The Other Side Of The Stupid Coin

Jesus Christ. "Joker: Folie à Deux" is bad.

It feels right that there was never supposed to be a sequel to Joker.

A half-hearted superhero version of much better Martin Scorsese movies like Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, the first Joaquin Phoenix Joker movie somehow won two Oscars (including Best Actor) and made around $1.07 billion. So of course there was going to be a sequel despite the fact that it was made as a “standalone” feature.

As unimaginative and frankly stupid as the 2019 movie is, at least it was a movie. There’s an arc of sorts, if you can call it that, in which Arthur Fleck slowly becomes Joker, a villain (of course, played by SOCIETY) and a denouement with shocking violence, because why not? I didn’t like it when it came out, I disliked it the more I thought about it and somehow the sequel made me think … maybe I was too harsh.

Phoenix returns—after (in Joker fashion) destroying a Todd Haynes movie—playing this one-note psychopath/sociopath/whatever he is, but this time Lady Gaga joins him as the infamous Harley Quinn. Oh, also, the movie’s a musical, which I knew (and was dubious about) going in. I can’t say the same for my sister, who was furious, except for the free popcorn that saved the entire experience.

You almost have to give it up to director Todd Phillips for trying to do something so bizarre with the Joker world and creating these Old Hollywood-esque dream sequences in what’s supposed to be a thriller. But then you remember that you don’t have to give it up for him, because the movie sucks, has no point and feels as if it’s nearly five hours.

It’s fitting that this should come out not long after Marvel’s blockbuster hit Deadpool & Wolverine, which is equally as bad in such a different way. The two are almost polar opposites and feel like an unceremonious end to over two decades of caped crusaders on screen. Deadpool 3 is a crass and unfunny meta-joke that features its titular character looking at the screen during a climactic fight and saying, “Get your special sock out, nerds.” Joker 2 is an uber-serious drudge that tries to be everything but a superhero movie, despite its entire setup.

Both of these movies hate their audience, hate their reason for existing and want so desperately to be doing anything else. It’s not like I’ve been enjoying the superhero behemoth over the last few years, but things are getting really bleak when these are the movies that Hollywood feels like it needs to put out to hold audiences.

Easily the most interesting part of the newest Joker movie is the final moment, which kind of reshapes this entire Phoenix saga, and then the movie cuts to black with one more final fuck you. It’s frankly insulting. And the worst part is, it doesn’t seem like anyone involved had any fun making it. It feels like a slog because it was a slog to make.

I think this is where we have to talk about Lady Gaga, who has had a, umm, checkered run on-screen. She’s legitimately very good (sometimes even great) in A Star is Born playing an ingenue-turned-starlet, but there’s something about how seriously she takes every single moment without an ounce of comedy or wit that feels like such a grind.

The way she talks about her “craft” and becomes her characters is reminiscent of Daniel Day-Lewis, just without any of the know-how or talent. Day-Lewis was renowned for his intimidating focus and method acting, but he was also alive in the characters. Reynolds Woodcock in Phantom Thread or Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood have a sense of humor, or at the very least, Day-Lewis understands that it’s his gravitas that makes a scene funny. Gaga just plays every scene the same, no matter if it’s A Star is Born or House of Gucci and now Joker: Folie à Deux.

The movie follows her (and Phoenix’s lead) and is grave and remarkably humorless (considering its main characters).

What I’m trying to say here, if you didn’t catch on, is that this movie is bad. It should be called Joker: Folie à Poo.

Anyway, you don’t need to watch something that actively dislikes itself and never wanted to be made in the first place. The Substance is out. Go watch that. Or check out Will & Harper on Netflix. I still need to see The Wild Robot. Don’t give your hard-earned money to this. Be kind to yourself.