Joker 2 is not a hit, the first reviews are very mixed

The pas de deux between Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga did not particularly appeal at the Venice Film Festival.

Clearly, this Joker is no Ace… While the 2019 film had the whole world cracking up, even making its way to the Oscars, the sequel will clearly have a hard time doing as well. Joker 2 debuted Wednesday night at the Venice Film Festival and critics in the room were very divided.

IndieWire's was the most virulent, arguing that this Joker: Madness for Two looks like “intentionally bad“. The paper kills: “This excruciatingly – perhaps even deliberately – boring sequel does everything in its power not to amuse us.“and think about it”popular cinema as a form of collective punishment“. He also judges that Todd Phillips failed to take advantage of its cast, in particular Lady Gaga in the role of Harley.”In theory, it seemed like a delightfully chaotic idea to troll audiences by introducing Lady Gaga as the Joker's partner in madness… But why then relegate her to the sidelines for most of the story in favor of endless trial scenes that literally rehash the events of the previous film? ?”

The Guardian's English journalist found the film to be “was going off the rails and losing the thread,” in such an approach “shrill and laborious, even downright boring, a bit like the first film”. He finds that the musical touches still bring something more, but according to him, this suite ““does not examine anything plausible, sad, funny or unexpected” about the Joker.

So hollow and meaningless? This is also somewhat the feeling of the BBC critic, who finds “the boring, disappointing and useless result” His colleague from Variety finally summed up: Joker 2 has lost the power of the first one and in a way makes it less interesting and less impactful: “What we wanted to see in Crazy for Twois the story of Arthur, this ordinary maniac who, by embracing his identity as the Joker, transcends who he is. The disappointment comes from the fact that he makes us feel that way too little. There are many scenes with Arthur disguised as the Joker, defending himself in the courtroom, singing this or that, and sometimes in fantastical numbers that could almost take place in his head. But his presence no longer brings any danger. He is not trying to kill anyone and he is not leading a revolution. He simply sings and (sometimes) dances to make a place for himself in his Joker dream..”

Not all the press is so scathing. Deadline reports that the film is “a brilliant musical return to a world of madness (…) where old-fashioned musical fantasy and real-world violence intersect“, emphasizing how much Lady Gaga knew how to be “intelligently discreet” in her portrayal of Harley, which is very different from Margot Robbie's previous performances. The Hollywood Reporter also mentions Robbie's musical flair Joker 2 : “These musical numbers, both duets and solos, give a vitality that this often austere film desperately needs.” Because basically, he writes that this sequel is “frustrating” And “uneven“.

Despite everything, Joker: Madness for Twowhich will be released in theaters in France on October 2, will undoubtedly be a box office hit. The first part brought in $1.2 billion.