This post containsspoilers for Joker: Folie a Deux.
Which to be fair is not unlike the manyElseworldstales published byDC Comics.
With rare exceptions like Gary Puddles, everyone in that world exists to torment Arthur Fleck.
That begins when she is introduced asthe Jokerspsychologist at Arkham.
She is manipulated into becoming a fellow evil clown.
In theory, Phillips and Silver have a compelling inverse on the traditional Harley/Joker dynamic.
InFolie a Deux, its Lee who twists Joker.
Whatever value that inversion might have gets diluted by the despairing sludge that isJoker: Folie a Deux.
The legend of 2016sSuicide Squadhas been told time and time again.
Like Phillips, Ayer has a fairly one-note take on Harley.
Although amped up to ridiculous degrees,Birds of Preyretains pathos in Harleys plight.
But that core truth shines through the levels of glitzy, comic book excess.
As withBirds of Prey, Harleys story in this 2021 film remains fundamentally relatable underneath the over-the-top superhero excess.
