The majority of complaints against `Joker` argued the film should've received an age 18 rating due to `violence and tone,` while a select few said the BBFC should've banned the movie altogether. The BBFC defended the age 15 rating for `Joker` because the film `doesn't dwell on the infliction of pain or injury in a manner that requires an 18.`
The decrease in complaints suggests U.K. audiences are getting less bothered by movie violence and darker tones. Just look at Christopher Nolan's `The Dark Knight,` which received a grand total of 364 complaints back in 2008. Those complaints slammed the BBFC for giving `The Dark Knight` an age 12 rating. Perhaps moviegoers are becoming more accustomed to violence, or maybe it's just that Heath Ledger's Joker is far more terrifying than Joaquin Phoenix's Joker.
`Isn't it a good thing to put real-world implications on violence?` Phillips asked the audience at last year's New York Film Festival. `Isn't that a good thing to take away the cartoon element of violence that we've become so immune to? So I was a little surprised when it turns into that direction, that it seems irresponsible because to me it seems actually very responsible to make it feel real and make it that weight.`
