Patty

I really liked this movie and its thoughtful take on religion, but if you’re deeply religious I can understand why you wouldn’t. However, religious or not, I think each will feel a sense of vindication. The acting by everyone was phenomenal, there’s solid tension building, and it’s quite clever. This is more of a dialogue driven and psychological mystery so the gore is minimal. There are some scenes that feel a little clunky, but it delivers the overall message very well. If you enjoy philosophical content or thrillers in general, I’d suggest giving this one a try. =)

I really liked the first movie, but the sequel was disappointing. If you enjoyed the psychological thrilling atmosphere of the first movie (which is why I liked it) don’t bother, you’ll find none of that here. Nothing new is learned about the entity so it doesn’t move the story forward at all and the ending just sets it up for another typical Hollywood cash grab. It’s all jump scares, it’s very predictable, and the CGI was truly laughable.

The people giving this movie such bad reviews either truly didn’t understand the first film or simply didn’t give this sequel the chance it deserved. In the first movie Arthur clearly disassociates from his environment, his daydreams become more than unhinged fantasies to full blown delusions, that lead to violent episodes when he’s off his meds. The second film starts with him being in Arkham Asylum where he’s undoubtedly being given a heavy cocktail of drugs, all of which will have their own side effects that were most likely not even monitored. I think the musical piece was not only a creative way to show how Arthur could no longer discern daydreams from reality, but it gave us a glimpse behind the curtain into his own twisted reality. The musical pieces were meant to make the audience feel uneasy and I think it was a brilliant move! It’s unfortunate that the majority of people watching didn’t understand that this movie was a love letter to mental illness. For the record, I went into this movie believing I’d hate it because of all the negative reviews, but I ended up loving it! The acting was fantastic, Joaquin Phoenix did an amazing job (as always) and Gaga killed it. The first and second film were tied together beautifully and stayed true to its dark nature while setting the stage for future adaptations. I think we’re going look back on this movie and wonder why it received so much hate. In my opinion this sequel has earned its place among the franchise, and I’d challenge you to make your own conclusions versus allowing someone to make it up for you. After all, that’s the very essence of Joker. 🤡