JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX: Needlessly Musical Sequel Squanders

By Harrison J. Bahe

Arthur Fleck is institutionalized at Arkham, awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker. While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him.

2019’s Joker shook viewers across the world with its bold take on isolationism, mental health, and extreme violence. It was a mature character study on the Joker mythos that called back to those gritty films of the 70s like Serpico and Taxi Driver. Oh, and it just happened to gross a paltry $1 billion at the box office. Naturally, a sequel was announced and we were told that it was going to be a musical starring Lady Gaga as the infamous Harley Quinn. Okay—

Joker: Folie À Deux is a musical that feels like it doesn’t want to be a musical. It’s like director Todd Phillips didn’t completely commit to the project being a musical and as a result, the musical moments feel a bit unearned and under performed. Fortunately, the in-world logic as to why the characters are singing is justified; the titular Joker and his infamous gal pal Harley Quinn are a part of a program in the prison that uses singing to express their inner troubles. The only issue is that whenever a musical number appears in the film, it serves to undermine the seriousness of the courtroom drama aspect of the film.

Joaquin Phoenix returns as Arthur Fleck and does a fine job of returning to the role that earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor. With his new found love, Fleck is far more bold and reckless but there still remains a hint of that broken, lonely man from the first film. Lady Gaga actually does her best with the character of Harley Quinn. She does fall head over heels for Joker and plays into their shared fantasy (the subtitle Folie À Deux translates to “madness of two,” which operates on two levels: one being the dual personality of Fleck and Joker and two being the love story between Fleck and Quinn). The only problem with hiring Lady Gaga is that, while she does sing, she still remains an under utilized character. I definitely felt I wanted more out of her by the end of the film.

Joker: Folie À Deux wants to be both a musical and a courtroom drama. That constant struggle of one genre fighting for the spotlight makes this sequel an unbalanced, unnecessary, underdeveloped addition to the Todd Phillip’s Joker movie. Be one thing or be none of it. The fact that it’s a musical is what separates it from being a cash grab sequel; despite the fact that the musical aspect works against its own well being. Also, certain seeds were planted in this movie for potential spin offs for such characters as Harley Quinn herself and a certain newly disfigured District Attorney. We’ll see if this movie is as successful as its predecessor. The movie felt like it had a lot to say but ultimately didn’t know how to say it which is why I give Joker: Folie À Deux—

3 Gavels out of 5

Joker: Folie À Deux is currently playing in theaters and is Rated R for some strong violence, language throughout, some sexuality, and brief full nudity.