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Joker: Folie Á Deux
Joker: Folie Á Deux
A Dog Called … Vengeance
(Severin Blu-ray)
Spanish writer-director Antonio Isasi set A Dog (1978) in an unnamed Central American nation, but he certainly had his homeland in mind. Spain had just emerged from a decades-long dictatorship whose worst moment are mirrored in this film. The protagonist, a math professor (Jason Miller), has memorized a list of dissidents wanted by the regime. Escaping confinement before they can crack him, he kills a brutal guard, but the guard’s faithful dog (who responds to commands in German) continues in relentless, snarling pursuit.
The metaphor is clear enough: it’s the mindless obedience of brutes that sustain violent authoritarianism. Isai accomplished much on a modest budget, cutting away to banners proclaiming the dictator’s slogan—20 Years of Progress and Order—and showing the pursuit from the dog’s low to the ground POV. The screenplay is terse but revealing. The professor does math equations in his head to keep his sanity while locked up. Despite the hand-to-paw combat that occurs, a message at the film’s onset assures us that “None of the animals involved were harmed in the making of this film.” (David Luhrssen)
Joker: Folie à Deux
(In Theaters Oct. 4)
While awaiting trial at Arkham State Hospital, Arthur Fleck/Joker (Joaquin Phoenix) joins a musical therapy group where he meets fellow inmate Lee Quinzel (Lady Gaga). She’s wild for Arthur, and so begins a romance that reinvigorates the broken, emaciated criminal. Some action occurs inside Arthur’s imagination, some inside the institution, some inside a courtroom where Arthur frequently appears wearing his Joker makeup. His inner dialog is voiced by a selection of old-time tunes such as “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” or “If My Friends Could See Me Now.” Inspired to become Harley Quinn, Gaga’s Lee delivers captivating song and dance renditions, and most importantly, an unforced performance. There’s little plot to fill the two-hour-20- minute runtime, but director Todd Phillips keeps things moving, aided by Brendan Gleeson as an abusive guard, Catherine Keener as Arthur’s attorney, and Steve Coogan as a tabloid-TV reporter. DC Comic book aficionados may wince, but romantic musical fans get what they came for. (Lisa Miller)
White Bird
(In Theaters Oct. 4)
This Holocaust survival story was adapted from the YA graphic novel by R.J. Palacio. Director Marc Forster’s vision gets a boost from Helen Mirren’s narration. She portrays the grandmother of privileged, misbehaving, Manhattan high schooler Julian (Bryce Gheisar). After the lad bullies a physically challenged classmate, Grandma Sara recounts when Nazis arrived in her Alsatian town. She was 15 (played by Ariella Glaser), but life remained normal, until one day, it wasn’t. Sara was helped by a polio-lamed boy (Orlando Schwerdt) along with his generous parents (Gillian Anderson, Jo-Stone Fewings), who kept her fed and hidden in their barn. Pleasing on most counts, the two-hour, PG-13 story slowly develops into an unlikely romance as Sara comes to love the handicapped boy she’d previously written off. While “earnest” is an adjective frequently used to describe this tale, Forster elevates it with touching scenarios. He sidesteps the melodrama, until the final 15 minutes when he’s knee-deep in it. (Lisa Miller)
