He who laughs last, laughs best, right? That’s probably the case for director Todd Phillips, whose much-anticipated “Joker” had perhaps the most contentious film festival premiere in recent memory. While comic book fans were excited to see an infamous—and, let’s face it, beloved—character receive a prestige treatment, not everyone regarded “Joker” as a joyful combination of populist and auteurist filmmaking. Our own Jessica Kiang was a little skeptical, praising the film while also half-seriously noting that it’s the kind of movie that may inspire “background checks and a mandatory three-day waiting period” at movie theaters across the country.
READ MORE: Here are our 15 must-see movies at the 2019 Venice Film Festival
But if you’ve been wondering just how seriously to take “Joker” as both a prestige movie and an award season contender, things just got a little more complicated. The Venice Film Festival announced this afternoon that “Joker” had received the prestigious Leone d’Oro, or the Golden Lion for Best Film, from the Venice jury. Finishing in second with the Leone d’Argento (Silver Lion) was Roman Polanski‘s “An Officer and a Spy,” another film with its fair share of controversy. With this victory, “Joker” joins a list of recent Leone d’Oro winners that includes “Roma,” “From Afar,” and, of course, “A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence.”
One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong.
There will be plenty of time in the weeks to come to dissect what this means for award season—and, perhaps, what this might mean for the Warner Bros. comic book universe as a whole—but for now, here’s the ist of in-competition winners. You can check out the full list of winners on the Venice Film Festival website, but here are the winners in the major categories.
Golden Lion
“Joker,” Todd Phillips
Grand Jury Prize
“An Officer and a Spy,” Roman Polanski
Silver Lion for Best Director
Roy Andersson, “About Endlessness”
Volpi Cup for Best Actress
Ariane Ascaride, “Gloria Mundi”
Volpi Cup for Best Actor
Luca Marinelli, “Martin Eden”
Best Screenplay
“No. 7 Cherry Lane,” Yonfan
Special Jury Prize
“The Mafia Is No Longer What It Used to Be,” Franco Maresco
Click here to read more of our coverage from the 2019 edition of the Venice Film Festival.
