Todd Phillips’ Joker was a huge smash in 2019, both commercially and critically. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and an Oscar for its star, Joaquin Phoenix. The dark tale of a lonely man battling the demons in his life was a powerful, often shocking film miles away from the DC character that took on Batman. Now we have Joker: Folie à Deux, the long-awaited and highly anticipated sequel. Has Phillips followed the same route as the first film, or has he decided to go a different direction? The film has a distinct identity, and while there are moments of genius, it isn’t wholly successful.

Arthur Flack is imprisoned in Arkham’s Institution, awaiting a trial to see if he is guilty of the murders committed a few years earlier or if he is criminally insane. Taken to a choir class within the institution, he meets Lee, a woman who is fascinated with Arthur and starts to build a relationship with him. As his day in court approaches, their relationship becomes pivotal to how the case will go. Will the jury find him guilty for him to end up on death row?

The critical change from the first film is that this is predominantly a musical. Not in the traditional sense but in standards sung by the leads, sometimes without orchestration and others a full-blown number with colour and visuals. Having songs in a film like this is audacious, and attempting something different for a follow-up film will always be risky. This is one of the issues of the film. It is slightly jarring in many ways. Firstly, it never settles on the way the songs are presented. They are either extensions of the dialogue, with a naturalistic approach or flights of fantasy, where we see the songs played out in Arthur’s head, glamourous or cheesy but a definite step away from the action. Where the film would have been more successful with this idea is to have them all played out as fantasies. The other problem is the songs are so random they sometimes don’t fit the sequence you are watching.

Joker examined a man being pushed too far. We watched as Arthur was bullied, attacked, and looked upon as strange, which led him to create the character that would eventually be the confident side of Arthur and a killer. We now see Arthur as a broken man, all skin and bones, being bullied by the guards in the institution and struggling with his identity. Having watched Arthur’s character development, we don’t understand much about him anymore. The introduction of Lee does bring a unique angle, and, in fact, she becomes the more interesting character. A woman whose past is not what you think, and an obsession with this man who may or may not be a monster.

The film fails to ignite because it is mainly a court case. Taking up most of the screen time, we watch all the cliches you expect from a courtroom drama as we wait to see if Arthur will be sentenced to death. This limits the drama, so the only intermissions from the setting are the songs and Arthur and Lee’s romance. It also doesn’t help that the other primary setting is the institution, so again, it limits what Arthur can and cannot do. It is incredible how, having only two settings for a film of this nature, you find that it drags, which is the final issue. It is often dull and far too long for all the strangest about the movie. At almost 2 hours and 20 minutes, it really does feel it.

Joaquin Phoenix, who was so impressive in the first film, doesn’t disappoint here. Although he has less to do with developing his character, he still manages to command the screen. Joining him as Lee is Lady Gaga, and she is fantastic. Allowing her to use her incredible vocals on some of the songs, she brings an easy naturalness to the role of Harley Quinn, a very different version to that produced by Margot Robbie in past Quinn appearances. She radiates on screen and has her opposite, Pheonix; this is a powerhouse partnership. It’s a shame that the film doesn’t give them more to work with.

Joker: Folie à Deux will not make the fans of Joker happy, as it is such a different film, and like me, some will find it dull in places. This does have flashes of greatness, but sadly, they are very few. A pity, as Joker was such a triumph, this is a disappointment. Not terrible, just strange.

2 out of 5

Director: Todd Phillips

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Steve Coogan, Zazie Beetz, Harry Lawtey, Leigh Gill, Ken Leung, Jacob Lofland

Written by: Todd Phillips, Scott Silver, (characters created) Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Jerry Robinson, (creator “Harley Quinn”) Paul Dini and Bruce Timm

Running Time: 138 mins

Cert: 15

Release date: 4th October 2024