Joker: Folie à Deux

Director: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Zazie Beetz, Steve Coogan, Harry Lawtey, Leigh Gill, Ken Leung, Jacob Lofland, Bill Smitrovich
Running Time: 138 min.
Rating: R

★★½ (out of ★★★★)  

It seems fitting how all these post-mortems are being done on the critical and commercial failure of Todd Phillips' Joker: Folie à Deux since the film itself can almost be viewed as an autopsy of its brilliant predecessor.That this sequel feels made by someone who dislikes the idea of sequels isn't necessarily a negative, but Phillips creates a sprawling, audaciously ambitious mess that manages to tests viewers' patience as much as it subverts expectations. It's a huge, frustrating swing for the fences, revolving entirely around 2019's Joker while simultaneously having very little to do with it. 

Relitigating the previous film's events in painstaking detail, it focuses on the motivations behind Arthur Fleck's crimes and his own fractured state of mind as he faces trial. By this point, the character's mental illness and violent tendencies aren't exactly well guarded secrets, leaving the question as to whether a deeper psychological dive justifies another entry. And now with his perplexing follow-up, Phillips takes extremely bold measures to ensure it does. Some of those work, but others don't.  

Now in custody at Arkham State Hospital, party clown and failed stand-up comedian Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) awaits trial for the murders he committed two years earlier, including his live on-air killing of TV host Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro). As Arthur's lawyer Maryanne Stewart (Catherine Keener) builds an insanity defense arguing the Joker persona is responsible, Arkham guard Jackie (an excellent Brendan Gleeson) gets him into a music therapy class. It's here where Arthur meets and falls for Harleen "Lee" Quinzel (Lady Gaga), an obsessive Joker superfan who was committed for allegedly burning down her parents' apartment. 

After Lee's plan for them to escape and start a new life together is thwarted, an increasingly unhinged Arthur must prepare for court while his legions of Joker fans root him on. With Gotham's Assistant D.A. Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) hellbent on a death penalty conviction, witnesses like former neighbor Sophie Drummond (Zazie Beetz) and co-worker Gary Puddles (Leigh Gill) take the stand to testify. Continuing to lean on Lee for support, Arthur's grip on reality slips as Joker reemerges, transforming the trial into a circus sideshow.

Given the heavy influence of Scorsese's Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy on the first film, it wasn't the worst idea for Phillips to pair Joker up with Harley Quinn for a jukebox musical in the vein of New York, New York. But after a promising start, the dark, twisted love story loses its way when scattershot execution and repetitive scenes fail to move the story forward. Clocking in at two hours and eighteen minutes, it feels longer, accompanied by a trial of the century you worry may never end. What nearly saves it are two phenomenal performances and the impressive visuals, both of which are occasionally lost amidst a package that just doesn't come together like it should.   

A cleverly conceived animated opening where Joker is impersonated by his shadow prior to a live TV performance provides a more revealing glimpse into the film's themes than you'd suspect, as the Looney Tunes-style short conveys that ongoing tug of war between Arthur's two identities. And many of the musical sequences do succeed as a manifestation of his insanity, particularly an Arkham rooftop dance and a Sonny and Cher inspired variety show spoof. But even with the presence of old school songbook standards like "That's Entertainment," "When You're Smiling" and "I've Got the World on a String," these excursions become increasingly uneven, resulting in diminishing returns the more Phillips tries to squeeze in.

Of all the picture's issues, Phoenix and Gaga aren't among them, with the former giving another complex, compelling performance that alternates between dark humor and unimaginable despair as Arthur's vulnerability is put on full display for everyone to see. And despite skepticism surrounding her casting, Gaga's work is one of the best things in this, and not just because of her singing during the musical interludes. In capturing the dangerously compulsive infatuation Lee has with Joker, her true motivations remain constantly in question. Their bond not only reflects his narcissistic need for love and affection, but ties into themes of media obsession prevalent in the first film. 

Midway through, the narrative becomes disjointed when scenes drag and action awkwardly shifts between the hospital and courtroom. Musical sequences are either piled on or disappear before returning to relay the same idea in a different song or setting. But while Arthur's trial is entirely too long, it's still entertaining to watch Joker represent himself with a Grisham inspired Southern drawl as the supposedly no-nonsense judge (Life Goes On's Bill Smitrovich!) indulges his craziest whims. By the time returning characters take the stand, what unfolds feels like a bizarre cross between the Seinfeld finale and Colin Ferguson's 1993 shooting trial. Harvey Dent's inclusion makes sense, even if the character leaves so little an impression you'll have to remind yourself he's there, until a late development jolts us into recalling why.

While there's understandable disdain for what Phillips attempts, this approaches the material from an entirely different angle than the first film, far more invested in exploring whether Arthur and Joker really are one in the same. A potentially intriguing thesis on it comes toward the end, but even that's marred by some confusing, if well shot theatrics. Its final minutes feel more deflating than tragic, likely to leave viewers shaking their heads at the infuriating denouement, as if the joke's on them. And in a way, it is. But despite its many problems, this still could be worth revisiting down the road, if only to further examine how a Joker sequel turned out like this.       

A Star is Born (2018)

Director: Bradley Cooper
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga, Sam Elliott, Dave Chappelle, Andrew Dice Clay, Anthony Ramos, Rafi Gavron, Greg Grunberg,
Running Time: 135 min.
Rating: R

★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

Bradley Cooper's A Star is Born is a tale of two movies. The first revolves around a drunk, self-destructive country rock star drowning in his troubled past who finds renewed creative purpose in discovering a new talent. It follows a trajectory not unlike 2009's Crazy Heart, with its lead actor channeling Kris Kristofferson in 1976's A Star is Born. The second is about a waitress and struggling part-time bar singer who suddenly gets her big break and falls in love with famous musician. For a little while, both two stories are beautifully told in lockstep, until they sharply diverge, splitting your allegiance and maddingly asking you to sympathize with a character who hasn't done anything to earn it. Worse yet, it's the wrong one. It's all downhill from there, taking us down a depressing path toward an inevitably doomed conclusion that's more frustrating than tragic.

In adapting material that's been previously brought to the screen multiple times with mixed results, Cooper makes a directorial debut that's unarguably impressive despite certain narrative weaknesses. He isn't blameless, but his direction, and especially his performance, are the least of the film's troubles. It starts strongly before grinding to a halt midway through and becoming the Lady Gaga Show. This isn't a knock on her so much as the character she's asked to play, who will test the patience of anyone who was even slightly on the fence about her casting. Musically, she's an inspired choice, but everything surrounding her just seems off the entire time, especially regarding the relationship at the heart of the film. By the time we get to an ending that doesn't work (and didn't the previous three times this has been made), I was confused as to what exactly I was supposed to think or feel. Alcoholism and drug addiction are diseases, but selling out isn't, as much as you may be tempted to rethink that after watching the "star" of the movie's title.

Famous country singer Jackson Maine (Cooper) prepares for each show by downing a mixture of booze and pills, and is only kept in check by his older half-brother and manager, Bobby (Sam Elliott). After a concert gig in California, Jack stumbles into a drag bar where he sees waitress and songwriter Ally (Gaga) perform. Instantly smitten and entranced by her performance, they're introduced and end up spending the night talking, as she confides in him her aspirations for a music career.

Inviting Ally to one of his concerts, Jack urges her to join him on stage to perform a song she's written, and after some initial hesitation, she agrees. With her career now off and running, they enter a romantic relationship together, but as her star rises with a new record deal and an overhauled image, Jack's continues to decline, Wrestling with addictions as he continues his longstanding feud with brother Bobby, a rift also develops in his relationship with Ally. The writing's on the wall: Jack needs to clean up his act, or risk losing everything.

The most rewarding scenes come early when we're still in the discovery stages of the story, both for the characters and audience. Of course, at the center of it is Ally and Jack's performance of the now ubiquitous Oscar-winning pop-power ballad, "Shallow," which is not only a huge, hooky powerhouse single that Gaga and Cooper sing the hell out of, but a more insightful distillation of the story's themes than so much of what follows. Everything from the opening credits leading into that moment when he calls her up to that stage are somewhat magical, and even if there are times when you doubt Jack would take this kind of interest in a drag club singer, Cooper puts it to rest with the sincerity of his performance.

Adopting a gravely voice and perpetually looking as if he awakened from a 10-hour nap, he's a more believable in this role than you'd expect and it's not a coincidence that the first half of the picture, focusing primarily on Jack, is the stronger one. Similarly, Gaga's best scenes as Ally (both onstage and off) come directly opposite Cooper, so it's a good thing nearly all of them are. It's only when Ally's made it that the story loses steam, devolving into a long-running therapy session that actually becomes a real challenge to sit through at times. Some of it stems from the fact that once this unknown waitress is plucked out of obscurity and discovered by Jack, there's no where for her to go but up while he continues his steady decline. And it's here where Gaga's casting, or really the casting of any famous singer, starts to present some problems.

Initially, we shared in Jack's sense of discovery of Ally because we've just never experienced Lady Gaga in such a grounded context before. It's kind of an odd observation, but because of the nature of her persona, she can becomes almost unrecognizable or invisible doing "regular" things like arguing with her dad (really well played by Andrew Dice Clay), being late for work, telling jokes, hanging out in parking lots or getting starstruck. She's great at all of this, but when the moment Ally signs that record deal with this obviously sleazy producer (Rafi Gavron), all bets are off. While you're never quite sure what exactly the movie wants you to think about that decision, it does seem to push Jack as a jealous drunk to be pitied for his out-of-control behavior. It's true, but Ally comes off as such a sellout and "her" music so spectacularly disposable, I'm not sure anyone could blame him.

These developments force Gaga to "play down" as Ally, who may as well now be Britney Spears if not the fact that it's unlikely she'd even deserve a residency in Vegas. And because Ally's transformation falls so squarely in the pop realm, we're jarringly reminded that a pop star is playing her. And of the one thing each incarnation of A Star Is Born has failed to do: Cast or make a rising star. It may seem insignificant, but it's maybe one of two elements that could have really helped since it appears Cooper insists on taking this story in a familiar direction...again.  

At one point a drunk Jack confronts Ally about her choices and we're clearly supposed to resent him and take her side for asserting independence in a male-driven industry. I think. But what should come off as the rantings of an alcoholic madman seem like sane, reasonable concerns directed at a record label puppet oblivious to the fact that she's popular and famous enough to entertain other options or even create some of her own. Sure, it's entirely possible Cooper's more self-aware than we think and there's some kind of meta sub-text going on in the screenplay regarding the pitfalls of fame, but none of it makes the screen. That's not to say there aren't positives to be found in these problematic second and third acts, even if most of them come from Matthew Libatique's cinematography and Cooper and Elliott's performances, which map out a complicated sibling rivalry gripping enough to carry its own film.

That the last twenty minutes feels like a depressingly cruel joke wouldn't be such a problem if the script had something more to say. There's also a scene at the Grammy Awards that's supposed to be dramatic but goes too over-the-top to be taken seriously, instead invoking uncomfortable laughs. While we should at least be grateful Cooper is smart enough not to go anywhere near the ludicrous event that closed the '76 version, it's maybe sadder that this incarnation started as something so much better than its predecessors. Maybe that's the point. Maybe we're supposed to be frustrated at these characters for wrecking each others lives, both of which were filled with so much promise. Unfortunately, the same could also be said for the film in which they appear. This take on A Star is Born does manages to put a fresh spin on a very familiar tale, but not without proving there are many different ways to make the same mistakes.

2019 Oscar Nominations (Reaction and Analysis)

For those wondering whether my recent reviewing inactivity meant I wasn't watching or at least following the films embroiled in this year's Oscar race, it's time to put that theory to bed. I have been and will pretty soon be publishing a single post rundown of at least four of them to avoid things backing up any further. As for Tuesday morning's announcement of the nominations for the 91st Annual Academy Awards (full list here) by Kumail Nanjiani and Tracee Ellis Ross, it went well. Or at least better than last year's farce with every other nominee's name being misprounced by a popular comic actress. While the format was almost too laid back and missing the big press conference atmosphere, both were pros who appeared to enjoy being there doing it. So, considering the Academy's recently abandoned attempt at a "Popular Film" category and having no present host for the show, the nominations basically went off without a hitch.

Let's face it: No one's happy when their favorites are left off or tune in on February 24th to see a handful of films nominated they've never heard of. But the Academy's recent efforts to make the Oscars more "popular" reeks of corporate greed since they're only responding to network ratings pressure. And for the record, the Oscars are annually still the highest rated awards telecast despite the fact that no one even watches broadcast TV anymore. So, sorry, ABC can bite the bullet once a year while hardcore film fanatics enjoy the night, however long it may stretch

Ironically though, with the gap between critics and audiences still growing by the minute, quite a few immensely popular movies got in and the media and public outcry for a more diverse field was heard. We also a have the first superhero movie nominated for Best Picture, as well as Netflix and other streaming services really breaking through for the first time. Me? I just want to see the best work nominated and let the cards fall where they may. It's time to find out how AMPAS did this year, with some of the more noteworthy takeaways:

-  Netflix's Roma and arthouse, um, favorite, The Favourite lead the field with 10 noms a piece and are joined in the Best Picture category by the more popular entries Black Panther, BlacKkKlansman, Bohemian Rhapsody, Green Book, A Star is Born and Vice. We get an 8 film field this year.

-Barry Jenkins' If Beale Street Could Talk and Damien Chazelle's First Man are left out of the Best Picture race, denying us a rematch between the Moonlight and La La Land directors. In the case of the former, it just couldn't pick up enough steam throughout the season outside of Regina King's supporting performance, while First Man was darker and more introspective than anyone expected from a film about Neil Armstrong. On the plus side, it did well in the technical categories and is still highly regarded by many, if not the Academy. Predicted Gosling snub aside, it even failed to snag a supporting nod for Claire Foy.

-What happened to A Star is Born? A month ago it was a lock for EVERYTHING. Now, compared to those (unreasonably?) high expectations, it may as well be considered an awards flop. Plenty of think pieces will surely be written about what went wrong, but Bradley Cooper snubbed for Director? The saddest part is that it isn't even much of a surprise given he hasn't won anything up to this point. While it's hard to call any movie's 8 nomination tally disappointing, Cooper and Gaga look very shaky in their categories and previous sure bet Sam Elliott is quickly losing traction to Green Book's Mahershala Ali in Supporting. The film's expected triumph in Best Original Song with "Shallow" just might be its sole win, assuming that isn't also now in jeopardy.

-Marvel's Black Panther (with its over $1 billion worldwide box office take) becomes the first superhero movie nominated for Best Picture, thus opening the flood gates. Or maybe not. If the quality's there, then fine. But I can't be the only one who's a little nervous they'll start nominating lesser ones. Or, after getting this out of their system, wait years before rewarding another again? Regardless of how many statues it takes home, it has changed the game.

-Bohemian Rhapsody's continued dominance (with 5 nominations) is the biggest movie story of the past year, especially if you know how troubled that entire production was and the road it took to even get to the screen, and successfully no less. Even if we're still not completely sure who directed it. But good for Rami Malek. I'm sure few thought he'd be in this spot right now competing against Vice's Chistian Bale as a frontrunner for Best Actor.

-No slight on him but Willem Dafoe (At Eternity's Gate) clearly got the underdog Best Actor spot so many hoped would go to Ethan Hawke for his critically lauded, career best work as an emotionally tormented minister in First Reformed. Instead, we'll have to settle for a first time Original Screenplay nod for Taxi Driver writer Paul Schrader, suddenly the comeback kid at age 72.

-No supporting or lead nominations for both Timothee Chamalet (Beautiful Boy) or John David Washington (BlacKkKlansman), respectively. But something had to give. There are so many slots and and a certain number of performances that can fill them. Many get left out, and it's rarely a reflection on the work. These are two unfortunate examples of such a casualty.

-Glenn Close has Best Actress locked up, with Lady Gaga, Roma's Yalitza Aparicio, The Favourite's Oliva Colman and Can You Ever Forgive Me?'s Melissa McCarthy sure to be clapping on the sidelines when she wins her career achievement award. It's a narative that's only begun to come into view in recent weeks, with The Wife gaining serious momentum thanks to her rousing acceptance speeches.  Is Emily Blunt's ommisson for Mary Poppins Returns really that much of a surprise? Given the Academy's tastes, it may be. And Elsie Fisher getting recognized for Eighth Grade was always a pie-in-the-sky longshot, mostly due to their aversion to nominating kids in lead categories.

-Spike Lee is finally nominated for Best Director for one of his most commericial and challenging pictures yet, BlacKkKlansman. Except it's starting to feel like 1989 all over again with Peter Farrelly's crowd pleasing race relations drama Green Book playing the Driving Miss Daisy to Lee's Do The Right Thing in the Best Picture Race. With its recent PGA win, it really might be the frontrunner, save for the fact that Farrelly himself isn't nominated. Was recognizing the filmmaker behind Dumb and Dumber and There's Something About Mary too far a bridge for the Academy to cross? More likely, Green Book just seems like less of a director's achievement than the competition.

-They sure do love the polarizing Vice, with Adam McKay sneaking in with a mild surprise nod. Roma's Alfonso Cuarón and Cold War's Pawel Pawlikowski (unseating Cooper in the only real "shocker") become the first pair of directors of foreign language pictures to make the cut in this category, and both for black and white lensed films.

-No documentary nomination for Won't You Be My Neighbor? has to be the most egregious snub of this year's nominations. Hands down. We know they have a history of crazy decisions in this category, but there's just simply no excuse here. The outrage is justified.

-Heading into the show it seems to be a 3-way race between Roma, Green Book and, to a slightly lesser extent, Bohemian Rhapsody. Of course, we also know how that could change.