News culture “15 minutes and I’m out” This renowned Hollywood director dismantles Joker 2 with Joaquin Phoenix
Published on 10/18/2024 at 1:15 p.m.
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Clearly, few people seem to like Joker: Folie à Deux. And this renowned director is certainly not one of them.
Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga? “I don’t like either of them. »
An essential figure in cinema, Paul Schrader is a screenwriter and director mainly cited as the screenwriter of the cult film Taxi Driver by Martin Scorsese. He has also directed several successful films, such as Blue Collar, Hardcore and American Gigolo. He is known for his love of isolated and tormented characters, confronted with moral and existential dilemmas. So naturally, we imagine that the gentleman would be rather a fan of the Joker (especially since some critics have considered him to be an important influence on the original Joker), and yet. This week, the filmmaker made very harsh comments about Joker: Folie à Deux, saying that he left after 10 or 15 minutes of the screening, that he bought something, that he came back 10 minutes later and he finally decided: “ That’s enough ». A confidence made during a conversation with playwright Jeremy O Harris for Interview Magazine. Schrader described the sequel as a “ very bad musical », before sharing his disdain towards actors Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga: “ I don’t like either one. I don’t like them as actors. I don’t like them as characters. I don’t like all this. »
“I mean these are people who, if they came to your house, would take you out the back door. »
A hell of a flop
Critics generally received Joker: Folie à Deux with an unexpected coldness. Far from reproducing the critical and commercial success of the first opus, this sequel was considered disappointing by the majority of the press. The film, whose budget was nearly $200 million, struggled to achieve its box office goals and earned a weak score of 33% on RottenTomatoes in addition to its D rating on CinemaScore (which represents a first for a DC film). Faced with these disappointing results, Warner Bros. decided to accelerate its release on video on demand, a rare decision for a film of this scale. This strategy, although risky, aims above all to limit financial losses linked to an unexpected commercial failure.
