“Folie à Deux” is a strange court musical that had potential

Sequels often have to contend with an uphill climb to satisfy fans of the original, but Joker: Folie à Deux, five years in the making, is completely overwhelmed by the climb and rests on an entirely new cushion. While we can appreciate the risk, the reward is out of reach for this sequel, which will frustrate loyal fans and newcomers alike.

In one of the film's more revealing moments between Joker and his new lover (in which it seems that the lagging story could get a boost towards forward movement), Lee almost casually reveals that they have been together since the unique intimate moment they shared , has become pregnant His prison cell is occupied with a passion comparable to picking fingernails in the waiting area of ​​a pharmacy. Joker is incredulous and thrilled. As he questions her further, Harley immediately dives into a musical number. As he again seeks reassurance that she is telling the truth and attempts to rekindle an important conversation between adults, Harley unabashedly continues her a cappella version of The Carpenters' “Close to You,” serenading Joker through the Bars of his cell state of pure delusion.

That's the frustratingly dull courtroom musical that will confuse fans of the first film and really anyone hoping for a decent time at the cinema. Yes, you read that right: court musical. And it's unbearable. There's more to it, but not much. Joker, a pop culture figure and for many a symbol of social subversion, is the anti-hero of Gotham's underclass. It certainly wasn't on his wish list to follow up his tyrannical bloodbath in 2019's Joker with the off-note film that I'm afraid to say certainly is, Joker: Folie à Deux .

“Joker” was a huge success, both critically and commercially. It made a surprising amount of money and gave actor Joaquin Phoenix his first Oscar for playing the tormented Arthur Fleck, a working clown with mommy issues, childhood trauma and a vendetta against bullies. “Folie à Deux” begins a few years after Fleck, also known as Joker, killed six people, including his own domineering mother and a popular late-night television host on live air. In prison, Fleck is gentle and generally liked by the guards (Brendan Gleeson). Harvey Dent, played here by Harry Lawtey, who doesn't look old enough to have seen Batman interpretations before, let alone old enough to properly portray a district attorney, has the death sentence for poor Arthur Fleck, whose defense attorney he is visor (Catherine Keener) has the undesirable and almost impossible task of influencing public opinion in his favor.

For Fleck, who has little dialogue in the first half of the film and whose behavior is hardly bothered by the possibility of the electric chair, this vital stuff doesn't seem to have much significance. It's only when he looks into the eyes of Lee Quinzel (aka Harley Quinn), who is obsessed with show tunes, that his life literally becomes a fairy tale. Lady Gaga's interpretation of Lee lets her act with restraint and avoids big emotions and dramatic outbursts. (Should we call her performance brave and nuanced because she wears her face and sweats?) Force is necessary in some roles, but her opportunities to shape the character and make an impact in this film are as hard to find as the raison d'être of the film 'être if we speak French. Even though we all know Gaga can sing, audiences are craving more acting opportunities for the multi-hyphenate. After all, she won an Oscar, but the way she picked up a metaphorical microphone and thrust herself into the spotlight in this film, you'd think she has nothing to offer other than her singing voice. She has no defining moment, no standout quality that distinguishes her from Fleck's clown makeup, a prop for Joker to hide behind or monopolize for his impending downfall.

Writer-director Todd Phillips, who handled Joker's unstable demise so well in the first film, decides to have his lead and new love interest in a two-hour dream sequence. Joker and Lee sing for much of the film, immersing themselves in musical performances of retro songs as if they were demented Sonny and Cher impersonators. At least Sonny and Cher had a real relationship. Joker and Lee never seem to find harmony, brooding, playing or singing around each other like two moons occasionally orbiting each other to serve the same planet.

Encouraged by Lee and his increasing popularity with the public, Fleck fires his lawyer to represent himself in what may be the least invigorating courtroom scene in film history. It's so bad that Joker's disastrously fake Southern accent is a highlight. The lack of any resolution at the end, a slow, unraveling ending with no climaxes or turning points eventually leads to his conviction, then his escape, followed by his re-capture. It's only in the last 20 minutes that the musical numbers slow down and the action picks up, but by this point “Folieà Deux” is already too far gone to be saved. If you think the ending couldn't get any worse, then it is. “Folie à Deux” ends, to quote TS Eliot, not with a bang but with a whimper. Source deception.

“Joker: Folie à Deux” is in theaters now.