As counterintuitive as it may sound, the only message I got from the the masterpiece was a positive one!
In my humble opinion, the scriptwriter is knowledgeable to some extent when it comes to mental health vs brain injury outcomes. More precisely, the difference between "psychopaths" (the most severe mental disorder which belongs to the Cluster B classification) and the criminals who suffer from a brain injury because of a physical abuse aggravated by a psychological one. In our sample, the domestic violence was inflicted by the main character own mother-- a tormented & lost soul.
Before becoming the joker, the hero of the movie proved several times he was anything but heartless and devoid of empathy (which is one of the hallmark attributes of psychopaths, along with their conscious manipulation, exploitation and being intentional in causing harm):
1. In the train with a little boy, 2. How he was taking care of his sick mother and perpetrator, 3. When talking to the guy he was thinking was his father in the bathroom, 4. His passion and sparkling eyes when something is resonating with his core part, 5. How he let his friend leave his house without any problem because this one has always been good to him, etc...
He proved he could be aware so much of his condition and of the free cruelty in the world... He needed to be "seen" and to feel his "worth"... If anyone could have provided him with some real attention and treated his brain damage, he could easily have been saved... This is personally giving me HOPE đź’™
The verbal and psychological abuse might be the turning point to becoming the joker since it was stipulated by many studies it could trigger changes in the brain as well!
In any case, I believe it is crucial for the global awareness to be elevaled so that we don't start calling everybody a "psychopath" (frequently described as “cold-hearted” and calculating).
Those sources could be interesting:
https://counsellingresource.com/features/2012/01/24/psychopathy-everywhere/
https://counsellingresource.com/features/2010/06/02/dexter-psychopaths/
