Suicide Squad: One for Your Squad to Skip out on

Arguably the most anticipated film of the summer, Suicide Squad has every ingredient necessary to become a worldwide blockbuster. The film features a star-studded cast, one of the top writers/directors in Hollywood, and the long-anticipated reprisal of the Joker. The cast includes Oscar winner Jared Leto, a tandem of Oscar nominees in Will Smith and Viola Davis, and the scorching beauty that is Margot Robbie. Having an impressive filmography consisting of works such as U-571, The Fast and the Furious (original film of the series), Training Day, End of Watch, and Fury, David Ayer enters a personal uncharted territory in attempting to captivate audiences by way of the modern superhero film. Unfortunately, the final product proves to illustrate Ayer’s lack of experience working in the superhero genre.

The film begins with (don’t worry, I never give spoilers without notice) the sudden introduction of several characters, with each introduction lacking more depth than the one that preceded it. The rushed character introduction process created a foundation for the film that blatantly lacked any semblance of cohesion, nor did it allow for any type of personal connection to be made with the characters. Because the film’s character corps is so large, the development problem is further compounded by the limited number of character development scenes devoted to each character. The viewer is never granted the chance to create an accurate portrait of each character in reference to the evolution of the plot narrative.

About thirty minutes into the film, it becomes apparent that the plot is rather blasé and will likely lack differentiating substance. The storytelling becomes painfully linear and predictable. The twists and turns are far from riveting, and the dialogue becomes noticeably awkward and superficial. The utter lack of material for actors to convey led to the resort of acting techniques that were forced and robotic. Jared Leto was never given the chance to make the Joker his own, and Will Smith did the most he could do with the slop Deadshot character he was given.

However, it must be noted that the film had bright spots. Margot Robbie was excellent in her portrayal of the Joker’s clinically insane girlfriend, Harley Quinn. Just like the other actors in the film, Robbie was not given much to work with. Yet, she managed to artfully capture the energy of a woman maniacal enough to be the Joker’s girlfriend. Also, the production and special effects of the film were well-done and made for an enjoyable aspect of the theatre experience.

All in all, Suicide Squad made for a completely underwhelming experience which fell drastically short of expectations. Admittedly, the expectations were lofty (maybe even too lofty, to be fair), but the poor writing dooms the film from the beginning and as a result, the acting suffers. You certainly won’t be missing out on a pop-culture experience; this is one to save your money on.

Rating: 5.5/10

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