Sawt Falasteen - Expectations high for dark, music-filled 'Joker' sequel with Lady Gaga

The megastar was the hotly anticipated attraction on the glitzy Lido, as the Venice Film Festival hosts the world premiere of Todd Phillips's new film, the dark and subversive "Joker: Folie a Deux" -- one of 21 films in contention for the top prize awarded Saturday.

Subverting the codes of the superhero film, 2019's "Joker" was a searing commentary on alienation in American society, in which an ignored, mocked and mentally ill stand-up comic, Arthur Fleck (Phoenix), is driven to violence.

"The first film really deeply moved me, I loved it so much," Lady Gaga told a press conference ahead of the premiere, calling Phoenix's performance one that "set the bar extremely high".

The film won Venice's top Golden Lion award in 2019 and went on to win Phoenix a Best Actor Oscar.

"I think sometimes when stories are told about people that are maybe misunderstood by society, the director gives you a chance... to really take a hard look at that world in a deeper way," Lady Gaga said.

"I felt like when I watched the first film I got to understand something I may not have seen before, that's why I did this movie."

The sequel heavily relies on musical numbers to express the inner feelings of Fleck, in dark, brooding renditions of classics such as "Get Happy" or "For Once in my Life".

Phoenix told journalists how he "had this dream that I was performing as Joker doing songs and I just called Todd because I thought there might be something there."

That idea took flight, and Lady Gaga was the next part of the puzzle, Phillips said.

When the screenplay started coming alive with music, "we said, 'Oh well, my God, imagine if we get Lady Gaga, an actress who obviously brings music with her', it just felt right," he said.

Lady Gaga said the musical work was "extremely nuanced", as it was a vehicle to "give characters way to express what they need to say because the scene and just the dialogue is not enough".

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

- High expectations -

In her return to the big screen after 2021's "House of Gucci", Lady Gaga plays Harley Quinn, the partner in crime and love interest of the Joker, with whom she becomes obsessed as he awaits trial for his murder spree.

The film -- loosely based on the DC Comics characters and set in a gritty Gotham City -- was wildly successful, grossing $1 billion at the box office but sparking criticism for its nihilistic violence.

Philipps said he was happy to return to Venice, but "a little more nervous" this time around.

"I think it's a lot easier to come in to something as the insurgent as opposed to coming in as the incumbent," he said.

"There's a lot more expectations on a second film so there's definitely a sense of more nervousness than I had with the first one."

In co-writing the screenplay with Scott Silver, Phillips said he knew it would have to be as daring as the original in order for Phoenix to sign on again.

"If we really were going to do it, it had to scare him in the same way the first one did. It had to feel audacious," he said.

This year's festival has been awash in Hollywood pizzazz, with a long roster of A-listers taking a twirl on the red carpet, from Daniel Craig and Angelina Jolie to Nicole Kidman and Michael Keaton.

But Lady Gaga's appearance on the red carpet Wednesday evening could eclipse even that of George Clooney and Brad Pitt, whose hijinks in front of fans ahead of their film "Wolfs" premiere Sunday was a highlight of the festival, which ends Saturday.

F.AbuShamala--SF-PST