T.M: Over the summer, I watched Suicide Squad with Carl Snyder, the other half of the entertainment section. Suicide Squad is a movie about a group of villains who are forced to work together in order to save the world. I found the movie to be enjoyable.
C.S: Yes, I thought it was enjoyable as well, but this film was far from perfect.
T.M: That’s true, Carl — while it was imperfect, it was still enjoyable. It was definitely a mess, but it was a fun mess, nonetheless –one that excelled in thrills. It was a fun experience that put a silly grin on my face. Characters were witty and quick to spit out a one-liner. The film moved at a brisk pace, never leaving a dull moment.
Director David Ayer’s first DC outing takes high risks with high rewards. This means that the movie goes all or nothing. It’s a saturated experience with little grey area. So when content works, it excels. But when parts whiff, they whiff hard. For example, the dialogue was potent, so the good lines made a positive impact. Not every line was great, but they always sat with the viewer, thanks to the great acting.
C.S: Yes, certain actors shined. One of the standouts was Will Smith, who portrayed the character Deadshot, a hitman who never misses a shot. He brought a level of humanity to the character that was unexpected. All of Will’s one-liners were show-stoppers that captivated the audience. Even when the lines were poor, he turned them into his gold with his performance. Also, the action sequences highlighted his abilities as an action star.
Another standout was Margot Robbie, who played the character Harley Quinn. Harley is a crazy yet likeable anti-hero, as her backstory provides sympathy for her. She portrayed the character almost perfectly, as she stayed faithful to the character yet added her own originality to it. She fully stepped into her role, and in turn it felt like I was actually watching Harley Quinn, not some actress playing her. Margot’s comedic timing was great, and most of her lines provided a chuckle or two for the audience. She had excellent chemistry with her fellow castmates. All the scenes where she was interactive with the Squad were entertaining. Her on-screen chemistry with Will Smith was especially grand. Every line of dialogue between them felt natural and real.
A sleeper hit in this movie was Jay Hernandez, who played the character Diablo. Diablo is a gang-banger with a dark history who is morally distraught. Going into this movie, I didn’t expect anything from this character, and Jay proved me wrong. He showed the emotional depth of the character well. He went from being a mysterious character throughout most of the movie to being a major player in the plot towards the end.
Jared Leto gave the most underrated performance in the film as the Joker. I thought that he actually did a good job with the character. Like Margot Robbie’s performance, I felt like I was actually watching the Joker, instead of watching Jared Leto. The worst thing about this Joker was that the movie didn’t show us that much of him. If we had seen more, he would’ve been one of the best characters in the movie.
One of the best parts for the characters in this movie were their introductions. Each character had their own introduction, and each one had a unique aesthetic, which was an exciting way to start. It proved that this movie was stylish and flashy, which worked well for this film.
T.M: This movie is dripping with personality and style. Ayer fills this film to the brim with charm. There are many contributing factors to this movie’s flair. The cinematography is well done with many swell shots and pleasing sequences. Striking color palettes soak this movie. The costumes were high quality, faithful to their characters, and added to the immersion. The music augmented the experience, particularly in the character introductions. All these things gives the movie a distinct feel. It has its own flavor, which is a succulent one indeed. With all this style leaves the question if this film has any substance.
C.S: This movie definitely has substance, except for the sloppy, thrown-together, third act. The movie had a lot of buildup, and it had so much potential to be great. The third act was unsatisfactory, partly due to this film’s main villain, The Enchantress. This character was horridly underdeveloped and was grey area in this “all or nothing” movie. She was the only character who seemed like she didn’t belong in this movie. She didn’t contribute to the overall flavor and aesthetic. And I’m not going to even bring up that ridiculous plot device of a witch-brother. The end of this movie was just the gang fighting a faceless army, and trying to stop the ever-so generic, underdeveloped villain. This with the often-jarring tonal shifts of the movie made it hard to watch at times.
T.M: You hit it right on the nose there, Carl. The tone shifts were harsh, making it a rather rough experience at times. They proved to be distracting, removing me from the experience and ruining the immersion. This threw off the consistency and the atmosphere, which dragged down the experience a little bit. Yet, it was easy to overlook this issue and enjoy the movie.
C.S: Agreed. They were at most annoying and didn’t make the movie unenjoyable. The positives of this movie far outweigh the negatives. It was a fun movie that never had a dull moment, even when the movie wasn’t that good. All in all, this film achieved its main purpose, which was to entertain the audience, and I’d say that it did that well.