As a psychologist who has spent countless hours delving into the minds of Gotham’s most twisted individuals, I must say that the ending of Joker: Folie à Deux leaves more questions than answers. The enigmatic Harleen Quinzel, played by the enchanting Lady Gaga, seems to be a master manipulator, using her knowledge of psychology to ensnare the troubled Arthur Fleck, portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix with an Oscar-worthy performance.
Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Joker: Folie à Deux
The follow-up film, titled Joker: Two Madnesses, has made its way to cinemas. Given the box office performance, it appears that not a large number of people felt compelled to catch the sequel to the 2019 blockbuster. Furthermore, considering the unfavorable responses from both critics and viewers, it’s safe to assume that those who did watch it might have left unsatisfied. Some viewers may have been disappointed to discover the movie was a musical, as the film’s promotions and press tour seemed to minimize this aspect. However, the most contentious part of the film seems to be its ending.
Following two films that established Arthur Fleck’s transformation into the infamous DC villain, the Joker, director Todd Phillips plays a trick on the audience, causing everything seen so far to be reevaluated. Despite Joker depicting an imagined relationship between Arthur Fleck and his neighbor, the sequel introduces another reality-altering twist that not all fans are thrilled about. In the end, it is revealed that this story was never solely about Arthur Fleck becoming the Joker. Instead, the Joker transcends a single individual. Here’s what takes place at the conclusion of Joker: Folie à Deux and its true meaning.
Arthur Is Killed and the True Joker Is Born
In the aftermath of his trial, Arthur Fleck finds himself back in Arkham Asylum, presumably awaiting execution since he was convicted on all charges. When a guard informs him of a visitor, a previously unseen patient named Connor Storrie from the film steps forward. This individual requests that Arthur share a joke with him, which is significant because throughout the movie, guards mock Arthur and ask him to tell them jokes. It appears to be the first time someone has ever asked this of Arthur, prompting him to inquire about the joke himself.
The joke is about a sad clown (Arthur) and a psychopath (the young inmate), with the psychopath describing his disappointment in the clown. The punchline of the joke is the same as Arthur said to Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro) before he shot him at the end of Joker: “You get what you f—ing deserve.”
Arthur Fleck succumbs to repeated stabbings with a homemade knife by a young inmate, and eventually perishes. As he lies there mortally wounded, the assailant appears to etch a grin onto his face with the same knife, followed by laughter. The implication of the film suggests that this killer might become the iconic Joker figure familiar to comic book fans.
Joker: Folie à Deux Is Not a Prequel to The Dark Knight
The death of Arthur Fleck at the hands of another has an eyebrow-raising moment. After stabbing Arthur, the inmate carves a Glasgow smile onto himself, similar to the one Heath Ledger’s version of the character wore in The Dark Knight. Ledger’s Joker famously had no set origin within the film. When he would tell people “how he got these scars,” he would provide different origins. Did Joker: Folie a Deux explain the origin behind the scars, and is the film an origin story for The Dark Knight trilogy?
As a dedicated movie fan, I must clarify that it’s highly improbable for ‘The Dark Knight’ films and ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ to coexist in the same universe. Folie à Deux’, it appears that Dent gets his scars in a courtroom explosion, which seems to be years before he would acquire them in ‘The Dark Knight’. Furthermore, the ages of characters like Bruce Wayne, Harvey Dent, and the new Joker seem to have significant gaps, while ‘The Dark Knight’ establishes all these characters as being roughly the same age.
In this movie, it is suggested that the inmate who attacks Arthur Fleck and adopts a Glasgow smile isn’t Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker but instead might be the real Joker character for this film. The persona that Arthur Fleck developed was the starting point for this individual, who eventually became known as the Joker, often seen battling Batman in other stories. However, one may wonder why director Todd Phillips would reference the most iconic Joker depiction of the 21st century in his own film.
It’s interesting to note that the choice to give the character a Glasgow smile, reminiscent of Heath Ledger’s Joker portrayal, was made, despite Christopher Nolan previously expressing opposition to it, possibly due to respect for Heath Ledger. This decision could be seen as inappropriate. However, it also sheds light on the notion that the Glasgow smile serves as a visual symbol representing the authentic “Joker.” In other words, Arthur Fleck was intended to become The Joker, leading up to the potential sequel, “Joker: Folie a Deux.” This new claim by Todd Phillips about the plan being always in place seems contradictory.
Is Harley Quinn Lying About Her Pregnancy?
Or Is She the Mother of the Real Joker?
One unresolved question left by Joker: Folie a Deux involves the destiny of the film’s portrayal of Harleen “Lee” Quinzel, better known as Harley Quinn. The movie deviates from the traditional dynamic between Joker and Harley Quinn seen in works like Batman: The Animated Series, comics, and DCEU by having Harley break free from her abusive relationship with the Joker before the story begins.
In the story of “Joker: Folie à Deux”, Lee chooses to deceive Arthur Fleck rather than the other way around. Initially, she misleads him by claiming they share the same neighborhood and have similar dysfunctional families when, on the contrary, she is a prosperous resident of Gotham whose parents are alive and healthy. It’s also uncovered that Harleen has a background in psychology, which enables her to control someone like Arthur more effectively.
At the movie’s climax, when Arthur encounters Lee on the steps of their former apartment, he proposes they cohabit. However, Lee shows no desire to be with him anymore, asserting that there’s only lonely Arthur Fleck and no Joker. She never truly loved him but rather the concept of him. When Arthur inquires about the baby, she departs. This leaves viewers debating whether Lee was truthful about her pregnancy or if it was a fabrication to control Arthur Fleck further.
The idea of Harleen giving birth to Arthur’s son could play into Todd Phillips’s idea that Arthur was never the Joker. It might not even be the inmate who stabbed him that becomes the true Joker, but Arthur Fleck’s and Harleen Quinzel’s kid, one who will carry on his father’s legacy and be manipulated by his mother to become the Joker that she wanted Arthur to be. In that way, Todd Phillips could still claim Joker and Joker: Folie a Deux are origin stories for The Joker, as the events of these two films show how the idea of the character as a concept and his literary conception took place.
While this interpretation of the ending and both movies is plausible, it’s important to note that if this was the intended narrative, the execution might not have been wholly successful.
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2024-10-10 06:01