“Joker” captivated the world. And Todd Phillips seems to detest that.
“Joker: Folie á Deux”, premiering five years after the original movie, returns Arthur Fleck’s story to the forefront, this time with a new partner in crime in Lady Gaga and a drastically increased budget. The whole creative team from the first billion-dollar success returns, with director Todd Phillips leading the way once again.
The first movie, while successful on nearly all levels, sparked widespread fears that it was a so-called “incel rallying cry,” with the FBI even reporting credible threats of violence in theaters on opening weekend. Phillips does not seem to have taken kindly to the mass interpretation to his film, and after a five years absence, is back with his own acidic response in the form of a sequel that is intentionally the opposite of anything that one might want.
A stripped-down legal procedural, Folie á Deux is quite dull on almost an ascetical level. Phillips attempts to differentiate this film from the first with two significant new elements: Lady Gaga as a version of Harley Quinn and a number of musical numbers meant to serve as a bridge between Arthur’s mental illness and the audience. Gaga is criminally underutilized, with one prominent dance scene used in the marketing not even appearing in the film itself.
Unfortunately, the musical numbers aren’t much better. Several of the more grounded ones come off as awkward rather than inspired, begging for a hint of life. The ones that take place entirely in Arthur’s head, however, are rare pops of color and fun in a movie that oftentimes feels intentionally painful to watch.
The film’s subtext, though, is the most frustrating part. After the first film sparked such widespread controversy and fear, Phillips takes the opportunity to completely relitigate its events and cultural impact. The only problem is nobody but Phillips really cares anymore.
In the five years since the movie came out, there has been a global pandemic, riots, two election cycles and enough general toxicity in the world that the impact of the first Joker has long faded. Phillips doesn’t seem to notice; the script feels like it was written in an echo chamber of criticisms of the first movie, intentionally designed to explain to the world exactly why it was so wrong to love the movie in the first place. The self importance in placing himself at the forefront of the controversy, using Joker as a kind of pariah-like stand in for himself can’t be ignored. Phillips — by his own admission — is completely done with the world of the Joker, and this feels like a middle finger on his way out the door.
One does have to respect his grit. This is clearly exactly the story he wanted to tell, and exactly the way he wanted to tell it. The movie is gorgeous, thanks to cinematographer Lawrence Sher, maybe even being the best looking film of the year so far. Hildur Guðnadóttir also turns in a more than worthy follow-up to her Oscar-winning score from the first. The fact that the craft on this film is so impressive only underlines the frustration at just how exhausting the rest of the viewing experience is. It seems to be for the best that Phillips is willing to move on.
