Joaquin Phoenix, Burt Bacharach and Todd Philips

Nate Bloom blogs on this week's Jews in the News.

 

The Joker Sings!; Moss-Bachrach, Boogie Man?, More

 

“Joker: Folie a Deux” is the latest entry in films inspired by the Batman comic books. It opens in theaters on October 4. A “Folie a Deux” is a French expression that describes a delusion or mental illness shared by two people in close association.

 

“Folie” is a sequel to “The Joker” (2019), a huge critical and box-office hit. JOAQUIN PHOENIX, 49, starred as the Joker (real name, Arthur Fleck). Phoenix won the best actor Oscar (2020) for his (first) performance as the Joker/Arthur Fleck.

 

As I have noted before, Phoenix is the son of a non-Jewish father and a Jewish mother. Phoenix is not religious and, a few years ago, he said he defined himself as “a secular Jew.”

 

In case you are not familiar with the Joker character, here’s a capsule description: he’s a mentally ill, nihilistic criminal with a clown-inspired persona. Before turning to crime, he was a poor party clown and an aspiring stand-up comedian.

 

As “Folie” opens, the Joker/Arthur Fleck is being held (really imprisoned) in a state mental hospital. He is there because of his crimes in the first “Joker” film.

 

Lady Gaga co-stars as Harley Quinn, a music therapist at the mental hospital. She meets Fleck and is curious about him. This curiosity turns into obsession and she forms a deadly romantic relationship with Arthur Fleck.

 

Lady Gaga can certainly sing. So can Phoenix. Just watch “Walk the Line” (2005), an acclaimed film about Country music icon Johnny Cash. Phoenix got a best actor Oscar nomination for playing Cash.

 

Phoenix (as Cash) sang all the songs—quite well-- in his own voice. To be precise, he didn’t quite sing Cash’s songs in his “regular voice”. Johnny Cash spoke and sang in a baritone register. Phoenix, who takes his roles very seriously, took singing and speaking lessons for six months to master Cash’s baritone register.

 

So, here’s a big surprise: “Folie” isn’t just another comic book inspired flick---it’s a “full-on” musical!

 

A song list has not been released. But it’s clear that most of the songs are classic hits of the past (c. 1920-80). In August, 2024, the film’s director disclosed that Phoenix and Lady Gaga will sing, together, at least 3 songs: “Get Happy”, 1930 (music by HAROLD ARLEN); “For Once in My Life”, 1965 (co-written by RON MILLER. He was the only “white guy” who wrote several hit songs for Motown Records); and ‘What the World Needs Now Is Love” (written by HAL DAVID and BURT BACHARACH).

 

“Folie” was directed by TODD PHILIPS, 53. He directed the first “Joker” movie, too. He has four Oscar nominations, three of them for “The Joker”. He co-wrote both “Joker” films with SCOTT SILVER, 59.

 

“Hold Your Breath” is a psychological horror-thriller that first played the Toronto Film Festival on September 12. It begins streaming on Hulu on Oct. 3. Most of the reviews were mixed. The film’s star, Sarah Paulson, was praised for her performance as was the rest of the cast. However, most reviewers, including Variety, said the plot drew on too many sources and this ruined some of the film’s attempted thrills and chills.

 

EBON MOSS-BACHRACH,47, who won his second Emmy (“The Bear”) in September, has a major supporting role.

 

Here’s the premise: In 1930s Oklahoma, Margaret, a young mother (Paulson), becomes convinced that a mysterious presence in dust storms is threatening her family and takes extraordinary measures to protect them. Her husband is working out-of-State and she is trying to keep “bad things” from her teen daughters.

 

About half way into the film, rumors of a local drifter and murderer dovetail with the arrival of a stranger at Margaret’s home (played by Moss-Bachrach). He’s a preacher who claims to know her husband, and who also appears to have supernatural powers. Variety says “Moss-Bachrach walks a fine line between comfort and suspicion, bolstered by the girls’ fears over their bedtime story.” The ‘bedtime story’ is about “the Grey Man” a ‘boogie man’ killer.

 

Now and again, I miss something (film, TV series) worth calling to your attention that premiered a week or so before this column is published. Here’s one I missed:

 

“Killer Heat” is an Amazon Prime original crime mystery film that began streaming on Sept. 26. It’s set on the Greek island of Crete where twin brothers (both played by Richard Madden) are in a romantic triangle involving the wife of one the twins. Shailene Woodley plays the wife.

 

One brother is murdered and Nick Bali, a private detective, is brought in to investigate the case. Bali, who is described as a “damaged detective”, is also known as “The Jealousy Man”, He’s played by JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT, 43.

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