“MISCONCEIVED AT VIRTUALLY EVERY LEVEL”: ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ Review.
All of which is to say that even if you didn’t love Joker on a storytelling level, at the very least I think you have to acknowledge that it captured a sensibility. As such, it remains a vibrant reminder of an incredibly weird moment in the world mood. It has a reason for existing.
Joker: Folie à Deux does not have a reason for existing, and as such, it does not work. Like, at all. It does not work as a comic book movie despite references to Harvey Dent and other DC mainstays. It does not work as a courtroom drama, despite the fact the second half of the film takes place largely within a courtroom. It does not work as a romance movie or a romcom, despite the film’s nominal reason for being is the couple of Arthur Fleck, aka Joker, and Lee Quinzel (Lady Gaga). It does not work as a musical, despite the numerous musical interludes. It doesn’t even work as an actor’s showcase, despite having great talents like Phoenix, Brendan Gleeson, and Catherine Keener.
Joker: Folie à Deux is as badly misconceived a movie as I can remember seeing.
Ouch.
Related (From Ed): The Critical Drinker on Joker: Folie à Deux:
UPDATE (From Ed): Who knew the title was so difficult to pronounce?