If Joker 2 was meant to expand on the tortured psyche of Arthur Fleck, it succeeded only in expanding my boredom. What made the first film so intriguing-the slow descent into madness-was replaced with a frantic, disjointed attempt to outdo its predecessor without any real sense of direction. Fleck's evolution (or lack thereof) feels more like a series of erratic, isolated scenes than a cohesive narrative.
The film struggles to find its tone, oscillating between forced social commentary and a carnival of absurdity, leaving neither thought-provoking nor entertaining moments to cling to. It's as if the filmmakers believed that more chaos automatically equals more depth, but instead, it comes off as empty spectacle with none of the philosophical grit that made the original resonate. The character development was shallow, almost as if they hoped we wouldn't notice the lack of story under the avalanche of neon-lit chaos and ominous laughs.
Joaquin Phoenix, ever the committed actor, did his best, but even his performance couldn't save a script that feels more like a checklist of provocations than an actual journey. Joker 2 is a poor imitation of its own predecessor, like trying to laugh at the same joke twice-only this time, it falls flat, and you're left wondering why you ever found it funny in the first place.
Verdict? Skip this punchline.
