Quentin Tarantino praises Joker: Folie à Deux despite its tepid fan response

Joker: Folie à Deux was, by and large, a failure. The film struggled mightily at the box office, and is on pace to lose Warner Bros. $150-200 million. The critical reception was similarly harsh, with fans and critics alike derided the film for its structure and lengthy runtime.

Few people have spoken positively about the film, but star Joaquin Phoenix and director Todd Phillips have just gained a powerful ally: Quentin Tarantino. The revered filmmaker recently went on the Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, and praised Joker: Folie à Deux for its bold narrative choices.

Tarantino was dazzled by the film's anarchist spirit

Tarantino admitted he was reticent going into the film, and worried that it would be more of an "exercise in intellectualism" than an entertaining story. He was pleasantly surprised. He felt that Phoenix gave one of the best screen performances he had ever seen, and praised Phillips for his decision to upend the appeal of the first film.

"Todd Phillips is the Joker. The Joker directed the movie. The entire concept, even him spending the studio’s money — he’s spending it like the Joker would spend it, all right?"

He likened the film to one of his own screenplays

Tarantino was delighted by the notion of a director taking $200 million from Hollywood and saying "f**k you to the movie audience... f**k you to anybody who owns any stock at DC and Warner Bros." The Oscar winner even likened the Joker sequel to one of his own screenplays, Natural Born Killers (1994), which is a comparison most fans have failed to make.

Tarantino was an enormous fan of the first Joker, and conceded that Folie à Deux was a messier affair, but was so won over by the ambition and the boldness that he couldn't deny what Phoenix and Phillips had done. The filmmaker's opinion will certainly stand out more than it did with the first film, as Folie à Deux currently sits at 32% on Rotten Tomatoes.