Joker: Folie á Deux
The sequel we weren't expecting
Five years have passed since Joker became an unexpected box-office hit. It managed to tap into the political zeitgeist at the time holding a mirror to issues such as mental illness and gun violence. The film also came with memorable scenes from Joker’s bathroom dance, Randall’s death, and Murray Franklin being shot to death on his television show. The bloody smile that Joker smeared across his face at the end of that film was iconic, as we watched a villain being born in front of our eyes.
So, in 2024, director Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix have teamed up again to deliver us with Joker: Folie á Deux. There was a reason to feel optimistic about seeing a worthy sequel if you saw the trailer. Sadly, looks can be deceiving. Attention has been given to this film being a musical. This film has a lot of musical numbers that Phoenix and Lady Gaga sing throughout the film. So, it looks like Phillips has created a musical.
This might go some way to explain the negative reviews the film has received online. Currently, Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 33% per cent rating. However, there are other critics who have seen the film and praised it, believing it to be an improvement on Joker. So, if you have a curious sensibility like me, you took the risk and decided to see the film for yourself.
In Folie á Deux, we find Arthur Fleck (Phoenix) locked up at Arkham State Hospital as he waits to stand trial for the crimes he committed. During his imprisonment, Fleck meets Harleen ‘Lee’ Quinzel (Gaga) whom he strikes up a relationship. The film then plays a delicate balancing act between telling the story of Lee and Fleck’s romance, the courtroom drama to determine Fleck’s guilt and the musical numbers peppered throughout the film to help move the story along.
There is no criticism of the acting. Phoenix does a fantastic job of reprising his role as Fleck and Joker and Gaga brilliantly portrays Lee as a woman infatuated with Joker. The film has beautiful shots with silhouetted images of Lee in front of the moon and the stage lights revealing Joker as two memorable moments. It even matches the aesthetics and tone of the first film to make it look and feel like the second instalment in this story. However, there are no scenes that will stick in your mind once you leave the cinema.
You may have hoped that Gaga would have more time on the screen acting rather than doing what she is already known for, singing. She had the beauty to portray Lee as a seductive woman who could bring Fleck into her orbit and the damaged look to make them relatable to each other. This is why you may feel she was underutilised.
If you don’t enjoy the character arc of Fleck in Folie á Deux, then you’re not the only one. Understandably, you might expect to exude confidence and be more Joker-like in this sequel. Instead, you get Fleck down-trodden just as he was in the first film. Granted, there are glimmers where you watch him morphing into his Joker persona but by the end, we see him abandon this identity as his court verdict looms. You may feel disappointed, perhaps even cheated that your expectations were never met. For one reason or another, this is the path that Phillips wanted to take Arthur Fleck on. The cartoon at the beginning of the film may explain Fleck’s motives by the end of the film, in which we see him battle a shadow version of him trying to become Joker.
Much commotion has been made about the musical nature of the film with critics debating what they add to the film. It’s entirely possible when you watch this film you feel one thing, indifference. The charm of Fleck and Lee singing together disappears early on in the film and when a new musical number starts, you can’t help but feel they have been included to pad out the running time, which is a shame because an exciting story is in there, somewhere. If only there were a couple of musical numbers and using that extra screen time to explore Fleck and Lee’s love story whilst he was on trial, we might have a worthy follow-up to Joker.
Unfortunately, that is not where we are. The film was penned as being about love whereas the first film was about hate. Whilst this holds true, we don’t see Lee and Fleck have their version of a happy ending. Fleck finds himself alone and his own life is at risk (without revealing too much). It is an abysmal way to end a very bleak film that was already challenging the audience.
Many will like this film because it subverts expectations, by offering something different. However, this doesn’t always translate to excellence. When the credits rolled, I just felt disappointed that an opportunity was missed and couldn’t be reclaimed. I didn’t hate the film, but I didn’t like it either. I just felt indifferent to the film, trying to latch onto something that made me feel connected to it.
Maybe as the years and decades go by it might get a re-evaluation showing how it was a misunderstood film and how it’s greatness was overlooked.
Only time can tell.
Liam Donohoe