The Suicide Squad Review

 

The Suicide Squad is a comic book movie, a stand-alone sequel to 2016's Suicide Squad, and the tenth film for the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). The movie is produced by DC Films, Atlas Entertainment, and The Safran Company and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The Suicide Squad is written and directed by James Gunn.

The story is Amanda Waller has yet again called the Suicide Squad to another mission. This time the team must go to Corto Maltese and destroy a Nazi-era prison/laboratory where unspeakable experiments were conducted. However, this task is easier said than done, when Task Force X gets an unexpected surprise.

Initial Reaction

Now at first I wasn't really all that hyped about the movie. It was because I was bummed that James Gunn replaced David Ayer. Really wanted to see what he would do with a sequel, but that wasn't going to happen. Then my opinion changed when DC FanDome: Hall of Heroes showed us what was in store. Then we got a red band trailer and it peaked my interest. Then I found out some of the cast members showed their support for the Ayer cut and I wanted to see the film even more because of that.

Cons

The only thing I truly hated about the movie was the romance subplot for Harley Quinn. What was even the point? There was quite literally no reason for that to be in the movie. That scene was what I call "The Piss Break Scene". That means, there's a scene in the movie where you can go to the bathroom and miss absolutely nothing. That's how pointless that was.

Middle Ground

Now for the most mixed feelings I had, one of those was the humor. Some jokes worked, such as a scene where Bloodsport and Peacemaker were trying to one-up each other. That was pretty funny. Other times no the jokes didn't work, and I wasn't the only one who thought that too. The audience I saw it with felt the same. There were times when they were dead silent, so much so I think if a pin was to drop, I most likely would've heard it. The other gray area was the characters. Some I didn't care (looking at you King Shark), some were literally just there to die within the first few minutes, and other characters were pretty cool and did grow to like them, one of the two being Ratcatcher 2. Kind of a big difference from the first movie, where I cared for a lot of them.

Pros

One thing I did like about The Suicide Squad was the action. It's was awesome. Harley Quinn had an spectacular escape fight scene, and the third act was pretty good. Oh it's very bloody too, really earned that R rating What I also liked was the pacing. Even though the movie clocks in at 2 hours and 12 minutes, it really didn't feel that way. It went by very quick. The last thing I'll give credit where it's due is James Gunn directing. His action scenes were but, what I really loved is how he was using the environment itself as a transition. What I mean is, instead of having big bold letters on the screen, he would use clouds to say "8 minutes earlier", plant vines to say "Meanwhile", and a lot of stuff like that, and I really dug it.

The Suicide Squad is a pretty good time to go to the theater but, this is definitely one of those movies that's being waaaayyyy overhyped. It still contains great action, really good pacing, and Gunn's directing was also a plus. However characters are a mixed bag and while some jokes were good, others were not. The only downside was Harley's romantic subplot. Again I ask, what was the point of that?

My final rating is Okay.

That's going to do it for me. Come back on Monday, Aug 9th for my A Look Back at review for season two of DC's Titans. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.