Lady Gaga Responds to Mixed Reactions to ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’

Recently, Lady Gaga spoke on the conflicting reactions to ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’, in which she played Harley Quinn and Joaquin Phoenix played the Joker. The popularity and controversy of the first movie, as well as the casting of Gaga, raised anticipation for the 2019 blockbuster ‘Joker’ sequel. Nevertheless, the October release received largely unfavourable reviews and did poorly at the box office. Tim Dillon, who portrayed a security guard at Arkham Asylum in the movie, disclosed that he and other actors were unsure about the final cut while it was being made.

Gaga has previously lauded the film’s originality and intricacy, calling director Todd Phillips’ decision to make the sequel a musical a “big swing.” When asked about the movie’s response in a recent interview with Elle, she said that it’s a simple fact that sometimes people just don’t like certain things. She went on to say that being an artist entails embracing the fact that not everything will speak to everyone and keeping up the creative process even when something doesn’t work out as planned.

Image Courtesy: People

There were many who supported the movie in spite of the criticism. For instance, Quentin Tarantino publicly said that he “really, really liked” the sequel and brushed off the criticism, claiming that his preferences were irrelevant and asking why anyone should give a damn about his viewpoint.

Additionally, ‘Folie À Deux’ made history by being the first Hollywood comic book adaptation to achieve a CinemaScore “D.” This is uncommon, even for poorly received films like ‘The Marvels’ or ‘The Flash’, which both received a “B.” Additionally, the movie scored a pitiful 32% from reviewers and a corresponding 32% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.

Image Courtesy: People

Gaga is now working on her next studio album, ‘Mayhem’, which is scheduled for release in March. With inspirations ranging from Prince and Bowie’s guitar attitude and melodies to the ’90s alternative and electro-grunge, funky bass lines, French electronic dance, and analogue synths, she characterized the album as a chaotic mashup of genres.

–Farheen Ali 

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