REVIEW: Folie A Deux felt like a punchline that failed to hit its mark

WATCHING TODD PHILIPS' JOKER felt like an arrow that struck my heart, as the story explores around profound themes on society and mental illness.

There were many scenes in that film that made me uncomfortable and sympathetic for the Joker as seen from that time when Arthur Fleck was doing a stand up comic show, trying his best to finally make a breakthrough in life, or that scene which revealed that Fleck has been dillusional about his love life and family background.

Given Philips' direction, the first Joker movie was a masterpiece and it garnered numerous accolades in the 92nd Academy Awards, where the film got nominated for Best Picture, while Joaquin Phoenix won the Best Actor award.

So when it was announced that the film will have a sequel in Joker: Folie À Deux,there was a lot of hype surrounding the franchise, but is it really worth the wait?

Unfortunately, Folie À Deux, felt like a punchline that failed to hit its mark, as it couldn't capitalize on its potential.

PHOTO: Warner Bros. Pictures

*WARNING: MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD*

Gaga, ooh-la-la, Want your bad romance

With Lady Gaga being introduced, one may expect that she will use her singing chops into the film especially with the trailers hinting on some musical scenes.

She did end up showcasing her singing talents, and her portrayal of Harley Quinn actually showed a different side of the character that was worth applauding.

Gaga's take on Joker's love interest was the opposite of Margot Robbie, as she was more grounded with realism given how she looked emotionally and psychologically battered, compared to Robbie who was close to her comic book and TV series counterpart.

Overall she performed well as Harley Quinn, however there was one thing that ultimately pulled her down. The film primarily focused more on her singing talents while overlooking her acting prowess and it was such a shame since Lady Gaga delivered a solid portrayal on Quinn.

There were so many things I wanted to explore with Gaga's Quinn, specifically her backstory and while we did manage to get a few hints as to who she was, there were still a lot of important elements that were worth uncovering.

Had Philips dug deep and gave more spotlight to Gaga's acting skills, as well as Quinn's character, perhaps we might see one of the best supervillain portrayals for Harley Quinn that will 1000% cement an Academy Award victory for the American songwriter and actress.

Maybe Philips should've explored on a separate film centered on Harley Quinn instead.

PHOTO: Warner Bros. Pictures

HAHA! The joke's on you

Then we take a look at the narrative and see how it fares especially since the predecessor manages to produce one of the best storylines: Arthur Fleck's descent into the Joker caused by the suffering he endured in life.

Does Folie A Deux, capture the same essence of the previous film?

Now the 2nd Joker film does tackle a really good plot point: How mental health affects one's identity and how it obstructs reality. This was explored in the previous film, and this could be further brought to the next level in its latest iteration.

From the beginning, we see Fleck struggle between his Joker persona and his true self, plus there were scenes that highlight the distortion of reality as seen from Joker and Quinn's singing and dancing.

However it seemed that this opportunity wasn't further fleshed out and the film's narrative felt underwhelming.

The court room scenes were tedious to watch and I was about to fall asleep at some sessions, though I suddenly experienced a jolt of inspiration when Joker fired his lawyer and donned his signature makeup and outfit.

Is this the climactic moment that will push the film to greater heights?

While Joaquin manages to deliver an exceptional performance as the Joker inside the courtroom, things didn't fully materialize.

I was hoping that the Joker will deliver a philosophical stance inside the courtroom that will rattle me or give me goosebumps. After feeling the betrayal of society, the fame he garnered as a 'cult hero,' and how we was treated by the guards in Arkham Asylum, perhaps we might see Joker go profoundly deep with his arguments, going beyond what he discussed in the talk show in the previous film.

However that wasn't the case as we only got a rehash of concepts in the previous film.

At the end of the punchline, Joker: Folie A Deux's narrative felt flat.

PHOTO: Warner Bros. Pictures

CONCLUSION

While there have been negatives from the Joker sequel, there have been some notable positives such as Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime or the various Batman Easter Eggs as seen from Harvey Dent's appearance.

In addition, Philips manages to capture the signature cinematography of the previous film as seen from the bird's eye view perspective of Fleck walking outside of Arkham Asylum, surrounded by colored umbrellas from the security guards.

However the positives aren't enough to salvage the film's negatives and it just further supported the claims that the original Joker film shouldn't have a sequel.

Personally Philips could've done better in making the sequel, as the film had a plethora of promising concepts that we discussed earlier, but this was ultimately pulled down by Philips' execution.

And as the curtain closes, will we see another Joker film especially when looking at the ending, or is it time to pull the plug given the performance of the latest film?