| Date watched | October 5th |
|---|---|
| Show Time | 12:30 |
| Theater | Gucci |
| Theater Number | 1 |
| Pizza | No Pizza |
| Tickets | At Box Office |
| Letterboxd Rating | ** 1/2 (2.5) |
| Crew | Me, Coach T, Science Bro, MeHoniBear |
Waking up at 4 AM all week means that a 12:30 PM movie doesn’t exactly feel early, but it does require vigilance to avoid losing track of time. MeHoniBear is trekking in from the northern suburbs, and Coach T is being a total champ, driving him all the way in. I keep telling myself, “Eat something, they might not have pizza this time,” but my hopes are perpetually high for pizza. I was also pretty hyped for what looked like a musical sequel to the gritty Beau is Afraid-meets-Joker vibe. Quick side note: NBA player Nikola Jokic, nicknamed “The Joker,” would definitely take down the Jokers from both of these movies.
I park and text the crew, only to realize that Science Bro has also just arrived and parked a space away. We chat a bit, but Coach T and MeHoniBear roll up soon after, and the gang’s all here.
First time in Theater 1! The big one. It even has an elevator. Fancy! But no pizza. Sad face. Consolation prize: a hot dog. We snagged seats in Row B, which turned out to be the perfect spot to B.
Now, onto the movie.
It kicks off with a quirky animated short about the Joker’s shadow trying to steal the spotlight funny and definitely a little weird. Then, we’re dropped straight into Arkham Asylum, though it’s portrayed more like a tiny, poorly funded prison. Brendan Gleeson (the “finger man” from Banshees of Inisherin what a movie) plays an antagonistic guard who dishes out plenty of exposition. It’s loaded with classic 1970s prison tropes: the yard, questionable relationships, terrible food, and guards who are both friendly and menacing. Oh, and we can’t forget Steve Carell’s girlfriend from The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Catherine Keener, who also rocked it in Capote such a great movie! And, of course, Lady Gaga. Her singing and performance were magical.
Costumes and lighting? On point. It’s hard to make tattered garments look good, but they totally pulled it off. There’s this one scene where Arthur’s suit shifts from deep burgundy to a dark, ashy color, and it really captured the mood of the moment.
Now, onto the plot … no spoilers, but I wasn’t blown away. The pacing dragged, and the dance numbers teased a bigger, more exciting production than what we actually got. At 2 hours and 18 minutes, plus trailers, we were sitting there for about 2:45. After the movie, we kept hashing out what we didn’t like for another 90 minutes, so it was nearly 5 PM by the time we finally wrapped up the group grumble.
If you loved the first Joker, this one might not be your thing. But if you’re here for Lady Gaga or just want to vibe with the soundtrack, give it a shot or better yet, grab the Harlequin album from her site https://shop.ladygaga.com/products/harlequin-digital-album
Next week is ACL, but if we’re feeling ambitious, we might catch Terrifier 3 late at night. TBD.
-Note: Will and Harper I made an outline and then used AI as a cruch pretty hard. This week I wrote it all out and then asked to correct grammar and punctuation and help it be more cohesive. I liked the outcome of this way better. I’ll keep working on it and hopefully soon I can get away with just like a grammar checker - fingers crossed.