Review: Suicide Squad

BossFam! How goes it? It’s been ages since we’ve last talked but now’s a better time than any to come back to you with a movie review.

This latest flick we’ll be discussing is Suicide Squad. Directed by David Ayer and stars Margot Robbie, Will Smith,Jared Leto, Viola Davis, and Joel Kinneman. The movie centers on a group of well-known villains, in the D.C. universe, that are brought together by D.C.’s tough as nails boss lady, Amanda Waller. These villains are sent on high-risk low survival missions that if successfully complete will remove years from their sentence.

My Initial Thoughts

When I first heard about the idea of Suicide Squad being in the works I thought it would be D.C.’s saving grace. Getting a chance to see an A-Team style movie with super villains as the protagonists would be great for D.C.’s gritty gray cinematic universe. The casting news was all too sweet with Jared Leto being up for the part of Joker, a role few people thought could ever be filled after Heath Ledger’s amazing performance in The Dark Knight. Margot Robbie was going to take on the role of Harley Quinn, Will Smith as Deadshot, and the epic Viola Davis as the legendary Amanda Waller. This movie had to be a success, and then, on top of that, they added David Ayer as the director of the film fresh from the success of Fury. The movie seemed to be a light in the dark for D.C. I personally believed it was this film that was going to get them back on track if done successfully.

Minor things worried me about the movie. Namely, Joker’s new look (i.e. a grill that would not only be awful, but I thought would hinder the delivery of lines). Another thing that worried me was the fact that they were introducing characters who have tie-ins with other D.C. heroes. The question would be: how do they plan on bringing in new characters when the universe hasn’t exactly been set up yet?

The Characters

The strongest part of this film was indeed it’s cast. Every actor owned their character with finesse and very skillfully allowed the fans to perceive them as the characters they were playing. Here, however, are the actors that stood out the most for me in this film.

Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn

Margot Robbie was incredible as Harley Quinn. She managed to embody the wanton and sociopathic qualities that we love Quinn for. Her motivation had always been for Mr. J (Joker) and her own amusement. Chaos and destruction are her playgrounds and Robbie beautifully played in that role without becoming too much of a caricature of the original. What I loved about Robbie’s performance is the fact that her timing was always perfect. She would come into a scene in classic Quinn form and keep me loving this group of bad guys.

Jared Leto as Joker

Although his scenes were limited in the film, he served as a backdrop for something that may be in the squad’s future. Leto definitely steals a scene when he’s in it. Personally, I don’t think it’s fair that we evaluate these actors based on the performances of those before it. It’s ok to like more than one incarnation of the character and Leto definitely, adds his skills to the gallery of Joker actors. I still have a gripe with the mouth grill I think it takes from his delivery, but Leto made it work. What I enjoyed the most about his performance was that while you’re watching him move across the screen you catch these looks in his eyes that are seriously chilling. Leto scares me as Joker and that’s a good thing.

Viola Davis as Amanda Waller

If there’s any character in this whole film that rocked it for me it was Viola Davis. She is the Wall! Amanda Waller has always been an interesting character to me in the DCU because of the dangerous game she plays. There is no morality, just duty for her. Waller is one of those characters you look at and asks: “Is she really a good guy?” Davis’ performance was exactly what I hoped for in the portrayal of Waller. She never backs down and has zero fear. Watching Viola Davis intimidates the likes of Killer Croc?! Amazing. I’d venture to say she’d scare even a character like Nick Fury and the way Viola put it down, I wholeheartedly believe it.

Will Smith as Deadshot

My worry, when the casting news came out that Smith was going to play Deadshot, was whether or not we were just going to see Will Smith play himself, but as Deadshot. Smith has indeed come a long way from his Wild Wild West Days and has gone to make some stellar performances. Although Deadshot did feel a little Smith-like, I did like his portrayal nonetheless. He was the consummate professional assassin. It’s good that they maintain the connection that he has with his daughter and his desire to make a better life for her. His motivations were clear enough and were exactly what I expected for the character. Smith did a great job being the level-headed member of the group considering Deadshot’s complete disregard for human life.

The Film Itself (Direction)

David Ayer did a great job creating a film in his wheelhouse. His catalog is so great in the fact that he explores the darker side of human nature and how it thrives in life. He’s taking that dark side exploration to the superhero genre and does well in creating a piece that is much better than Batman V. Superman from a technical and storytelling standpoint. It is definitely a welcomed entry in the DCCU that I think people who go see will enjoy. If I can say I had any problem with this film it was the false advertising. They placed the Joker in a lot of the ads but then only had him serve as a background character. I do like where the story actually went since it wasn’t Joker focused, so it was a forgivable trespass.

Where DC stands now, there will always be some comparison to Marvel in some shape or form. I think it’s always important to understand that evaluating this film under the lens of Marvel successes is a bit unfair in the fact that it will never let you enjoy what DC is doing in cinema. The same can be said for Marvel TV being compared to DC TV. The thing that I think DC has to get before it’s too late is that they are creating their own cinematic universe. The constant keeping up they are trying to do with Marvel is going to be to their detriment if they don’t change their formula. Suicide is actually a very entertaining movie but what they are trying to do is what Marvel did with Guardians of the Galaxy. If you really look, the formula is the same: introducing lesser known characters in an ensemble movie where they band together and really take on the task of saving lives.  The catch with this is Marvel has already established themselves as a reputable production group before they took Guardians on. What DC is trying to do is play catch up when I think they should just play their own game and ignore the naysayers. They really have the makings of what could be a great franchise in storytelling all they have to do is focus on their own plate. Let’s be honest they’re already doing that on TV and it’s going swimmingly.

Verdict 

Go check this film out. No matter how you cut it, it’s an entertaining film that’s worth seeing. I got a chance to see it in Regal’s RPX theater. It’s the first time I stepped in that theater and it was worth the funds to me.  With Suicide Squad, I think D.C. is slowly but surely figuring out they need to just focus on their own game. It was a fun and entertaining movie that you should definitely check out at least once in the theater.

If you’ve seen it let me know what you think in the comments! Until next time, BossFam!