Whatever you think of “Joker: Folie à Deux” (and you might’ve noticed there are some very strong opinions out there), you’ve got to admit that director Todd Phillips, along with his co-writer Scott Silver and star duo of Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, took a wild, risky swing with this sequel. The first “Joker” movie, released in 2019, grossed over $1 billion worldwide and won two Oscars, including a Best Actor win for Phoenix.
Given the character’s enduring popularity across comic books, television, and films, it was hardly a surprise that the character was strong enough to carry a movie on his own — especially with a heavyweight thespian like Phoenix in the role. But just how far could they take the character on a standalone journey without people asking, “Where’s Poochie?” I’m sorry. “Where’s Batman?” They’d ask where Batman was.
So it’s understandable that, what with the extreme violence and overall extremeness of “Joker,” Phillips would try to go harder with the sequel. It’s just that no one expected that going harder would compel him to make a jukebox musical/courtroom drama/quasi-erotic thriller. Which brings us to the film’s graphic sex scene between Arthur Fleck a.k.a. Joker and Harleen “Lee” Quinzel a.k.a. Harley Quinn. For most people, this sequence might’ve been wholly unexpected, but those who followed Phillips’ Instagram in the lead-up to the film’s release might’ve sensed it was coming.
Phillips tried to prepare us for this weird, possibly problematic Joker sequence
On Valentine’s Day 2023, Phillips posted a photo of a wild-eyed Gaga staring straight into the Phoenix’s grinning gaze (as seen above). He’s in his Joker makeup, so the feeling is one of madness — a madness shared by two, if you will. It’s an intense picture. And it’s also taken directly from the film’s disturbing sex scene.
Why is the scene disturbing? As /Film’s Bill Bria adroitly pointed out, Lee arranges for the conjugal visit and requests that Arthur apply his Joker makeup for their encounter. In other words, it’s a fan seducing their mentally unhinged idol, and manipulating them to appear as they’ve always imagined them in their horned-up imagination. That’s kind of wacky behavior. Inappropriate even. Maybe? I don’t know.
Whatever you think about this moment, it’s probably one of the most unforgettable sequences in a controversial movie that, judging from its D Cinemascore (that’s a tick below the D+ earned by Francis Ford Coppola’s largely maligned “Megalopolis” last weekend), cheesed off its fanbase something fierce. Combined with its box office underperformance, this is likely the final go-round for Phoenix’s Joker. But it is absolutely the end of the affair for Phillips and the Joker-istas.
