Super Long Super Spoiler Suicide Squad Review

Before I start getting into the movie itself I wanted to preface by talking a bit about movies in general. I’ve seen a few arguments about art and how art is subjective and no art can be 'truly bad’. But you have to keep in mind here that this is Hollywood. This isn’t art for the sake of art, it’s art for commercialization and mass consumption. These are companies that are trying to sell you iconography that stands out. As such, it does have certain bars it has to cross especially if it wants to make money. And thusly, the movie is pretty formulaic and telegraphs every plot point miles away. It also suffers from the same maladies that afflicts many mainstream actions flicks.

This movie does not exist in a vaccuum and so it begs for comparison. It needs to be compared to the other movies in the DCEU, to other summer blockbusters and even the comics it's derived from. This is a fine movie, an ok movie if you want to waste a bit of time or have something to idle by with. For people who want to be a bit more discerning with their money, then it's better to wait. Only the hardcore fans will be shelling their money here. But to their benefit, this really is made with fans in mind and there are plenty of comic book nods here.

Comparisons

This film belongs in the same category as pretty much every summer action flick. If pressed for comparison I'd say it ranks at the same level of an ensemble film like Expendables or Gi Joe Retaliation. Those aren't great films but if you like seeing some mindless action or big name stars acting like badasses then this is that kind of film. And because it is a film that stars Will Smith I'd say that it ranks closer to Wild Wild West than Independence Day.

In comparing it to the other films in the DCU's arsenal, it personally ranks above Man of Steel or BvS. In specific contrast to BvS, this is a much more cohesive and better built movie. Tonally they are pretty similar, and feature much of the same dark lighting and cinematography. But perhaps more bafflingly, a movie featuring supervillains has them act much more altruistically and heroically than anything Superman does his last two films. This may be true to form though as in Snyder's world, people who are more selfishly motivated seem the most capable of doing good. This isn't a movie that can exist without being compared to BvS because in the first few minutes it reiterates the end of that movie so it is definitely a piece of the quilt that is the DC cinematic universe.

Though it’s spiritual inspiration is the classic film, The Dirty Dozen, they’re incomparable. The comics took their original concept from this movie and though the concept is largely the same, the execution couldn’t be more different. Though in the Squad’s defense, modern day commercial filmmaking has very different demands in term of simplified storytelling and a need for constant action and distraction.

And finally in comparing it to the comics... Well, here's the thing, John Ostrander's run on Suicide Squad is considered legendary among comic fans and it is perhaps what he is best known for (personally my favorite series is his Spectre run). Basically as the concept goes he took minor B-List villains and created a team book which explored the strengths and weaknesses of these characters. In a world of superheroes, even these B-Listers were proven to be viable threats with their superhuman skills and abilities. He took a laughingstock character, a minor Flash villain like Captain Boomerang (one of his villainous masters plans involved strapping the Flash to a giant boomerang) and made him a dangerous and deranged unlikeable psychopath, a characterization that has followed the character far beyond this run. At one point, even Batman villain The Penguin was briefly part of the Squad, utilized for his value as a strategist. Basically Ostrander took all these minor and forgotten villains and made them compelling and interesting and utilized their skills as effective threats. It's the sort of thing that comics have been trying to reproduce ever since whether it's newer Suicide Squad runs or even Marvel's attempts at books like Thunderbolts, Illuminati or the Sinister Foes of Spiderman. Even homage indie series Copra is praised for continuing Ostrander's storytelling spirit.

But going back to the movie, it can't live up that. You just can't have that level of nuance in a movie that's trying to do so much. It's closer in incarnation to the New52 Suicide Squad especially with the addition of Harley who is a mainstay of the Squad these days. But fortunately the gratuitous shock value of that book with its heavy handed violence and sex is much more downplayed in the film.

Film Synopsis and Critique

Now forgive me for talking so much about comparisons and set ups before even starting to talk specifics about the movie but let me tell you, the movie does largely the same thing. The first act of the movie is all about introduction and exposition. The problem is understandable when you are introducing a large cast and you want to get the audience acquainted with them but I can think of many movies that handle character introductions in better ways. The easy example that comes to my mind is Kill Bill which introduced each character as they appeared but the comparison might be unfair here as Kill Bill allowed itself to be broken up into films (Vol. 1 and 2) in order to play out it's story of vengeance. The first twenty minutes to half an hour of Suicide Squad is Amanda Waller telling us about the members of the squad. The whole premise of the movie is introduced to us by this blatant disregard of "Show Don't Tell" which sets up each character backstory and verbally tells us the necessary relationships we need to know. "Here is the Enchantress, an archaelogist possessed by a vastly powerful godlike witch who we control because we have her heart." "Here is Rick Flag, incorruptible soldier who we tricked into falling in love with her host so we could control them both and have a reason for Flag to lead the Squad."

The Squad isn't even formed while we get the Enchantress' setup, who demonstrates her abilities for the Pentagon and tiring quickly of the arrangement, frees her evil godlike brother, escapes Waller's control and sets herself up as the main antagonist. He's the muscle, while she prepares a magical macguffin spell to rule the world which is depicted as a large glowing vortex in the middle of the fictional Midway City. Her Squad membership was revoked before it even began.

I should mention that during this introductory period, Harley Quinn gets two introductions while Deadshot gets three introductions to really hammer home that he's a badass.

So shit has hit the fan (mostly its their own fault anyways) and Task Force X (the Suicide Squad) is approved for sortie. The bombs are planted into their necks and the characters are introduced to each other and everyone else leading to a few humorous and entertaining moments such as a feral Captain Boomerang who comes out swinging.

Oh and then there's Slipknot.

The problem I have here is that Slipknot isn't introduced in any way that should make us care. He's not a part of Waller's long exposition and we're told his codename and that he's good at climbing things. He isn't even in any of the movie's promotional material. So even if you don't know his fate from the original Ostrander run, his role as the sacrificial lamb is force fed to you from the get go. In keeping with the Squad's concept that they are expendable, here's the one guy they're going to kill off the bat to prove their point. To me this is a faux pas. There's no tension because we're not made to care about him. He should have been in the materials; he should have been a fakeout. He should have been someone who was expected to live and the sort of Easter Egg that giddy fans could point out to unsuspecting friends. He dies largely in the same way as he does in the original comic: as soon as they make it to the city he is convinced by Captain Boomerang to make a run for it. His bomb is detonated and he dies. For me, part of the fun of the concept is that you don't know who might die so there's tension and fear that your favorite might go out the same way too. Instead this is a missed opportunity to play with audience expectations.

They're vaguely told offhandedly that they are there for a rescue in the midst of a terrorist attack. Who they are saving isn't clear and I was under the impression that they were being guided to the Enchantress. The characters continue to plot to murder everyone and get away despite the rigged explosives and only change their plans after Deadshot realizes that something is off. The Enchantress has been transforming people into monstrous misshappen members of her army who attack the Squad. After being told (unconvincingly) that this is a terrorist attack, the Squad members show their stuff by taking on the monsters. Harley is all too happy to let Rick Flag be taken by the monsters until Deadshot points out that they will die if Flag dies. (Strangely this did not occur to them earlier when they were specifically planning to murder him anyways) It's also rather strange because there are a couple of scenes where the monsters seem to focus on Flag. It's easy to theorize that it is because of his relationship with the Enchantress but this is never confirmed and seems to be more of an excuse for the Squad to do their thing. We are treated to a very cool scene in which Deadshot pulls out all the stops and nearly singlehandedly takes down a large group of the creatures forcing the other soldiers to stop what they're doing and watch him in awe. And though it is very cool and fun, this is also probably the third or fourth time we confirm that Deadshot is a badass who never misses after his numerous introductions.

I want to take a moment here to address the action in these scenes. Aside from specific sequences like Deadshot shooting the creatures, Harley fighting them one on one in her frenetic style or Boomerang tossing his...well, boomerangs, the action is largely murky, unclear and unlit. Scenes that are backlit by giant explosions are a welcome relief because we can see what's going on. But I can't blame Suicide Squad for this because this is the larger problem (I referred to it as a malady for action movies earlier) that many action films have. The American style of mainstream action filmmaking is quick cuts with minimal lighting which tends to make scenes dull and confusing. But it doesn't have to be this way! I love John Wick, a slick and stylish action movie, which accents its action with clear and inventive choreography and colorful yet moody lighting. It's why Marvel hired the directors to do the action scenes in Civil War and is probably one of the best ideas they could have had. Unfortunately this did not occur to WB.

The group makes their way to a building with a few more action scenes and some Harley backstory/character moments involving a fun elevator fight scene. And it is here that we get our first 'twist'. A not very interesting or well set up twist. The Squad has been fighting their way to make it to Amanda Waller's base which has been in the middle of the city the whole time. Their mission was to rescue her (because she has the Enchantress' heart) and escort her to safety. See during the Enchantress' revolt, they had brought her along to take out her brother (they didn't know the characters were related or that the Enchantress had set things in motion). She was their secret weapon and when she absconded it seems like they got stuck in place. This does lead to a great and definitive Amanda Waller scene in which she unceremoniously murders her innocent staff for knowing too much. It's ruthless and it works because Viola Davis portrays Waller perfectly. This is our third Amanda Waller after Smallville and Arrow but none have been quite this good.

They escort Waller to the rooftop where they await a helicopter which turns out has been hijacked by the Joker. Now I haven't mentioned the Joker at all because I wanted to discuss Jared Leto's performance later in this review on its own. But this is the culmination of an ongoing subplot in the Joker's quest to rescue Harley. To keep it short, she escapes, Waller orders Deadshot to shoot her, and the Man Who Never Misses (a point that was forcefully hammered home) purposefully misses his shot. Waller promptly orders it shot down, Harley survives and Joker possibly (obviously not) dies. Harley is broken up about it and with no where to go, rejoins the Squad. Waller gets a second helicopter to take her away but it is here that she is attacked and captured by the Enchantress who regains her heart.

The Squad finds the wreckage and Deadshot discovers Waller's notes on the Enchantress. He forces Flag to reveal the details, that the threat is metahuman and that Flag is trying to save his girlfriend. Angered by the (obvious) deception, the entire Squad (including Flag's loyal assistant Katana) retreat to an abandoned bar for drinks and bonding.

I liked this scene and it's probably one of the better scenes in the movie. We are finally given the full details of El Diablo's backstory who has mostly been staying quiet in the background, refusing to use his powers out of shame. During a disagreement with his wife about his criminal gangbanging activities, his powers went out of control and he murdered his wife and children by accident. This causes friction amongst the squad as Harley yells at El Diablo telling him to own up to the fact that they are all murderous villains and believing that they can have it both ways (a normal and a criminal life) is stupid. Flag enters as an unpopular figure, and reveals that he has kept all of the letters Deadshot's daughter sent to him. He disarms their collar bombs and grants them freedom (humorously Boomerang grabs an armful of beer and runs off) but begs them for help as the stakes are too high (and he needs to save his girlfriend, a fact that rings true with both Harley and Deadshot). Deadshot agrees to follow through with the ordeal if only because he wants his daughter to know that her father did the right thing and saved the world. The others reluctantly agree and the Squad is reformed.

The Squad agrees to use their individual talents to take out the Enchantress' brother, the true physical threat, by using a bomb that was abandoned earlier in the film. The Enchantress sees them coming and attempts to seduce them with images of their greatest wish. El Diablo resists because of his guilt and snaps the others out of it. His character arc has finally propelled him to the forefront alongside Harley and Deadshot. He transforms into a giant flaming Aztec god monster and does battle with the Enchantress' brother. To speed this along, it's a mindless but fun final battle that is pretty by the numbers. El Diablo and a few nameless soldiers sacrifice themselves, all of the Squad members use their individual talents to battle the Enchantress, Harley pulls a trick and they stop the Enchantress' spell and kill her. Somehow throwing an explosive into the swirling magic vortex macguffin stops the world ruling machine/spell (at one point Enchantress mentioned she was building a machine which never shows up) . And thanks to the magic of storytelling, Enchantress' host is saved and is reunited with Flag. Waller reveals herself and forces them all back to jail but with slightly happier endings for saving the world. Deadshot gets to visit his daughter, Harley gets an espresso machine, Killer Croc gets the BET channel and Boomerang gets nothing. And it ends with Joker, unsurprisingly alive, rescuing Harley from jail.

We're treated to a mid credits scene where Bruce Wayne talks to Amanda Waller about the Avengers Init....assembling the Justice League and reveals that he is aware of and does not approve of the Squad.

Afterthoughts

Dumb and empty and as one reviewer put it 'kinda greasy' is probably the perfect description of this movie. But I watch this movie and I know it could have been so much more with a few tweaks to elevate it beyond the bad reviews. I addressed some of these throughout my synopsis. Treating Slipknot as an equal member would have made for a nice and surprising treat and therefore creating tension around whether the characters would live or die. The character introductions are overly long and unnecessary. I think the wiser move would have been to introduce the characters without the backstory elements, occasionally revealing it through dialogue and scenes throughout the film as they did later with El Diablo's story. As an audience we did not need to be force fed the importance of these characters. The relationship between Flag and Enchantress would have been a better twist if revealed midway when they revealed the information to the rest of the Squad. And for that matter I would have liked it if they had kept the Enchantress on the Squad for longer. In my idealized version of the film, they would continue to carry her along as their secret weapon, unaware of the relationship between the supernatural entity and the Enchantress. And then it would have been a better betrayal if positioned in the second act once the enchantress reveals her machinations and would have served as a good surprise for the audience as well.

One of the biggest problems I see here is that the Squad is never really formed. There is no real time for character interactions or character building to happen that isn't happening around Deadshot or Harley. So it's very strange that by the third act, this group of supervillains, of amoral murderous thugs have become friends and a tightknit family willing to sacrifice for each other by the end. Since everything is so rushed, these relationships are also rushed and unbelievable. What we see by the third act, that this group has become close, is the aftermath of events that never happened. Unfortunately I don't see a solution without expanding the movie more and making it longer because there's no natural transition.

It also doesn't make sense to me that Flag would grant them all their freedom and they wouldn't all immediately escape. As a story beat it makes sense. The villains having found some honor or reason to see the ordeal through, stick around to deal with a bigger threat. But it feels less like a story beat than a checkpoint here. I will say though that in comparison to BvS which forced moments along at an awkward pace, there is a more logical progression here but it is just isn't allowed to bloom.

Characters

Deadshot is played by Will Smith. So naturally he is the main character. As you may have noticed, story points happen because his character dictates them. He is often more aware of the plot than the other characters and the other characters tend to fall in with his own position. It's easy to say that this is because of Will Smith that he recieves the focus but I believe this is only a part of it. Deadshot is generally the right character to lead Squad stories and this is usually the case. He's the most sympathetic because he's the thug who kills honorably (no women and children) and his emotional story with his daughter is the most relatable. It's a tried and true trope. See Antman and Raimi's Spiderman 2. But what's most interesting to me about this version of Deadshot, when Will Smith Star Power isn't in full effect, is how closely it resonates with the comic version. In the comics, Deadshot (as written by Gail Simone) is a badass with an inferiority complex. He tries to live up to big brother figures in his life. Whether it's his real old brother or Batman, a figure he wishes to surpass, or even his friendship with Catman, it's a defining point that he's always trying to and can never surpass his idols. So it's interesting to me that in the film, when the Enchantress shows them their heartfelt desires, Deadshot's ideal desire is not to be with his daughter, but to shoot Batman. Harley dreams of a normal domestic family, El Diablo dreams his family being alive but Deadshot's deepest wish is to kill Batman. His desire was to continue living without remorse and without being caught, to continue as he had been while killing the figure that loomed over his life. Maybe I'm reading too much into it but I thought that was a great and accurate portrayal of who Deadshot is.

Now I want to address the Jokerized Elephant in the room. After so much hype and talk about Jared Leto's Joker, my reaction is meh. To his credit, it is definitely a different iteration of the Joker, not easily confused for Ledger's or Nicholson's. He is a Joker who is still coherent enough to be a crime lord but still insane enough to be dangerous to everyone around him. But there's also not a lot to explore here as his scenes are very limited and he gets like five scenes of about five minutes. He's not a memorable Joker, he's just different. He's a Joker.

His relationship with Harley is clearly a twisted and abusive dynamic. I won't deny that. Harley is shown to have agency at times. She willingly embraces her evil transformation (though whether it's due to Joker brainwashing her or just her own obsessive love is not clear). But because the film fails to go any deeper into the nuances of their relationship (perhaps the subject of another movie) there's only so much to work with here. I dislike that the film seems to validate their relationship by having the Joker recriprocate her feelings. This makes their twisted relationship reminiscent of the couple from Natural Born Killers. I say this in the sense that despite the abusive and unhealthy obsession they have with each other, the film almost supports the argument that they are so crazy that they deserve each other. Typically the Joker in other media treats Harley as a disposable pawn or a plaything. Her feelings are generally one-sided to show the abusive nature of their relationship. And likewise in the comics and in movies like Assault on Arkham, she is aware enough to hate what the Joker has done to her but also still easily seduced by his madness. So personally I find this a little problematic in its execution.

But I am of two minds, because this Joker is not our typical Joker. And because it is a different character it stands to reason that the relationship might be different. But we still have the same point that it's a bad relationship. Frankly there's not enough here for a final say.

Harley Quinn is definitely a reason to watch this movie if you need a reason at all. Margot embraces her role as Harley Quinn and brings all the fun and craziness the character represents. I think Harley fans will definitely be pleased. And though I have seen it argued both ways, Harley's sexuality is either further objectification (there are certainly some male gaze shots including one scene where everyone stops to stare) or empowering in that she makes it clear that she is flaunting her sexuality and that she owns up to it. Either way your mileage may vary. But all the key points that have made the character so popular here are present and for our first ever live action version of the character, Margot has presented a paradigm. The most fun in the movie comes from this character so likewise, if you're not interested in what you're seeing represented here, the rest of the movie will fall flat.

References

The movie should be a delight though for people who like the comics. There are plenty of references and Easter Eggs. In a blink and you'll miss it moment, Harley's introduction claims she is responsible for Robin's death. This is interesting and continues to build upon the subplot of Robin's fate that began in BvS. There are other fun nods like the John F Ostrander building and comic cover iconography. For the comic fans, the movie might require a second viewing if only to catch the hints.

Batman is a definite part of the movie that does not detract but there is also a surprise cameo by the Flash during Boomerang's introduction. Though it is often DC's Plan B to bring in Batman whenever they aren't confident. And I have to say I fully enjoy these cameos as it strengthens the movie's ties to the larger universe. These are the sort of cameos that are lacking in the Marvel films that I often wish for. How often I have wished for a similar cameo from Netflix's Daredevil to show up in a Marvel film if even for a brief instance! It's the sort of cameo that Agents of SHIELD could never dream of having.

Final Thoughts

The reviewers aren't wrong in their assessments. From a technical standpoint, the movie fails. The plot is an incoherent mess with lots of backtracking and nonsense. The threat isn't clear, the group doesn't have any logical bonding moments, and neither is the group really aware of the threat other than just because. No one has any plan other than shooting it and it somehow works. But the movie does have some legitimately great and entertaining moments. The actors do a great job. I see so many fanboys crying and spewing hate at critics but the critics are not wrong. And people who have seen the movie reluctantly admit that it is bad but they were entertained. And that is not a bad thing either. If you enjoy these characters, if you like Will Smith, if you just want some mindless fleeting entertainment then you might enjoy this movie. There's certainly a lot worse out there (BvS).

DC movies need better editors. Editors who can coherently cut a movie. But if it's true that Ayer was forced to write a script in six weeks, then perhaps the fault lies in the script. There were plenty of things they could have done to improve the movie by adding tension, by removing exposition and having the characters interact more instead of giving us empty artificial emotional beats. DC is trying so hard to catch up they're cramming too much into these movies. Both BvS and Suicide Squad suffer from messy paces. The soundtrack is whatever and maybe a tad lazy. The selection of songs doesn't have any thematic meaning to the film (like Guardian's Awesome Mix Tape which played into Star Lord's backstory). Despite the amount of color in the promotional materials and in the opening and closing of the film, the rest of the movie lacks that stylish flair to make the movie a visual feast (See John Wick for how to do it right). The action scenes are often a confusing muddled mess. The movie does have enjoyable moments and the characters are fun but the rest of the movie which spins around in too many directions simply make it anything more than a serviceable Suicide Squad as I stated before. And it's a pity because after BvS the movie faced an increased amount of pressure to succeed. DC needs a successful movie and hopefully that'll be Wonder Woman. For now, this is an ok movie, not worth watching in theaters, perhaps catching it on TV. The animated film Assault on Arkham remains the superior Suicide Squad film.