New Delhi:

Joker: Folie a Deux This is the result when a Hollywood studio tries to squeeze out a sequel to a strong and standalone film that has all the qualities of a standalone film – a disappointment that never emerges from the depths it goes through. The successor lacks the essence and potential of 2019 jokerwhich won the Golden Lion of Venice and, despite mixed reviews, was a major worldwide box office success. The expansion of the Joker origin is based solely on the hope of raking in more money.

The plot is based on a sluggish, drawn-out plot that, apart from Arthur Fleck's abrupt discovery of love in the most unlikely way and Lady Gaga's seductive voice, which occasionally lifts the film out of the swamp of dreariness into which it sinks, does little has to offer through novelty and real magnetism.

Joker: Folie a Deux is technically flawless, visually arresting (returning cinematographer Lawrence Sher is at his best) and musically rich (thanks to composer Hildur Guanodottir, who won the Oscar, BAFTA Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Score for Joker). Still, director Todd Phillips' repetition feels rather ill-advised.

“Joker: Folie a Deux” is more of a hopeful shot in the dark than a well-thought-out exercise aimed at further exploring the unstable mind of Arthur and the consequences of his criminal actions.

Joker was powered by a transcendent performance from Joaquin Phoenix. He's just as good in the sequel. By slipping into the shoes of a man constantly teetering on the edge of madness, and holding back the guttural giggles a little, he brings great dynamism to a physically and mentally broken Arthur Fleck battling a self split into two conflicting personalities.

Lady Gaga has far less to offer, but her singing and screen presence more than make up for what the character lacks in authentic dramatic power. That being said, the chemistry between her and Phoenix, while never anything more than functional, has an intriguing, captivating quality.

“Joker: Folie a Deux” begins with an animated film about Joker and his shadow, before a wipe transition takes the audience into the gray, forbidding interior of Arkham State Hospital, where Arthur Fleck is housed, before the legal action facing law enforcement the punishment will deliver believe he deserves it.

Written by Scott Silver and Todd Phillips, Joker: Folie a Deux is peppered with lively covers of a number of famous songs, appearing at regular intervals and serving as a means of communication between Arthur, now a patient in a maximum security wing of Arkham Prison Hospital.

He is awaiting trial for the murders of five people, including his idol, late-night talk show host Murray Franklin, whom he shot in the head on live television in the previous film. Large parts of the thin story are based directly on what happened in the prequel.

Joker: Folie a Deux moves between Arkham with its inmates and guards and the courthouse where Arthur is on trial, represented by lawyer Maryanne Stewart (Catherine Keener), with whom he often comes into conflict.

Newly elected District Attorney Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) is determined to send Arthur to the electric chair. He asks questions about what Arthur did two years ago in run-down, recession-hit Gotham City, where the rich and powerful held sway and had little accountability to the people affected by their greed.

The guards in Arkham, led by Jackie Sullivan (Brendon Gleeson), make life difficult for Arthur. But the harassed man takes the harassment on the chin. Through strong, regular medication he seems to have achieved a certain level of normality.

His good behavior gives Arthur some leeway and he is allowed to attend music therapy sessions in another wing that houses less problematic patients. There he discovers Lee Quinzel (Lady Gaga), who is obsessed with the Joker and immediately approaches him with interest.

Arthur befriends Lee over music and their shared mental health struggles. Love blossoms between two souls seeking comfort. Hope and fulfillment await, even as Arthur's trial, centered on the defense's argument that the murders were committed by the Joker and not Arthur Fleck, is about to begin.

After finding love and a spark of acceptance, Arthur goes off his medication, triggering a gradual return to the Joker that resides within him. He often notices that the judge reprimands him. At one point Arthur is warned that this is not a comedy club and “you are not on stage.”

Here Arthur oscillates back and forth – between the real world, which doesn't care at all about his kind, and a fantasy universe that he creates together with Lee. Reality is disturbing. Arthur and Lee attempt to escape into an imaginary domain full of musical routines that will give Lady Gaga, who otherwise plays second fiddle to Phoenix, the space to show off her wares to the fullest.

These set pieces, no matter how labeled they may appear, give “Joker: Folie a Deux” rare moments of beauty and strength. The state of Arthur's fragile psyche is underscored by the performances that come to mind, whether in a club, at a variety show or in the courtroom, which becomes the stage for an angry musical outburst.

These are interesting touches that suggest Arthur's desperate escape from the wounds and pain of the past toward a retreat that promises harmony and release.

However, not only is the narrative woefully poor, but there is hardly any character development. The musical numbers distract our attention from the lack of real inspiration in the story and overall treatment. As long as I have love, I can do it, it says in one of the songs. As for the film, despite all the love and music it puts out, it doesn't quite make it.

Such a large number of musical numbers is unusual for a film as dark as Joker: Folie a Deux. But regardless of the songs and dances, Phillips clearly doesn't want audiences to think of the film as a musical. This takes some of the luster out of an exercise that would have served well to highlight the contradictions between style and content.

The light in Arthur and Lee – the latter speaks and sings about building “a mountain out of a little hill” and “a heaven out of a little hell” once the two are free – but can dispel the darkness that envelops them be as consistent as you want?

The confusion is never resolved. Parts of Joker: Folie a Deux are insanely disjointed. If this is intended to convey the intricacies inherent in the functioning of two damaged minds, it doesn't quite work.