The first reviews for Joker: Folie à Deux are trickling in following its premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, and it looks like the sequel could be even more polarizing than its 2019 predecessor based on the initial reactions. Those in attendance at the Venice Film Festival are starting to post their full reviews and share their thoughts on social media, and while it sounds like a bold and audacious sequel, it doesn’t quite live up to those adjectives once the finished product has been fully digested.
IndieWire didn’t seem impressed by the film at all, leaving a caption on their X page ahead of their review that reads, “Joker: Folie à Deux feels like it’s bad on purpose. A fascinatingly lifeless troll of a movie designed to anger fans and bore everyone else. Its complete waste of Lady Gaga is worse than any of Joker’s crimes.”IGN commented on the sequel by saying, “The worst thing about Joker: Folie à Deux is its unfulfilled potential. It begins with the promise of a novel approach to the Joker and Harley Quinn, placing them in a world where the opposite of cruelty is musical romance. Unfortunately, the DC sequel gets bogged down by a lengthy courtroom saga, which not only keeps the dazzling Lady Gaga away from the spotlight, but centers the movie entirely around its own predecessor, without doing or saying anything new.”Variety seems to echo a lot of the sentiment by saying, “The premise of “Joker: Folie à Deux” — that Arthur the killer clown and his paramour, Lee (who starts to think she’s Harley Quinn), will express who they are by becoming jukebox songbirds…sorry, but that’s not a Broadway concept. It’s an audacious concept. It’s one that demands an audacious execution. And for the most part, that doesn’t happen in Folie à Deux.” The Hollywood Reporter seems to jump on the dull trend by sharing the sentiments of some of the other trades by saying, “For a movie running two-and-a-quarter hours, it feels narratively a little thin and at times dull….This sequel is built on more of a conceit than a solid story foundation”
How Does Joker: Folie à Deux Function as a Musical?
The musical aspects of the film have been up for debate since the sequel was announced and, more recently, since the key creatives behind the film don’t want to label it a straight musical. On that note, The Guardian states, “It’s a musical, of sorts, with Phoenix and others warbling show tune standards, often in fantasy set pieces, a little in the way of Dennis Potter’s Pennies from Heaven. This gives it structure and flavour that the first film didn’t have,” while BBC chimed in with, “Instead of moving the story along, as songs in musicals should, they slow it down. You’re left with the feeling that Phillips simply didn’t have enough of a plot to fill another two hours without them.”
There are some positive reviews to be found, with some commenting that Folie à Deux is a film unlike moviegoers may have seen before. Deadline’s review states, “With song, dance, comedy, darkness, animation, drama, violence and more, this is a musical — if it even is a musical — like no other,” while Empire says, “As sweet and beguiling a musical romance as it’s possible to have between two murderous psychopaths.”
Others in attendance were also a bit more positive about the movie, applauding the performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga as well as the film’s strong musical sequences.
It should be noted that the first film wasn’t universally loved by critics either, registering a 69 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and a 59 out of 100 Metacritic score. Despite this, the movie went on to earn $1 billion worldwide and was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Joker: Folie à Deux
hits screens on Oct. 4.
