If you’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of “Suicide Squad” chances are high that you’ve probably seen all of the negative reviews circulating around the internet. Much like “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice” this movie is getting slammed by critics.
But is “Suicide Squad” really as bad as the plethora of negative reviews makes it out to be? The answer is no.
The main thing people seem to be complaining about in regards to “Suicide Squad” is that the villain is lame and the movie lacks a solid plot. To be fair, both of those complaints are true, but for me the main attraction of the film is to watch the Squad in action, and if that’s your motivation for seeing the movie you won’t be disappointed.
Let’s get down into the details. WARNING there will be mild spoilers ahead.
“Suicide Squad” is the third film in the DC film universe and it has the tough task of introducing many new characters. Luckily the world that these characters live in is already established and coming out of the events of “Batman V Superman” the world will look familiar to viewers.
It’s need to be said right away, this movie is a lot more fun than “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.” There’s humor, there’s action and a really great soundtrack pulls it all together. The movie does have somewhat of a dark tone, but it’s not overbearing and it plays out more like an “Avengers” meets “Deadpool” movie rather than following in the footsteps of “Batman V Superman.”
The movie starts out by introducing the characters, some of which get detailed back stories, some of which don’t. It’s clear from the beginning that Deadshot and Harley Quinn are the biggest stars of the team, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Will Smith as you probably expected pretty much plays himself in a Deadshot costume, but honestly he’s charismatic and he does a great job playing what could be considered the male lead. We learn that he has a soft spot for his daughter which somewhat serves as the heart of the film.
Margot Robbie as many others have said is absolutely perfect as Harley Quinn. She’s wild, insane and a whole lot of fun. She doesn’t hold back and it’s hard not to enjoy her parts when she appears on screen. She honestly steals just about every scene she’s in and will likely be a huge part of the DC film universe going forward because everyone’s going to fall in love with her.
Captain Boomerang serves as the comic relief, but unfortunately we don’t learn much about him. Boomerang doesn’t get much of a backstory, but I found myself laughing at just about everything he did and I wanted to see more of him.
We really don’t learn much about Killer Croc as he also doesn’t really get a backstory and he doesn’t say much. Croc is essentially here to be the muscle of the group and he does his job well.
El Diablo is another character who doesn’t get much of a backstory in the beginning of the film as the movie dives deeper into his history later. He’s a character that’s fun to look at and it takes a while for him to let loose and use his powers, but once he does it’s awesome.
Slipknot gets a quick introduction that’s nothing to write home about. Katana works with Rick Flagg and she gets a quick introduction that tries to explain a bit about her backstory but falls flat. She doesn’t say much at all, but she’s a lot of fun to watch in action.
Jared Leto’s Joker also shows up early in the film as he’s used to introduce Harley Quinn. This is a very different type of Joker and the character will likely be polarizing to fans in the same way that Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor was in “Batman V Superman.” You’re either going to love him or hate him, there’s no in between.
Batman pops in and out of a few flashback scenes. He doesn’t play a huge role in the film and he’s only in it for a few minutes, but his presence helps to remind us all that DC has finally built a film universe that’s connected.
We meet the team and we also spend a lot of time learning about Rick Flagg, Enchantress and Amanda Waller. We meet June Moon whose body has been inhabited by Enchantress and we learn that Amanda Waller sent Rick Flagg to watch over Dr. Moon in hopes that he would fall in love with her so that she could manipulate him, and of course since it’s Amanda Waller, her plan worked.
Amanda Waller wants to assemble Task Force X following the death of Superman but the government is apprehensive. She brings Enchantress to a government meeting and shows off her power, then the government gives the project the green light after seeing what she can do.
Waller’s timing couldn’t have been any better because Enchantress goes rogue shortly after and takes over Midway City. As Midway City is being torn apart the call is made to finally assemble Task Force X.
Flagg assembles the team and then makes sure that everyone besides himself and Katana get explosives implanted in their heads and they head off to start the adventure.
Business picks up right away once the team arrives in Midway City and they battle hordes of enemies that have been created by Enchantress. Her army looks a little ridiculous, but it’s all about watching the team bash their heads in and they don’t disappoint.
The action, while not anything groundbreaking, is a lot of fun. If you enjoy watching comic book characters team up with each other and just beat the crap out of things, you’re going to enjoy the majority of this movie because that’s what it is.
The best thing about “Suicide Squad” is that this is a movie about bad guys and it never loses sight of that. Throughout the film the team grows closer, but you get the feeling that they could turn on each other at any minute and all hell could break loose. You never once mistake them for heroes which gives the film a bit of a different feel from everything else on the comic book movie market.
The whole time that the team is taking back Midway City they have no idea why they’re actually there or what they’re really up against. Much like the film’s marketing department kept details about the villain under wraps, Rick Flagg keeps the team in the dark about their true mission.
Eventually they learn the truth and they all have to make a choice as to whether they want to walk away, or unite and play hero for a day. When the final battle finally does go down it’s a fun display of what the team can do when they all get on the same page.
For the most part the film looks amazing visually, but some of the CGI in the final battle was a little tough to buy into. But in a lot of ways this movie is an action film dressed in a superhero costume and the action sequences are a lot of fun for what they are.
All things considered “Suicide Squad” is a fun summer blockbuster. It does a good job of introducing many new characters into the DC film universe. Some characters could have been given more backstory, but given the runtime of the film it probably would have weighed the movie down as a whole to go into too much detail with certain characters.
Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Will Smith’s Deadshot and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller are all standouts in the film and they will be a very welcome addition to DC’s cinematic universe.
Is “Suicide Squad” going to change the comic book movie genre and reinvent everything we know about superhero films? No. Is “Suicide Squad” the best comic book film that’s been released this year? No, but it’s a lot of fun and if you enjoy comic book movies it’s worth two hours of your time.
It seems that a lot of people expected this film to be something that it never advertised itself to be. “Suicide Squad” doesn’t have a very deep story, and admittedly the villain is pretty lame, but the marketing campaign pushed fun action and the Squad’s chemistry as the main selling points of the film, and in those aspects the film definitely delivers.
