Darkly Funny Sequel with Great Old-School Songs in Fantasy Sequences
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by PV
This got bad reviews. I preferred it to the first JOKER movie - Joaquin Phoenix is brilliant again.
I actually actively dislike musicals. I am no fan of the perpetually over-rated Lady Gaga either (AKA Stefani Germanotta from a privileged upper-middle-class background).
However, this is all surreal with set pieces reflecting the fantasies, delusions and mental state of the characters. I liked that AND the class songs (most songs in new musicals are R&B and not for me!) This is old school and sticks to the hits, which is great!
Nice to hear songs like THE JOKER and GONNA BUILD A MOUNTAIN, music, and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. Also FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE not written by Stevie Wonder, but by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden for Motown Records' Stein & Van Stock publishing company, first recorded in 1965.
It sags a tad at times, the grim prison scenes and the talky courtroom ones, and I predicted the end.
I have forgotten the first film almost completely - it is referenced a lot here so I should maybe have watched it again before this.
But I liked it, the darkness, the music, the oddity of it,. So 4 stars
3 out of 4 members found this review helpful.
Thought Provoking
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by KP
Having read the poor reviews of this movie, I was a little apprehensive as I sat down to watch it. However, I shouldn't have worried.
If you're looking for gore then you've picked the wrong film, but if you're looking for a sensitive insight into the mind of the main character, then this is for you.
As in "Joker" (Part 1), Joaquin Phoenix is excellent - truly giving his all in his sensitive portrayal of a man who has had his fare share of knocks in life.
Younger viewers of this film will probably not recognise or appreciate the music which is interspersed throughout tis movie, but I thought that it blended beautifully with the story as we moved from love and hope to desperation and tragedy.
I have given this a 4/5 as I think that the way in which the two lovers separated could have been improved, but, all in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the journey through the film.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Frustratingly Flat
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by griggs
For one reason or another, I missed Joker: Folie à Deux whilst it was in the cinema. Now that it’s available on home media, my curiosity got the better despite the wave of negative reviews. I knew it was a musical—so no shock there—but what caught me off guard was how dull the whole thing felt.
Yes, the musical numbers are there, but they rarely elevate the material. Lady Gaga, is criminally underused, and whilst her performance has moments of brilliance, the script doesn’t give her enough to sink her teeth into. It’s not all bad—the production design is solid, and Joaquin Phoenix is as committed as ever—but it doesn’t land as a whole. A bold idea, sure, but one that falls frustratingly flat.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
A a reasonable attempt at a sequel
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by CM
This film would have been a lot better if the storyline had been a lot clearer I didn't seem to end it any real point.
It been a musical at times it works but another times it just seemed awkward and bad.
This is supposed to be the sequel
what happens after Arthur is imprisoned and moved to a psychiatric unit.
The Relationship between he and lady Gaga had some potential ended on a very strange note.
I wish there had been a stronger storyline. If you haven't seen joker one then you won't appreciate this movie
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Whilst it is a total vanity project & not very good, I simply cannot hate it
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by Timmy B
Joker was a total bolt-out-of-the-blue. After the stratospheric, tectonic-plate moving performance of Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, followed by the massively criticised interpretation by Jared Leto (much of which I felt was unfair, considering just how many problems there were with Suicide Squad's production as well as the acknowledgement that a significant portion of his performance was cut,) the general consensus seemed to be that the Joker character was untouchable, no-one ever able to play him again.
Then Todd Phillips came along, conceiving a completely standalone story of how the Joker was created, with a moderate budget (which meant he was much freer in his creative decisions than if having to adhere to the numerous demands DC would have forced him to follow,) as well as one of the most gifted actors working today, Joaquin Phoenix. The result was the highest-grossing R-rated film ever (over a billion dollars,) and a highly-disturbing, deeply original film.
It was then announced, after a significant amount of time passed, that a sequel was to be made, looking at the aftermath of the first film's events, as well as introducing Harley Quinn into the mix. Further eyebrows were raised when it was announced the film would be a musical, taking an even deeper & idiosyncratic dive into the world that Phillips and Phoenix had created. I had no real interest in seeing this film when it was released in cinemas, which was compounded by the overwhelmingly negative backlash from fans of the 1st film, as well as absolutely tanking at the box office.
But when I finally did watch it, despite my 2 star rating, in a weird way I simply cannot hate it. Something which I had felt for a long time, after hearing the various complaints about it, was that Phoenix and Phillips did exactly what I'd expected them to do: not go down the road of making a traditional sequel. The 1st film was an absolute middle-finger to the standard, schlocky & clichéd-riddled rubbish relentlessly churned out by the major studios. Everyone involved with the film was staggered by it's success.
But the flip side of that was that it gave the creators not only the confidence but also the carte blanche to do WHATEVER they wanted for the sequel, alongside an enormous budget & the best production team available. And the result is exactly what you'd expect...
This is without doubt the biggest (big-budget) vanity project I have ever seen. Allegedly based on mainly Phoenix's ideas & musings, it is a beautifully shot, incredibly designed and completely scattershot misfire. Whilst for the first 40 minutes or so, I enjoyed it, it then loses its focus, going off in multiple weird & nonsensical directions. The much-publicised musical numbers start off as an interesting way of telling the story, before becoming an overused & eventually boring millstone around the film's neck.
The majority of the movie concerns the trial of Fleck, as well as his meeting with Quinn & their subsequent falling in love. But this never really works that well, the film frequently going off on tangents & side-stories which slam the brakes on, as well as inflicting another musical number on us. Phoenix & Gaga's chemistry is also not that great, despite some good moments (their 1st meeting is the best of these,) which also hamstrings the film.
But having said all of the above, I didn't hate it. In a strange way I actually respected the total obstinacy of the filmmakers NOT going down the route which would have been so easy for them to do, giving them a guaranteed payday as well as probably a half-decent box office return. Folie à Deux is emphatically the movie they wanted to make, and there are no compromises in that sense.
And in the world we live in today, to have a film which actually has the cojones to do that is so refreshing, it deserves a strange kind of respect.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.
Even worse than Joker 1
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by Alphaville
If you found Joker 1 a distasteful bore, Joker 2 is unwatchable. Most of it consists of clichéd prison/courtroom scenes interleaved with ridiculous musical interludes where he cavorts to show tunes with Lady Gaga. Drama-free, flat, one-paced… The fast-edited trailer may lure an unsuspecting audience in, but there’s no energy in the film itself. It’s hardly worth wasting time reviewing it never mind attempting to watch it.
0 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Utter garbage
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by TC
Really a complete waste of time.
No idea what the point of this movie was.
So far removed from anything related to Batman and Joker.
No redeeming features at all.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.
Awful
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by Sal
I wasn't expecting a musical. I think this was more the Lady Gaga show. Joaquin can't sing either. Just a terribly awful movie. The fear they were going to burst into song any minute which they did. I don't dislike musicals but it was inappropriate for this film as the Joker is a great character and Joaquin played him well in the first film. Just felt this was all about Lady Gaga.
0 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Not as bad as was expecting but not great
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by RE
Having heard bad reviews for the film was expecting one of the worst films ever, however it was rather enjoyable but still not a great film. The musical numbers just didn.t fit into the film and felt awkward and cringy, also Joaquin is an awful singer
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.
Every bit as bad as they say it is
- Joker: Folie à Deux review by JD
Obviously the performances were great, and Lady Gaga was in her element. While ive no time for her, she is clearly a talented entertainer.
But the film. What is it?
Taken as a batman film - it takes the most famous villain of them all and turns him into a sad, pathetic in-cel. HQ being his manipulator and emotional superior could of been an interesting twist on cannon, but its simply used to force the point the Joker is a complete nobody.
But what really destroys this as a Batman universe film is the recent Penguin series. This is just complete rubbish in comparison, both as entertainment and how it builds (or doesnt in this case) the villain.
If we take the film out of the Batman universe, then its just pure dull. Its a musical shawshank redemption (there are better examples but the film isnt worth thinking of it) but instead of being fantastic, it inverses that and becomes fantastically rubbish.
Its one of those films I honestly felt id wasted 2 hours of my life. I should of listened to the honest reviews.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.