Friday, November 22, 2024

Lady Gaga shares a red carpet kiss with devoted  fiancé Michael Polansky and shows off her glittering 8 carat diamond engagement ring as she joins Joaquin Phoenix and his sister Rain at  the 81st Venice Film Festival premiere of Joker: Folie à Deux

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Lady Gaga put on a loved-up display with her fiancé Michael Polansky as she wowed at the Venice Film Festival premiere of her new film Joker: Folie à Deux on Wednesday night.

The singer, 38, who stars as Harley Quinn in the upcoming thriller, wore a dramatic black gown and headdress as she joined Joaquin Phoenix and his sister Rain at the screening.

She looked stunning in the plunging dress which featured a velvet corset-style top which then flowed into a dramatic puffy skirt.

The look was completed with an intricate lace headdress, huge diamond earrings and a bold red lip – while she wore her bright blonde tresses in a neat bun.

She gazed adoringly at Michael as she flashed her enormous 8 carat engagement ring on the star-studded red carpet.

Lady Gaga put on a loved-up display with her fiancé Michael Polansky as she wowed at the Venice Film Festival Joker: Folie à Deux premiere on Wednesday night

Her gigantic diamond engagement ring was evident as she posed for photos on the red carpet at the event in coastal Italy

Her gigantic diamond engagement ring was evident as she posed for photos on the red carpet at the event in coastal Italy 

The singer, 38, who stars as Harley Quinn in the upcoming thriller, wore a dramatic black gown and headdress as she joined Joaquin Phoenix and his sister Rain at the screening

She was seen leaving in to give her fiance an affectionate kiss, despite wearing a veil over much of her face

The singer, 38, who stars as Harley Quinn in the upcoming thriller, wore a dramatic black gown and headdress as she joined Joaquin Phoenix and his sister Rain at the screening

Folie à Deux will see Joaquin Phoenix, 49, reprise his role as Arthur Fleck AKA Joker and he arrived to the premiere with his glamorous sister Rain

Folie à Deux will see Joaquin Phoenix, 49, reprise his role as Arthur Fleck AKA Joker and he arrived to the premiere with his glamorous sister Rain

Michael, a tech entrepreneur, looked smart in a black suit, crisp white shirt and bow tie.

Folie à Deux will see Joaquin, 49, reprise his role as Arthur Fleck AKA Joker and he arrived to the premiere with his glamorous sister Rain.

She looked great in a brown velvet gown and donned stylish shades as she posed with her brother. 

It is the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.

Set for release on October 4, the second instalment finds Arthur Fleck institutionalised at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker.

‘While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him,’ a press release shared.

Lady Gaga has been supported by her fiancé Michael in the lead up to the thriller’s premiere. 

The couple was first romantically linked around New Year’s Eve 2019 and later went Instagram official in early 2020.

The gown featured a structured skirt that looked rather heavy to lift up as she made her way along the red carpet

The gown featured a structured skirt that looked rather heavy to lift up as she made her way along the red carpet

She commanded attention in the incredible black lace headdress as she strutted her stuff on the red carpet

She commanded attention in the incredible black lace headdress as she strutted her stuff on the red carpet

She looked phenomenal in the black dress as she blew a kiss to the crowds

She is the main female lead in the film

She looked phenomenal in the black dress as she blew a kiss to the crowds

They were the epitome of loved-up as they graced the red carpet together

They were the epitome of loved-up as they graced the red carpet together

She looked stunning in the plunging dress which featured a velvet corset-style top which then flowed into a dramatic puffy skirt

She looked stunning in the plunging dress which featured a velvet corset-style top which then flowed into a dramatic puffy skirt

The look was completed with an intricate lace headdress, huge diamond earrings and a bold red lip

The look was completed with an intricate lace headdress, huge diamond earrings and a bold red lip

Michael, a tech entrepreneur, looked smart in a black suit, crisp white shirt and bow tie on the red carpet

Michael, a tech entrepreneur, looked smart in a black suit, crisp white shirt and bow tie on the red carpet

It is the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019's Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time

It is the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time

Set for release on October 4, the second instalment finds Arthur Fleck institutionalised at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker

Set for release on October 4, the second instalment finds Arthur Fleck institutionalised at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker

'While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that's always been inside him,' a press release shared

‘While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him,’ a press release shared

Lady Gaga has been supported by her fiancé Michael in the lead up to the thriller's premiere

Lady Gaga has been supported by her fiancé Michael in the lead up to the thriller’s premiere

The couple was first romantically linked around New Year's Eve 2019 and later went Instagram official in early 2020

The couple was first romantically linked around New Year’s Eve 2019 and later went Instagram official in early 2020

They gave a wave as they arrived on a water taxi

They gave a wave as they arrived on a water taxi

She headed off the boat carrying her heavy skirt and wandered up the path to the premiere

She headed off the boat carrying her heavy skirt and wandered up the path to the premiere

Polansky is a 2006 graduate of Harvard University and runs Napster founder Sean Parker's Parker Group

Polansky is a 2006 graduate of Harvard University and runs Napster founder Sean Parker’s Parker Group

Joaquin Phoenix, left, and Lady Gaga in a scene from Joker: Folie à Deux

Joaquin Phoenix, left, and Lady Gaga in a scene from Joker: Folie à Deux 

Her makeup was flawless as always and she opted for a bold red lip

Her makeup was flawless as always and she opted for a bold red lip

The detail in the headdress was incredible

The detail in the headdress was incredible

Throughout their years dating, Gaga and Polansky have attended the Super Bowl, the BAFTAs, and the Critics Choice Awards together

Throughout their years dating, Gaga and Polansky have attended the Super Bowl, the BAFTAs, and the Critics Choice Awards together

Wedding plans for the couple are underway and their legal plan is being negotiated. Gaga is reportedly seeking a $900 million prenup before she walks down the aisle

Wedding plans for the couple are underway and their legal plan is being negotiated. Gaga is reportedly seeking a $900 million prenup before she walks down the aisle

A source close to the couple told In Touch that 'there are a lot of assets on both sides, and a prenup will just make everything clear'

A source close to the couple told In Touch that ‘there are a lot of assets on both sides, and a prenup will just make everything clear’

She turned heads in the incredible, dramatic black gown

She turned heads in the incredible, dramatic black gown

It showed off her back inkings too

It showed off her back inkings too

They looked as in love as ever

They looked as in love as ever

Her intricate arm tattoos were visible too

Her intricate arm tattoos were visible too

The back featured delicate straps and flaunted her toned figure

The back featured delicate straps and flaunted her toned figure

The gown featured a daring, plunging neckline

The gown featured a daring, plunging neckline

Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga and director Todd Phillips attend the premiere

Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga and director Todd Phillips attend the premiere

Joaquin and his sister Rain attend the red carpet extravaganza together on Wednesday evening

Joaquin and his sister Rain attend the red carpet extravaganza together on Wednesday evening

He wore a smart black suit and shades

He wore a smart black suit and shades

He looked in great spirits on the red carpet

He looked in great spirits on the red carpet

Polansky is a 2006 graduate of Harvard University and runs Napster founder Sean Parker’s Parker Group. 

Throughout their years dating, Gaga and Polansky have attended the Super Bowl, the BAFTAs, and the Critics Choice Awards together.

Wedding plans for the couple are underway and their legal plan is being negotiated.

Gaga is reportedly seeking a $900 million prenup before she walks down the aisle.

And Polansky, who has a $600 million net worth as head of The Parker Foundation, is on board.

A source close to the couple told In Touch that ‘there are a lot of assets on both sides, and a prenup will just make everything clear.’

Gaga ‘is worth $900 million, so of course there needs to be a prenup in place,’ the insider said. ‘And Michael understands that. He’s not resisting it.’

Also in Venice for the Joker premiere, Iris Law looked every inch the red carpet siren in a leggy blue velvet dress

The model, 23, opted for a thigh-split and cut-out gown as she made sure to flash plenty of skin

Also in Venice for the Joker premiere, Iris Law looked every inch the red carpet siren in a leggy blue velvet dress

Iris oozed confidence as she hit the red carpet at the Joker: Folie à Deux premiere during Venice Film Festival on Wednesday

Iris oozed confidence as she hit the red carpet at the Joker: Folie à Deux premiere during Venice Film Festival on Wednesday

The model, 23, showcased her incredible figure in a teal velvet gown with a racy cut-out detail and a daring thigh-high split

She flashed her legs in the revealing ensemble

The model, 23, showcased her incredible figure in a teal velvet gown with a racy cut-out detail and a daring thigh-high split

Iris posed up a storm in front of a sea of cameras

Iris posed up a storm in front of a sea of cameras

Iris sported a flawless bronzed makeup look which accentuated her natural features

The backless gown showed off her sun-kissed skin

The backless gown showed off her sun-kissed skin

She flashed her dazzling white smile at the event

She flashed her dazzling white smile at the event

The 81st Venice International Film Festival is organised by La Biennale di Venezia and will be held on the Lido di Venezia from 28 August to 7 September 2024

The 81st Venice International Film Festival is organised by La Biennale di Venezia and will be held on the Lido di Venezia from 28 August to 7 September 2024

The 81st Venice International Film Festival is organised by La Biennale di Venezia and will be held on the Lido di Venezia from 28 August to 7 September 2024

She looked stunning in the ruffled number

Jasmine Sanders, 33, meanwhile opted for a black lace number which showed off her toned figure

Jasmine Sanders, 33, meanwhile opted for a black lace number which showed off her toned figure

The model and influencer left little to the imagination in the sheer number

The model and influencer left little to the imagination in the sheer number

Lady Gaga was seen signing autographs for the many fans at the premiere

Lady Gaga was seen signing autographs for the many fans at the premiere

She looked incredible in the dramatic black gown

She looked incredible in the dramatic black gown

She put on a very loved-up display with her partner

She put on a very loved-up display with her partner

Her hair was styled to perfection in a slick up do

Her hair was styled to perfection in a slick up do

She beamed a huge smile as she arrived on the red carpet

She beamed a huge smile as she arrived on the red carpet

In addition to her huge ring she wore a stunning diamond necklace

In addition to her huge ring she wore a stunning diamond necklace

Venice Film Festival is in its second week now and will end on September 7 after a series of incredible premieres

Venice Film Festival is in its second week now and will end on September 7 after a series of incredible premieres

She looked out at the cameras from behind her lace headdress

She looked out at the cameras from behind her lace headdress

She posed with her co-star and the director

She posed with her co-star and the director 

The pair are set to marry

The pair are set to marry

Her makeup was flawless as usual

And was dripping in diamond jewellery

Her makeup was flawless as usual as she greeted onlookers at the Venice premiere of her new film on Wednesday evening

She surveyed the crowds of cameras

She surveyed the crowds of cameras

All eyes were on her for the big night

All eyes were on her for the big night

She looked delighted as she roamed the red carpet for the huge premiere

She looked delighted as she roamed the red carpet for the huge premiere 

Joaquin wore orange-tinted shades on the red carpet

And gave a friendly wave to fans

Joaquin wore orange-tinted shades on the red carpet as he greeted fans with a friendly wave 

Margherita Buy attends the premiere in a silk black dress

Margherita Buy attends the premiere in a silk black dress

TV personality Michela Persico wore a leggy black dress and strappy heels

TV personality Michela Persico wore a leggy black dress and strappy heels

She climbed out of the boat to head to the premiere

She climbed out of the boat to head to the premiere

She opted for a natural light pink manicure

She opted for a natural light pink manicure

The dress was structurally impressive

The dress was structurally impressive

And put their arms around one another

And put their arms around one another

She wore her blonde tresses slicked back

She wore her blonde tresses slicked back

They gave each other the look of love

They gave each other the look of love

The dress had quite the dramatic effect

The dress had quite the dramatic effect

Also in Venice for the Joker premiere, Iris Law looked every inch the red carpet siren in a leggy blue velvet dress and Jimmy Choo heels.

The model, 23, opted for a thigh-split and cut-out gown as she made sure to flash plenty of skin. Jasmine Sanders meanwhile opted for a black lace number which showed off her toned figure.

The 81st annual Venice Film Festival is in its second week now and will end on September 7 after a series of incredible premieres. 

Audacious, different, bold and brilliant! Joker: Folie a Deux is a punchline five years in the making, and boy is it worth the wait, writes BRIAN VINER

Five years have passed since the triumphant opening of Joker at the Venice Film Festival. I still vividly remember reeling out of a morning screening, dazzled less by the unforgiving glare of the Venetian sun than by the movie we’d just been shown.

Five years have passed since the triumphant opening of Joker at the Venice Film Festival. I still vividly remember reeling out of a morning screening, dazzled less by the unforgiving glare of the Venetian sun than by the movie we’d just been shown.

Last night, here in Venice, came the world premiere of the sequel, Joker: Folie a Deux The director is again Todd Phillips, with Joaquin Phoenix once more in the title role, this time joined by Lady Gaga as what I suppose we must call the love interest, although that would undervalue her wonderful performance.

The film is audaciously different in style from the original, not quite as electrifying, but bold and brilliant all the same. 

It begins with a kind of sinister jauntiness with a Joker animation in the style of a Tom & Jerry cartoon, to show that since the events of the first movie, Arthur Fleck along with his murderous alter ego has become a cultural phenomenon in Gotham City. There has even been a TV movie about him.

Joaquin Phoenix is once more in the title role, this time joined by Lady Gaga as what I suppose we must call the love interest, although that would undervalue her wonderful performance

Joaquin Phoenix is once more in the title role, this time joined by Lady Gaga as what I suppose we must call the love interest, although that would undervalue her wonderful performance

The film is audaciously different in style from the original, not quite as electrifying, but bold and brilliant all the same

The film is audaciously different in style from the original, not quite as electrifying, but bold and brilliant all the same

Joker: Folie a Deux is released on October 4, 2024 and will premiere at the 81st annual Venice Film Festival

Joker: Folie a Deux is released on October 4, 2024 and will premiere at the 81st annual Venice Film Festival

But Arthur is behind bars, waiting to see whether he will be judged sane enough to stand trial for murder, and in the meantime enjoying his celebrity status both with fellow prisoners and even the warders, one of whom, a sadistic Irishman played by Brendan Gleeson, feeds him cigarettes in return for jokes.

Lady Gaga plays Lee, a fellow inmate on her way, we suppose, to becoming Joker’s girlfriend Harley Quinn. The pair hit it off at a music therapy class, and are soon mutually smitten, but Lee makes it clear that she loves the dangerously charismatic Joker, ‘clown prince of crime’, not the gloomily introspective Arthur. 

Indeed, identity confusion is the theme of this film, which delves even deeper than the original into schizophrenia and other types of mental illness.

It’s been said that Folie a Deux is a musical. It’s not, but music looms large as an expression of Arthur and Lee’s burgeoning love for one another. It is while watching Vincente Minnelli’s 1953 classic The Band Wagon that Lee, who claims to have been imprisoned for arson, sets fire to their prison wing.

The ensuing chaos provides an excellent opportunity to escape, yet Phillips and his co-writer Scott Silver toy with our expectations throughout; each time we anticipate which way the narrative is going to go, it confounds us by wheeling off in another direction. 

The music is a constant, though, with Lady Gaga giving her interpretation of lovely old Burt Bacharach and even Motown numbers, and Phoenix more than holding his own. There are also a couple of swooning dance routines that make Arthur and Lee look like psychotic versions of Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in La La Land.

Eventually, after Arthur’s high-profile TV appearance with a smug interviewer played by Steve Coogan, it is time for the trial, with all of Gotham gripped by the subject of multiple personality disorder. 

Is Arthur the defendant accused of five murders, or is it Joker? His kindly lawyer (Catherine Keener) wants to make clear it is Arthur; Lee just as urgently wants him to identify as Joker.

Lady Gaga plays Lee, a fellow inmate on her way, we suppose, to becoming Joker¿s girlfriend Harley Quinn

Lady Gaga plays Lee, a fellow inmate on her way, we suppose, to becoming Joker’s girlfriend Harley Quinn

For those cinema-goers who consider Joker: Folie a Deux to be just another unnecessary Batman spin-off, you should maybe think again

For those cinema-goers who consider Joker: Folie a Deux to be just another unnecessary Batman spin-off, you should maybe think again 

All this is compellingly directed by Phillips, and superbly acted by Phoenix especially, in a role for which he seems custom-made, but by Gaga too. We’ve known since A Star is Born in 2018 that she can act, but she really is terrific in a bad-girl role. They’d have loved her at St Trinians. 

As for those cinema-goers who consider Joker: Folie a Deux to be just another unnecessary Batman spin-off, you should maybe think again. 

This might not quite be in the top rank of films about mental illness, alongside all-time greats such as Psycho and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. But it’s not too far off.

Joker: Folie a Deux opens in the UK on October 4, 2024. 

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