After the gritty, nihilistic nightmare that was “Joker” and its try to offer a sensible origin story for the clown prince of crime, it was considerably of a shock to listen to that director Todd Phillips was making the sequel a musical. But it surely seems that “Joker: Folie à Deux” is a compelling musical deconstruction of the themes explored within the field workplace megahit that was the unique. Although stars Joaquin Phoenix and Woman Gaga sing their approach via this unlikely sequel, Phillips and co-writer Scott Silver aren’t any much less involved with deconstructing the character of the Joker and sustaining a naturalistic method to his ongoing story.
That has made for one of the crucial unique, creative, and anticipated comedian e-book films of the yr, with followers curious to see how giving Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck the musical therapy may presumably work. The character was proven as a downtrodden outcast in 2019’s “Joker,” with Todd Phillips offering an origin story that indicts the society surrounding Fleck as a lot because it calls into query the character’s personal conduct. No matter how you are feeling concerning the movie, there is no doubt it was a singular imaginative and prescient executed with seemingly little or no enter from the studio. In different phrases, Phillips very a lot gave us his model of the basic Batman rogue.
Within the 5 years since, Warner Bros. and DC have undergone a seismic shift that noticed the shuttering of the now erstwhile DC Prolonged Universe (DCEU) and the daybreak of a brand new age of DC films. Led by James Gunn and his producing associate Peter Safran, the brand new DC Studios will launch a contemporary shared universe, starting with Gunn’s upcoming David Corenswet-led “Superman” film. For now, although, each Phillips’ “Joker” films and Matt Reeves’ “Batman” movies sit outdoors this new continuity, suggesting the 2 administrators have been given full autonomy to craft their visions of Gotham unimpeded.
However with Gunn now accountable for taking up Marvel and main DC to superhero supremacy, how hands-off can he actually be?
Was James Gunn concerned in Joker: Folie à Deux?
DC Studios will try and succeed the place the DCEU considerably succeeded earlier than finally failing spectacularly. Establishing a shared cinematic universe is tough, and solely “John Wick” has actually come shut to managing it efficiently in recent times — not counting the granddaddy of shared continuity, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which in and of itself has confronted troubles of late. So, James Gunn and Peter Safran have their work minimize out. One component they will not need to cope with, nevertheless, is the best way to work the pre-existing DC films into their very own universe.
At a “Joker: Folie à Deux” pre-screening Q&A, attended by /Movie’s Invoice Bria, Todd Phillips and co-writer Scott Silver answered questions concerning the film. Requested whether or not James Gunn made any adjustments to “Folie à Deux,” Phillips claimed that the brand new DC Studios head had precisely zero enter on the movie general. “With all due respect to [Gunn and Safran],” he mentioned, “That is form of a Warner Brothers film, and that is them additionally wanting it to be like, ‘Okay, Todd did his factor. Let Todd proceed to do his factor.'” Silver added that the film had additionally “began earlier than [Gunn and Safran] even got here up for it,” seemingly referring to their appointment at co-head of DC Studios, so it appears “Folie à Deux” was already coming collectively earlier than the brand new division was even a factor.
In line with Phillips, whereas Gunn and Safran have seen a minimize of the film, “It’s not like DC correct, regardless that it will say DC after.” Which mainly signifies that “Folie à Deux” unequivocally sits outdoors of no matter shared continuity Gunn and Safran are creating with DC Studios. Which, frankly, is an efficient factor for anybody who’s a fan of those director-led efforts to create their very own inventive visions based mostly on DC characters.
James Gunn will seemingly keep faraway from movies like Joker
Whereas it is not inconceivable for administrators to comprehend their very own inventive visions and preserve their sensibilities whereas working inside the framework of a shared universe, it is a heck of quite a bit tougher than it could be in any other case. Simply take a look at what the MCU did to poor previous Sam Raimi with “Physician Unusual and the Multiverse of Insanity.” When “Joker” debuted to rave critiques and made $1 billion again in 2019, there was little doubt {that a} main a part of its enchantment was Todd Phillips’ imaginative and prescient for the character. Borrowing concepts from gritty Martin Scorsese’s movies, most notably “Taxi Driver,” “Joker” was an try and put a brand new spin on the title character, and whether or not you respect the outcome as a novel directorial imaginative and prescient or a pastiche of different filmmakers’ greatest work, one factor is for certain: Todd Phillips made “Joker” his approach.
The identical may be mentioned of Matt Reeves and “The Batman” from 2022. Once more, Reeves was given inventive freedom to determine his personal imaginative and prescient of the Darkish Knight and Gotham. Like Phillips, he borrowed fairly closely from celebrated movies of the previous. “The Batman” is basically “Seven” with costumes and a much less compelling thriller. However once more, it is that approach as a result of Reeves needed it to be, and the film would have regarded a heck of quite a bit totally different had the director been compelled to stick to an overarching franchise storyline and aesthetic.
In that sense, it is reassuring to listen to that Gunn was basically uninvolved in “Joker 2,” and the director has spoken enthusiastically about producing these types of initiatives transferring ahead as “Elseworlds” movies, suggesting his lack of involvement in these films will seemingly proceed.