‘Joker’ sequel brings star Lady Gaga to Venice

The dark and musical sequel to Joker brought Lady Gaga to Venice on September 4, where she played the star-crossed love interest of the DC Comics-inspired antihero in one of the most anticipated films of the year.

The American megastar was the main attraction at the world premiere Joker: A Double Film at the Venice Film Festival, one of 21 films competing for the main Golden Lion prize in the prestigious competition.

The 2019 film by American director Todd Phillips, starring Joaquin Phoenix, challenges the rules of superhero films by offering a disturbing commentary on alienation in American society. The film won an award at the Venice Film Festival that same year and earned Phoenix an Oscar for Best Actor.

On the red carpet, Lady Gaga elicited screams from fans as she donned an elaborate mask resembling Batman’s two pointed ears, covered with a strip of Venetian lace. She wore a black velvet gown with a voluminous taffeta skirt.

Ahead of its September 4 release, the pop star and actress admitted she was “deeply moved” by the original film, in which ignored, ridiculed and mentally ill comedian Arthur Fleck (Phoenix) is driven to violence.

“The first film really moved me, I loved it,” Lady Gaga said at a press conference, calling Phoenix’s performance one of those that “set the bar incredibly high.”

“I think sometimes when you’re telling stories about people that society might misunderstand, the director gives you a chance… to really look deeper into that world,” the 38-year-old said.

“I felt that when I saw the first film, I understood something that I hadn’t seen before. That’s why I made this film.”

The sequel relies heavily on musical pieces to express Fleck’s inner feelings, with dark, brooding renditions of classics like Be happy Or For the first time in my life.

Phoenix, 49, told reporters that he “had a dream where I was performing as the Joker and singing songs, and I just called Todd because I thought there might be something to it.”

As Phillips said, that idea came to fruition and Lady Gaga became another piece of the puzzle.

Both actors sang live on set, Phoenix said, which created a “necessary” energy.

“At first she was like, ‘Oh, we’re going to sing live,’ and I was like, ‘No, we’re not. You can sing live if you want.’ And we ended up doing it and it was really the only way,” Phoenix told reporters.

As Lady Gaga said, the music in the film was meant to “give the characters a chance to say what they need to say.”

“We worked really hard on the way we sang. For me, it was a lot about unlearning technique and forgetting how to breathe, letting the song come completely out of character,” she said.

Lady Gaga later announced on social media that the first single from her next album titled LG7 will be released in October.

(From left) Director Todd Phillips, actress and singer Lady Gaga and American actor Joaquin Phoenix arrive at the Casino Pier during the 81st Venice International Film Festival in Lido di Venice, September 4, 2024. Photo: AFP

High expectations

In his return to the big screen after Gucci House (2021) Lady Gaga stars as Harley Quinn, the Joker’s partner in crime and the object of his love, whom she becomes obsessed with while he awaits trial for his series of murders.

The 2019 film — loosely based on DC Comics characters and set in a grim Gotham City — was a huge success, earning $1 billion at the box office, but was met with criticism for its nihilistic violence.

Phillips said he was happy to be back in Venice, but was “a little more nervous” this time around.

“I think it’s a lot easier to go into something as a rebel than as a person in power,” he said.

“The expectations for the second film are much higher, so I definitely felt more nervous than I did with the first one.”

Co-writing the script with American screenwriter Scott Silver, Phillips said he knew it had to be as bold as the original for Phoenix to re-sign.

“If we were really going to do this, it must have scared him as much as the first attempt. It must have seemed daring,” he said.

This year’s festival was full of Hollywood glamour, with a whole galaxy of stars appearing on the red carpet, from Daniel Craig and Angelina Jolie to Nicole Kidman and Michael Keaton. – AFP