lady gaga

The term folie à deux refers to shared madness, two connected people further linked by a similar delusion. Joker: Folie à Deux certainly tracks with that, depicting the twisted infatuation of a mass killer and his number-one fan. But there’s another delusion at work here: that the film has a deep point to make that other films haven’t said better. It’s a folly that rings hollow.

Audiences seemed to have mixed feelings about the songs performed in Joker Folie a Deux. This might have to do with the fact that the original film was not a musical and the unexpected addition to the serious drama feels a little out of place. The original film was not even meant to have a sequel, but maybe having Lady Gaga sign on to play the iconic Harley Quinn, was a musical opportunity that director Todd Phillips couldn’t pass up. But just because Gaga’s voice is incredible doesn’t mean that’s enough to make this film worth the watch.

Joker: Folie à Deux, or as I’d like to call it, Trauma Porn: The Musical, somehow manages to be infuriating and achingly slow in equal measure. Hopeless, emotionally poisonous, and stubbornly lethargic, it mines the deep wells of toxic love affairs, mental illness left untended, and the glorification of ultra violence. In other words, FUN AT THE MOVIES! Bring a date! Bring the fam! Bring your antidepressants! Actually, if you are, indeed, already medicated, I’d highly recommend skipping this film altogether.