As a huge fan of Batman, I can confirm and say confidently I thought Todd Phillip’s Joker was good, but that’s about it. It certainly was not the Clown Prince of Darkness we’ve come to see on screen or really in the comics, yet there was no denying that Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator) was and is incredible. When I heard that Joker: Folie à Deux was going to be a musical and starring Lady Gaga (House of Gucci), I had a lot of reservations. While there is no denying her musical ability, a full-blown psychotic lovers quarrel with Gaga and Phoenix did not interest me in the slightest. What Joker: Folie à Deux does do is completely flip the script, swing for the fences (and knock it straight out of the park), and create a movie that is going to piss people off, but for the ones who can get on board, it’s going to be argued one as one of the best of the year, for better or worse.
T-B: Brendan Gleeson as Jackie Sullivan and Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck in Warner Bros. Pictures’ JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise & DC Comics. © 2024 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
What needs to be addressed right off the bat (no pun intended) is this is a Warner Bros. production that is using DC properties, and not a DC production. That is absolutely right. Watching the opening studio logos, the new James Gunn-led DC Studios was nowhere to be seen. This is the world of Gotham and Batman but without the forced hand of needing to be a DC Comics property. The film picks up in the aftermath of Arthur Fleck/Joker’s (Phoenix) crimes. He’s stowed away up in Gotham’s prison system. Fleck is trying to go about his day-to-day in prison and is buddy-buddy with guard Jackie Sullivan (Brendan Gleeson), who gives him cigarettes if he cracks some jokes. As his trial approaches for the five (really six including his mother’s) murders, his lawyer, Maryanne Stewart (Catherine Keener), tries to get Fleck ready to prove his innocence, prove that the years of torture and abuse he’s suffered have led to a split personality between Fleck and Joker. Simultaneously, as this is going on, Fleck’s guard friend, Jackie, wants to get him involved in the musical department. Partially because Jackie thinks Fleck would be a good fit, partially because Jackie himself is interested in the program. Through this program is where Fleck meets one Miss Harleen Quinzel (Gaga), who goes by Lee. The two develop a relationship that goes far deeper than just a bad romance; it’s one that is truly meant for the ages.
L-R: Steve Coogan as Paddy Myers, Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, and Catherine Keener as Maryanne Stewart in Warner Bros. Pictures’ JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise & DC Comics. © 2024 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
First and foremost, as we discovered in Joker, Joaquin Phoenix can play the mentally unstable and unwell Clown Prince. His Joker is more restrained and diluted than other incarnations, but there is something personable to Fleck’s Joker. His crimes are committed from a breaking point. He is driven to them. He doesn’t thrive in the chaos that is created despite creating it himself. Phoenix’s ability to create this character and make him so reprehensible yet relatable is scary and disturbing, but it’s what separates this take of Joker from that of Romero (Batman: The Movie), Nicholson (Batman), Keoghan’s brief appearance (The Batman), Hamill (Batman: The Animated Series), and even Leto (Suicide Squad). While we’ve only had one live action Harley before (Margot Robbie), this take on Quinzel is different, and Gaga nails it with perfect execution. Harleen Quinzel is typically presented as a psychiatrist who falls in love with Mista J, and without diving into a full spoiler-filled character breakdown, Gaga’s portrayal is more in-line with this version of the character than the Hyena-owning, crazed love interest who will do anything for her Mista J. I would be remiss, though, if I didn’t address the brilliant performances by both Catherine Keener (Get Out) and Brendan Gleeson (Edge of Tomorrow), as well. Both of them bringing in brilliant performances that are grounded, purposeful, and powerful in both eye-opening and terrifying realities. Lastly, Harry Lawtey (Benediction) shines bright as the man who is tasked with taking down Gotham’s largest threat, The Joker. The entire cast is beyond incredible and certainly delivers more than expected.
L-R: Harry Lawtey as Harvey Dent and Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck in Warner Bros. Pictures’ JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise & DC Comics. © 2024 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Scott Silver (Joker; 8 Mile) and Phillips (Joker) penned the script for the second time, and their pageantry with the story is something that must be acknowledged. Creating a story and doing right by characters that have been around for 84 years is no easy task. Considering how many incarnations of the main character there are already in live action, animation, and the comics themselves poses a difficulty to bringing in something new and nuanced. Silver and Phillips manage to create a juxtaposition between the character of Joker and Fleck himself, as Fleck never wants the chaos and madness that the character of the Joker typically feeds on and thrives with. The two separate entities live separately and together, but Fleck always condones the acts of the Joker persona and, as we discover in Joker: Folie à Deux, a further connection/separation between these two characters. There is so much care and craft in the script that it is hard to ignore how fresh and original it truly feels. One more individual who deserves a special mention is the cinematographer, Lawrence Sher (Joker; Black Adam; Godzilla: King of the Monsters), who creates magic on screen. The movie is one of the most beautiful non-CG films of the year, truly a work of art to be seen. The craft of blending musical elements (it really is not a full blown musical) with a courtroom procedural is not an easy feat, but one that is well accomplished thanks to brilliance, in part, brought on by Lawrence Sher.
L-R: Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck/Joker and Lady Gaga as Lee Quinzel in Warner Bros. Pictures’ JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise & DC Comics. © 2024 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Joker: Folie à Deux supersedes expectations (not that they were admittingly high to begin with). The musical elements are not a distraction from the plot and speak to the state of Arthur’s mind excellently while giving another showcase in which both Phoenix and Gaga get to show off their acting chops. Joker: Folie à Deux has the gall to pull off some massive swings, make a Joker and Harley musical (in a sense), and create one of the best DC properties (even if not made by DC) in recent memory.
In theatres October 4th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Warner Bros. Pictures Joker: Folie à Deux website.
Final Score: 4 out of 5.
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Categories: Films To Watch, In Theaters, Recommendation, Reviews
38% on RT with a 36% audience score, so one of those increasingly uncommon moments when critics and viewers agree that it’s anything but good.
Making it all the more interesting is that WB has increasingly been reducing the number of advanced screenings for critics beyond the top three-five markets, meaning that the bulk of reviews come from a small pool of critics who saw the film during its festival appearances and the audience primarily from the fan screenings.
In this instance, Justin’s review comes from one such fan screening.