The Clown Sings in "Joker: Folie à Deux"

Has there ever been a more misunderstood film than "Joker: Folie à Deux?" Well, alright, Francis Ford Coppola's "Megalopolis" may fight for that title. That we got two of these divisive, director-driven passion projects in such a short period is nothing short of a miracle (judging by their box office failures, they are also likely to be the last we will see in a long time). Most of the time I have my review written out before a movie is released. However, personal issues meant I was forced to see this five days after the national rollout. Long enough to read about the box office failure, the toxic audience reception, and the stories that the studio basically let director Todd Phillips do whatever the hell he wanted to do.

The debacle that is "Joker: Folie à Deux" will likely be studied in film class for years. It will likely be a testament to studio hubris who had a surprise billion-dollar hit film that then proceeded to learn all of the wrong lessons from their success. This much is true, as in every logical and financial sense making this movie was a huge mistake, driven to be greenlit only because the first installment made so much money. On the other hand, the story that is being lost is that despite the fact that making this was a mistake, 'Joker: Folie à Deux" delivers one hell of a movie-going experience that is so out there and twisted that it is practically daring the audience to laugh.

If the original movie was about a society that did not know what to do with a man like Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix returning to the role that won him an Oscar), then "Joker: Folie à Deux" is a movie that audiences in the wild don't know what to do with. For the movie finds our...is hero the right word? Probably not. He's a person, that's for sure, one who caused a lot of chaos in the first film because society failed him in the first place. Now behind bars and awaiting trial, society still doesn't seem to know what to do with him. He is celebrated as a criminal mastermind who managed to inspire riots in Gotham City, and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) wants to make a public example of him.

For that matter, there are people inside Arkham who also view him in high esteem, like Harleen Quinzel (Lady Gaga), who constantly tells him that Joker is Arthur's true identity, a fact that he struggles to comprehend. So confused is he that he sings musical numbers in his head, contemplating what his lot in life is now that he created a persona that others blindly follow. Joker is not a mastermind or a clever 'Prince of Crime' though; he is a mentally disturbed man who is still crying out for help with that painful, sad laugh. Though he has attention, he remains nothing more than a walking punchline in society.

"Joker: Folie à Deux" goes out of its way to be everything audiences likely don't want. It's a musical in a movie too dark for musical fans. It is a character drama being viewed by an audience who likely wants more chaos and violence. It is thoughtful in a world that demands simplicity. It is also not perfect, I must admit. The musical numbers are not the greatest and the trial sequences go on too long for a case where there is no question of the defendant's guilt. This is a personal passion project that got Hollywood money because the people behind it made previously successful movies. That it slipped on a banana peel and fell flat on its face is funny in a morbid sort of way. Too bad everyone's too mad to laugh at the absurdity of it all.