Suicide Squad (2016)
Warner Bros. Pictures
Written by: David Ayer
Directed by: David Ayer
Starring: Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood, and Cara Delevingne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyJH39ZbPAg
The Good
As you’ll probably notice, Suicide Squad has a unique style and delivery. The soundtrack is really good, and there is a dynamic use of colors to really clash with the movie’s already-dark atmosphere. There is more than enough action to keep you engaged. What I was actually impressed with was how the movie is able to juggle both humorous moments and still have individual dramatic scenes that connect viewers with the characters.
The strongest highlight of Suicide Squad is the ensemble of its characters and cast. Before I go into the individual characters, I personally believe that no one character really stole the show. The majority of the characters are introduced very well, and each had his or her moment to shine.
Will Smith (as Deadshot) was almost too conveniently cast for this role. It is a walk in the park for him to convey the bad guy with a good heart type of character. (I swear he must love any role that will allow him to get teary-eyed.)
Margot Robbie (as Harley Quinn) is quite enjoyable. They didn’t shy away from using her sex appeal but at the same time providing a more personal look into her character. Harley Quinn is probably one of the more interesting ones given the fact that she has so many different factors to work with. She is funny, personable, loving, psychotic, and dangerous all at the same time.
Viola Davis (as Amanda Waller) is just perfect. Dare I say, she is almost more terrifying than the Joker himself. (I’ll get to him next.) If you’re familiar with Waller’s character from the animated cartoons or comics, you know she’s a no-nonsense type of individual. Davis captures every ounce of that character with her great performance.
Let’s talk about Jared Leto. Yes, he’s in The Good for a few reasons. Leto manages to make the Joker his own instead of trying to be Heath Ledger’s upgraded version of the Joker. Rather than being the anarchist, he is more of a kingpin mobster. As I said, no character overtook the movie. In my opinion, the Joker is no exception. He is a safe, crazy Joker. Rather than that being a negative, the biggest reason why his Joker works is because it fits this specific movie alone. (He’s not winning any Oscars though for this.)
The Bad
In an effort to be more fun like Marvel movies, this film ended up doing exactly what I feared—it added a few too many jokes or references that feel forced and unnecessary. The inclusion or continuation of some one-liners feel like deleted scenes that were left in as a knee-jerk reaction to all the criticism Batman v Superman received for being too dark.
I’m not sure what exactly went wrong, but this movie feels like it’s going in two different directions. The first half of the movie is great. The characters develop with intriguing introductions, and the need for the team is well established. Then, the second half of the movie feels like director David Ayer took a seat and Zack Snyder stepped in.
The movie veers from being a nice, grounded film, to being . . . well . . . Ghostbusters splashed with The Mummy. There’s just this turning point in the movie where you’ll probably be thinking “What the hell is going on?” or “How did we get here?” This ultimately makes the plot feel awkward and misplaced. It doesn’t help that there are flashbacks that add to some of the confusion as well.
My last issue is the really bad CGI. You’ll know it when you see it, but the CGI with certain characters reminds me of the horrible CGI in The Scorpion King. (Yeah, that movie from fourteen years ago.)
The Reason
This is an entertaining movie that just so happens to have some noticeable flaws. The first half of the movie is fun and energetic (almost like Deadpool), while the second half goes almost full Batman v Superman. I may be completely off, but I have to blame Zack Snyder for this. He was the executive producer for this film, and while he may not have directed the film, his overall vision has stopped this movie from standing on its own. In other words, because of all the stuff Snyder has set into motion, Suicide Squad had little to no choice to follow suit. (Which is a sad case for a movie that has all the right pieces.)
I was almost a victim of fanlexia—I almost let my fandom take over my objective opinion. I refuse to get caught up in the overexaggerated, negative hype that other reviews are putting out about this movie. Movies are only “trash” when they have no redeeming qualities. This movie had some solid pros. It just depends on how forgiving you’ll be with its cons. If other reviews or word of mouth are scaring you off, then I’d suggest watching this at least for a discounted matinee rate at your local theater. Be sure to stay until the very end for an end-credit scene as well.
