, and a certain love interest named Mister J, “Joker the Harlequin” is born again as a confident (and psychotic) joker on a collision course with the city’s fascist caped crusader. Vats of feminizing chemicals, sexy cartoon interludes, scarecrow psychiatrists, CGI Lorne Michaels, and psychedelic gender dysphoria all play supporting roles. Helmed by writer/director/editor/star Vera Drew and using her own life experiences as a basis for the film, THE PEOPLE’S JOKER is a deeply personal journey that’s as much documentary as it is parody.

THE PEOPLE’S JOKER features a superhero-sized cast of celebrated comedic talent in both voice and live action roles behind the vibrant kaleidoscope of characters that lampoon the iconic heroes and villains of the DC comics’ world, featuring cameos from comedy multi-hyphenate Tim Heidecker, award-winning actor Bob Odenkirk, Maria Bamford (Netflix’s Big Mouth, Adult Swim’s Teenage Euthanasia), and Scott Aukerman (Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis co-creator and host of the Comedy Bang! Bang! podcast), with Vera Drew, Lynn Downey (Amazon Prime Video’s Daisy Jones & The Six), Nathan Faustyn (SADDLED), and Kane Distler, in his film debut, making up the film’s core cast. With her own life as a trans woman and artist motivating the film’s story and theme, the script was co-written by close creative collaborator Bri LeRose (Netflix’s Magic for Humans and Chad & JT Go Deep).

For in-depth thoughts on The People’s Joker, please see my colleague Cody Allen’s review from its original theatrical release here. 

Video Quality

The People’s Joker makes its Blu-Ray debut with a mesmerizing 1080p video presentation in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio that showcases the visually dynamic cinematography well. The utilization of mixed media sources combined with the heightened production design and DIY costumes and makeup allow for clear textural details. Every shot is like a chaotic webpage you want to browse for easter eggs. This film feels firmly from the mind of someone who grew up in the digital age, and this transitions over to the aesthetic of the experience. 

The film is extremely colorful and hypersaturated for creative effect. The hues are purposefully garish as they radiate off the screen. The flesh tones are natural with a magnificent amount of texture present due to the makeup. The image is clean with the nuanced palette emanating off the screen. The animated sojourns look as nice in HD as the source will allow. Black levels avoid most signs of banding outside a few fleeting moments that bring forth these limitations. Highlights are crisp without veering into blooming. The presentation shows off an impressive depth of field, even if practical locales are virtually nonexistent. Overall this Blu-Ray is a particularly favorable representation of this movie that should please fans. 

Audio Quality

Altered Innocence gives this Blu-Ray a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that captures the mania of this journey to perfection. Dialogue is the centerpiece of this experience as it comes through crisp and clear without being drowned out by any competing elements. Environmental sounds of each space engage the surround speakers in a notable way. As the characters move throughout their journey, there are some distinct ambient details that define the setting. 

The creative mix sounds excellent here as it both captures the breadth of the space and harnesses the lunacy of the material when necessary. The music is complementary and well-balanced while maintaining its fidelity. There are key moments that deliver some nice texture to the proceedings. The audio track provides a memorable experience full of nuances that bring this narrative to life exactly how it was intended. The label has treated this one quite well. Optional English SDH and Spanish subtitles are provided. 

Special Features

• Menu: We would not normally list a menu as a special feature, but Vera Drew filmed a very special menu screen that she claims can go up to 20 minutes (we did not time it) where she riffs on various subjects and even reads some legal letters she received attempting to bar the movie. You cannot pause the menu, but you can fast-forward and rewind if you start it and want to return to it in the future. 

• Audio Commentaries: An array of commentary tracks are provided in which the creative team provides some terrific background to the production of the film while also sharing some personal anecdotes that are very entertaining. 

• • Audio Commentary #1: Director Vera Drew

• • Audio Commentary #2: Director Vera Drew and Actor Nathan Faustyn

• • Audio Commentary #3: Assorted Cast & Crew (20+ participants)

• A Discussion with Director Vera Drew, Willow Catelyn Maclay, and Caden Mark Gardner: A 47-minute conversation between the filmmaker and two film critics that delves into Drew’s relationship to the Joker character, influences on her filmmaking, her attempts to not make the movie overtly political, her relationship to other current groundbreaking filmmakers, the release of the film into the world, and more. 

• Queebso: There are two TV shows from the film shown in an expanded form with introductions from the creative figures. 

• • Suicide Cop Pilot (29:59)

• • Serve The Date (5:30)

• Behind-The-Scenes Gallery (4:45)

• Anatomy of a Scene Featurette: An 11-minute piece in which Drew breaks down all of the work that went into specific scenes in the film from animatic to finished form. 

• Trailers: This disc provides the Theatrical Trailer (1:34) for The People’s Joker. There are also trailers provided for The Wild Boys, She Is Conann, A Dim Valley, and Dressed In Blue.  

• Booklet: A multi-page booklet featuring an essay from Vera Drew is provided. 

Final Thoughts

The People’s Joker is an utterly unique and ambitious recontextualization of classic comic book lore to serve an intensely personal story. Cynical types may say that the film is trying to capitalize on popular IP to get more eyeballs on what might otherwise be an easy story to ignore. There may be a kernel of truth to this, but it is also true that this character has always been a symbol greater than that on the written page. This combination of character and personal examination could not work better. Vera Drew made something seemingly impossible here, and we cannot wait to see where she goes from here. Altered Innocence has released a Blu-Ray featuring a fantastic A/V presentation and an overwhelming amount of special features. Recommended 

The People’s Joker will be available to purchase on Standard Edition Blu-Ray or with a Limited Edition Slipcover exclusively through Diabolik DVD on August 13, 2024. 

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Altered Innocence and MVD Entertainment have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.