WHO’S JOKING NOW, LEBANON?

                                                                                      Photograph by Samer Sayegh @sam.onthe.cam

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Red. White. Green. These are the colours of Joaquin Phoenix’s make-up in his powerful performance as the Joker; but it is not only the modern archetype of the evil clown attire. It has also become an emotive expression of the Lebanese downtrodden. An exaggerated sardonic red grin, painted on chalk-white skin and green triangles on the cheeks have turned those who wear this make up into potential threats in disguise.

 

Country-wide protests are led by Lebanon’s least privileged and oppressed individuals, those who are suffering from the country’s failure to provide basic services. Lebanon’s long-standing endemic corruption, along with imposed taxes, has led to a nation-wide outbreak of revolt. Young demonstrators are camouflaging as one, protesting in punchy clown-makeup. It is a look emblematic of despair, freedom and justice for our times.

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“The make-up of the Joker has become a metaphor, an evocative expression of the dispossessed.”

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Because of the way clowns are often maliciously portrayed in comic book history and cinema, it comes as no surprise that this make-up is perceived as extremely disturbing; especially in Lebanon’s crowd of protesters, where one’s own individuality is being masked by the collective use of one creepy image; the Joker.

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The movie’s mentally unstable loner whose name is Arthur Fleck - both good and ill-natured, now influences the youth to express their grievances in a way that speaks to the world through contemporary pop culture make-up references. Fleck is a victim of childhood abuse, and as an adult is in pursuit of a career in comedy. ‘The Joker’ is his stage name. The government does not provide the Joker with the support he so needs, shutting down his counselling infrastructure, the maddened character decides in desperation to take revenge on the greedy and insensitive people in power that have disregarded him for so long.

 

This speaks to the Lebanese who are experiencing a similar state of subjection and disillusionment. Creepy red grins and ghostly pallors are becoming images of freedom. The story of the Joker is leading compatriots question their own unhappiness.

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                                                                           Photograph by Alain El Khoury

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“The Joker movie was released at the point when Lebanese people reached a tipping point. Many events in October led us to roam the streets in protest, and many say that the Joker movie had an igniting factor,” claims 23 year old Jackie Deeb, a Lebanese Political Studies graduate and young cosplayer. Jackie believes that her use of make-up gives her “a sense of empowerment and an outlet of creativity.” She is one of the many young demonstrators marching in Beirut made up as the character. “The film’s audience in Lebanon mainly consisted of Gen-Z. For many of us it was legitimate to use the Joker in a time of desperation invoking the character through his disquieting make-up.”

 

Art director Cynthia Aboujaoude, whose portrait of herself wearing Joker make-up in Lebanon has gone viral online, says, “It felt right as The Joker. My intentions were only to express my feelings without the need to speak to anyone! It was the one and only thing I thought I could do to get a message out.”

 

With the dystopian Gotham City a symbol for Lebanon, and the Joker an emblem for those who protest its government; the make-up too has become a metaphor, an evocative expression of the dispossessed. It’s the desperate, revolting face of youth demanding a promising future in their own country. Arthur Fleck, you’re clearly not alone.