'The Suicide Squad' Review
R: Strong violence and gore, language throughout, some sexual references, drug use, and brief graphic nudity
Runtime: 2 Hrs and 12 Minutes
Production Companies: DC Films, Atlas Entertainment, The Safran Company
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: James Gunn
Writer: James Gunn
Cast: Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman, Sylvester Stallone, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Peter Capaldi
Release Date: August 6, 2021
In Theaters & HBO MAX
Welcome to hell — a.k.a. Belle Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst super-villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out — even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today's do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin, and everyone's favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then, arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese. Trekking through a jungle teeming with militant adversaries and guerrilla forces at every turn, the Squad is on a search-and-destroy mission with only Colonel Rick Flag on the ground to make them behave… and Amanda Waller's government techies in their ears, tracking their every movement. As always, one wrong move and they're dead (whether at the hands of their opponents, a teammate, or Waller herself). If anyone's laying down bets, the smart money is against them — all of them.
As much as everyone has (rightfully) given Warner Bros. shit for meddling with their directors’ DC feature projects in a failed attempt to copy Marvel’s model for the past several years, I find it hilarious how they went from trying to emulate James Gunn’s madcap style of Guardians of the Galaxy with their theatrical cut of David Ayer’s Suicide Squad to just straight-up giving James Gunn the keys to The Suicide Squad. When he briefly got fired by Disney, you know WB had his ass on speed dial and wanted him to do a DC movie so badly. They allowed him to do his own thing with no restrictions whatsoever and The Suicide Squad is evidence of that. To say anything along the lines of, “The Suicide Squad is far superior to 2016’s Suicide Squad,” is an empty statement because the bar that first movie set was on the fucking ground. The Suicide Squad is a director-driven comic book adaptation that gets its source material right. Since this is a DC property, I might say, it finally gives JUSTICE to the Suicide Squad.
With WB giving him free rein in both direction and screenplay, Gunn goes berserk with no restraints, but at the same time, he manages to make the characterization of his team players and overall atmosphere feel down-to-earth, unlike most superhero-based features. It’s as if his younger and older self merged to craft this hard R ‘80s-style action flick that’s balls-to-the-walls insane… but also has a heart to it. You have Super-era James Gunn in terms of gleeful and unapologetic graphic violence matched with dark humor, but then you get the MCU-era Gunn where he makes sure everyone in his large ensemble gets their time in the sun as fully fleshed-out characters, delivering outstanding and exhilarating action sequences, and of course, having a killer soundtrack. For Pete’s sake, the very first shot is of Michael Rooker as Savant. You don’t get more James Gunn than Michael Rooker.
A majority of the DCEU’s filmography, up until Shazam and Birds of Prey, has been so irritatingly dark and serious. Now their features are going full camp to strive for uniqueness, which is refreshing as hell for the already-crowded superhero movie genre. If Birds of Prey was DC’s Dog Day Afternoon, then The Suicide Squad is DC’s The A-Team mixed with Rambo… on cocaine. The film thrives on ultra-violence and irreverent humor that is as uproariously funny as it is unapologetically gory. This shit is like an Adult Swim cartoon come to life, for it has the body count of a Rick and Morty episode. This film features some of the most gruesome deaths I’ve seen in a long ass time… it might as well have been called Mortal Kombat. The fatalities here are so fucked up that even Deadpool himself would blush.
The film’s cold open reintroduces A.R.G.U.S. director Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) leading a new Task Force X crew on a search-and-destroy mission in the militaristic dictatorship island of Corto Maltese. Their goal is to shut down a prison that holds a world-ending threat codenamed “Project Starfish”. The ensemble for the mission includes Bloodsport (Idris Elba), Peacemaker (John Cena), Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior), King Shark (Sylvester Stallone), Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), and of course Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie). As she usually does, Waller blackmails these convicts into doing her dirty work. This iteration of the titular crew completely reinvents the DCEU’s baddies in a cooler and more human light, whether they be new characters or veterans from the predecessor. Even Rick Flag is a badass who doesn’t spend most of his time spouting exposition. The ensemble is loaded with A-list talent who are fully committed to their respective characters instead of playing a mere variation of themselves like Will Smith did with Deadshot. Idris Elba is convincing as the stone-cold assassin Bloodshot, John Cena is undeniable as the patriotic and aggressive Peacemaker, and Viola Davis works her magic as Amanda Waller, who is even more diabolical than ever before. Because all these characters are well-rounded and written with such distinctive personalities, you end up caring for them, even feeling anxious about who will make it out alive.
I’m glad the film doesn’t try to sell these characters as heroes. They are convicts who fucking murderer people but they’re also humans. They’re despicable people with a balanced emphasis on both words. The film explores the tragedy of these characters, not only making you sympathize with them but also showcasing their humanity. While some moments are played for laughs, there’s a fair amount of well-executed development, especially between Bloodsport, Ratcatcher 2, and Harley Quinn. The state of continuity within the DCEU might be a mess right now but Harley Quinn is the glue who has shown so much growth from the past two films she’s been featured in. She’s not even the central focus of the movie but Quinn stands out as the MVP, for she has some of the best and meticulously choreographed action sequences, comedy, and dialogue that maintains consistency with Christina Hodson/Cathy Yan’s exploration of the character in Birds of Prey. Margot Robbie embodies this character perfectly in the same vein as Hugh Jackman did Wolverine and The Suicide Squad leaves you wanting more of her.
For someone who plays with intergalactic characters and worlds, Gunn makes nearly everything about this feature as down-to-earth as he can, from the development of his characters to the action sequences themselves. With the Squad in this General Trujillo-type nation, they kill all their adversaries using whatever unique skill set they possess like your typical ‘80s action heroes. All the major action set pieces are heavily reminiscent of that era. Imagine time-traveling back to the ‘80s and telling a kid they made a movie about the Suicide Squad that’s a combination of The A-Team and Rambo, has an R rating, and has Starro as the antagonist. That kid would piss their pants. When Starro comes through, there’s an added weight to social commentary regarding American accountability that’s so relevant and strong, I was left speechless. GOD, THIS MOVIE ROCKS!
When an antagonistic figure threatens a character’s child or the citizens of Corto Maltese, they are often criticized by someone who comments, “You’re gonna let children die?” There are ample times the movie specifically comments about the well-being of children and it sticks out like a sore thumb. It has such a random high sensitivity towards kids and the fact that’s where these anti-heroes/convicts' morality lie is bizarre. Forget these innocent people on a small island under a dictatorship for nearly two decades. Everybody’s motivation is to save the kids even though there are no kid characters in this narrative. You have a mid-20s Ratcatcher 2 who possesses a childlike heart and soul, but that’s it.
That aside… I got nothing. I try my best to be a film critic when it comes to superhero movies and not go off the rails, but I undeniably love James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad. It’s a director-driven deranged masterpiece of a live-action comic book movie, unlike anything I’ve seen before. It’s gloriously violent, stupendously crafty in its inspired action sequences, cleverly written, has a surprising amount of substance in its storytelling, self-awareness in tone, and features stylistic imagery that is shockingly more artistic than any of the recent MCU films. No, it’s not transcendent by any means but it stands out amongst a crowd and is an incredible sight to behold. This is proof that James Gunn is one of the best comic book filmmakers with impeccable range and also deserves to be called a fucking visionary.
