Joker: Folie à Deuxarrives in cinemas on October 4, but early critics' reviews are worse than the original film at just 60% on Rotten Tomatoes. Todd Phillip’s groundbreaking reimagining of the most dangerous villain in Gotham first arrived in theaters in 2019, outside of the largerDCEU. While the film delivered a compelling standalone story, the success of the project resulted in Warner Bro. Studios rushing to greenlight a sequel, and get Joaquin Phoenix back in makeup toexpand the story of Arthur Fleck.
However, both the original and the upcoming sequel did not completely resonate with critics, as the scores for both on Rotten Tomatoes were largely mixed. WhileJokerearned a respectable, but still undeniably mediocre 69%, the sequel is now sitting at just 60%after critics have seen the film ahead of general release. While the original movie may have been challenging in its concepts, and resulted in mixed reviews, the sequel should have been in a much stronger position following the widespread success ofJoker.
Why Joker 2 Is Getting Worse Reviews Than Joker
Joker’s Success Worked Against Joker: Folie à Deux
While the anticipation forJoker: Folie à Deuxhas been high, the reality appears to fall short. With the success ofJokerin 2019, which went on to become the highest earning R-rated film of all time until it was recently dethroned byDeadpool & Wolverine, and two Oscar wins and a further nine nominations, it was a huge success. Despite this,critics' reviews placed the movie at just 69%. Meanwhile, the audiences who attended felt much more warmly, with a glowing 89% after more than 50,000 reviews (viaRotten Tomatoes).
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While this success was instrumental for getting the sequel made, it could have worked against the sequel in terms of setting the bar too high. Audiences didn’t know exactly what to expect from theJoker, as it took a familiar character from the popular media and gave them an entirely new backstory and life. This was engaging, innovative, and powerful in its depiction of Fleck’s descent into a state of madness, and his journey to becoming a villain. On the other hand, the early reviews forJoker: Folie à Deuxappear tosuggest that the film struggles to be defined, or at least make peace with its own definition.
With the incorporation of musical elements, and the introduction of such a pivotal figure as Harley Quinn, played by Lady Gaga, the movie has a lot of expectations going in. However, as withJoker, these reviews could be holding on to an issue that makes the film exactly what audiences want, as the original purposely avoided clarity to portray the unreliable narrator’s mind. Once again,Joker: Folie à Deuxseeks to dive inside the mind of Fleck, and despite the negative reviews, audiences may still praise the film upon its release.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Cast
Joker: Folie à Deux is the sequel to Todd Phillips' critically acclaimed comic book thriller Joker. Reprising his Academy Award-winning performance as the failed comedian Arthur Fleck, Joaquin Phoenix revisits the iconic DC character alongside Lady Gaga, who makes her debut as Joker’s lover Harley Quinn in this standalone continuity of the DC Universe.
