Rule # 1 in Entertainment
Know Your Audience
That rule has been spectacularly broken with Joker 2.
I won’t rehash all the reason’s for the failure of that film - Ace of Spades, at the above link, does a brilliant job of that.
No, I’m going to discuss a deeper, and more fundamental problem.
Why are American audiences so eager to see films that glamourize anti-social personalities that create chaos and violence? Particularly when that chaos impacts the lives of average Americans - those who cannot afford the basic necessities of life without considerable personal sacrifice - and makes it more difficult and expensive to shop, harder to find or hold a job, and destroys home values in the surrounding neighborhoods?
Say what you will about American culture, most of us are ambitious to make life better for ourselves and our children. We work a second job, or take on overtime. We deny ourselves large and small pleasures, in order that we be able to set aside money for the future, whether that is an emergency savings account, a fund for a future down payment on a home, or money to assist our children with educational expenses.
Very few of us live the “Tik-Tok” or “Instagram” lifestyles. We don’t spend money recklessly, eager to impress our pseudo-friends. We entertain to enjoy the company of friends and family, not to one-up our followers with a plethora of name-brand possessions.
Few of us have the leisure time to spend honing the ‘perfect physique’, let alone preening for selfies. We have responsibilities.
And, it’s not just the married ones that fit that category. Many ADULT singles put a lot of effort into making sure they are financially stable, connected to family, and put more emphasis on CLEANING and REPAIRING the places they live in, as opposed to making fluff purchases to decorate the joint.
Why did Americans embrace the Marvel franchise?
Because these were guys who - no matter how jaded by their experiences - went out of their way to protect the innocent against ‘Bad Guys’. They decided “If it’s to be, it’s up to ME!”, and raced to join the fight against alien invaders, would-be dictators, and criminals of every kind.
They didn’t CONTRIBUTE to the chaos.
They OPPOSED it.
And, while the fans rushed to see The Joker, they were completely satisfied at the end, when the criminal had been exposed as an amoral, and deeply disturbed individual. At that point, The Joker was done.
But, wait!
Not while there was even the slightest chance of a paycheck!
Even if the new story ‘included’ a female sidekick who was addicted to song and dance. Even if the new story made no sense, was overproduced, and cost an unbelievable amount of money (which, even if it HAD succeeded in capturing the audience, would NOT have been profitable).
I’m an old-fashioned kinda movie-goer. I like stories in which the heroes win, the bad guys lose, and there is a lot of action in the process of getting to the end.
Not gratuitous violence - often tipping over to violence porn.
Not a crime story with musical highlights, and a chorus line of gay dancers.
Not a story created to “prove” that the villains are REALLY heroes and the heroes are REALLY bad guys.
Not a story that strips women, literally and figuratively, of all dignity - and their clothes - just for titillation. One that forces actresses to disrobe in rooms filled with strangers, simulate sex, and, after the humiliation is over, go on talk shows to talk about ‘artistic need to take off their clothes’ and accept accolades for her ‘bravery’. (I love that word - titillation. Clean, but evocative.)
Bravery?
Bravery is a term I reserve for that actor who refuses to either strip, or force a body double to fill in, all for the purpose of inflating the ego of the producer/director.
And for the bump in money, both personal pay, and what the film brings in (Many actors have a percentage of the net profits - which they will later find is bupkis. Google the term “Hollywood Accounting”), that is not, generally, a worthwhile benefit. Those actors who refuse to accommodate the sleazy demands of producers and directors have longer careers, and - most importantly - their self respect.