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‘Joker’ trailer: Joaquin Phoenix is scarily good as the deranged villain

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“I used to think my life was a tragedy, but now I realize it’s a comedy.”

So says Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker in the new origin movie by Todd Phillips and Warner Bros., which released a teaser trailer Wednesday after previewing it at CinemaCon on Tuesday night.

The “Joker” trailer paints a dark picture of Gotham City and of Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck as it charts his descent into the Joker’s madness. With touches of “Taxi Driver” and even a quick shot of Robert De Niro, we see Arthur’s odd relationship with his mother laying the groundwork for a troubled life.

Joaquin Phoenix stars in “Joker,” with Robert De Niro and Zazie Beetz.

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We also see him working in the clown costume that’s the normal incarnation of the Joker’s twisted look.

“My mother always tells me to smile and put on a happy face,” he says. “She told me I had a purpose to bring laughter and joy to the world.”

Hard to do when the world is giving you a beat-down at every turn.

Watch it now — it’s good. The movie comes out Oct. 4.

cdz@latimes.com

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