#review: Is Joker: Folie à Deux to be hyped or hated?

David Ho reviews one of the more controversial new film releases Joker: Folie à Deux  

Spooky season is here and there’s no time more fitting than now to introduce Joker: Folie à Deux. After all, the Joker and Harley Quinn are easily one of the most popular characters to dress up as for Halloween.

The Joker movie of 2019 was a critical and commercial hit, but the freshly released sequel has already been besieged by bad reviews and underwhelmed at the box office. But is it really that bad?    

2019’s Joker made for an interesting origin story and a more interesting character study, especially when contrasted with Jared Leto’s much maligned version on the Suicide Squad movie a few years prior. While making the first Joker movie, actor Joaquin Phoenix informed director Todd Phillips that he didn't feel ready to leave the role of Arthur Fleck/Joker behind and had a dream of the character performing onstage. This (and the film’s billion dollar performance at box office) inspired the possibility of coming back with a musical follow up.

The sequel film sees Fleck in Arkham prison as he prepares for his trial. The despondent Fleck is given a new lease of life when he meets and falls for another patient, Harleen "Lee" Quinzel, at a music therapy session. Given this common ground, the events are constantly punctuated by musical hallucinations, which are enjoyable enough as cutaways. But overall, they hold the film's plot back, rather than driving it along.   

Unfortunately, those expecting a lot of action sequences in this film will be disappointed, unless Sonny and Cher tributes count. While Joker 2019 wasn’t exactly full of wham-bam stock, it is a mystery on what exactly the US$200 million production budget was used for in this new film.

So no Bonnie and Clyde-type hijinks here. Instead, we get lots of side characters, ranging from other Arkham inmates to the many cogs of the Gotham City judicial system, alluding to and discussing what occurred the first movie. Unfortunately, the plot meanders here for much of the film. While that might be entertaining in a fan discussion thread or a review article, scripted hot takes on a film half a decade ago probably isn’t what most moviegoers are looking for.    

Phoenix and Gaga turn in reliably solid performances, which was touted as the result of a collaboration between the two leads. “The truth is, they gave each other pointers. He’d give her pointers about acting; she’s been in movies, but he’s Joaquin Phoenix. She gave him tips about music because she’s Lady Gaga,” says Phillips. “It’s what movies should be: a giant collaboration…her notes would be a little more specific because it’s like, you’re not hitting the note there. It’s different. There’s less room for interpretation.”

But Gaga’s Harley Quinn is not given much to do and has much less screen time than what one would think, especially when she is one of the film’s biggest marketing points. At one point, Fleck feverishly begs Quinn to stop singing and one can’t help but feel that’s what the majority of the audience would have liked too. If you are looking for a fresher take on the Harley Quinn character, the one in the new animated Batman: Caped Crusader series feels more like a fresh breath of air than Gaga’s pyromaniac Quinn.   

The first film showed how a martyr figure like the Joker could inspire the masses, but the second shows how a man could be crushed by and fail to live up to a persona that has grown larger than life. The shocking ending also sets things up for a wider Batman universe.  

If taken on those merits, rather than an extension of the first film or another superhero/antihero action flick, the musical psychological thriller fares better, especially in the latter half. But Joker: Folie à Deux is unlikely to be seen as or revisited as an essential piece of cinema. While it’s cute to see Phoenix and Gaga karaoke along to some songbook standards, this does little to add to the must-see factor for this film. 

Verdict: This is only for big fans of the Joker and musicals. If you do, go in with an open mind.

All pictures from Instagram @jokermovie

Also see: #review: Is Blink Twice worth the watch?