“Suicide Squad” Review

Premise: When Midway City is taken over by a mysterious supernatural force, a group of supervillains are taken out of prison to stop the threat.

I know this isn’t the popular opinion, but I’ve really enjoyed the DC Extended Universe so far. I thought Man of Steel was very good, and Batman v Superman, despite its flaws, left me satisfied and wanting more. So here comes Suicide Squad, the film I was hoping would right the ship in the eyes of the haters. It’s got a great premise, director David Ayer knows his way around characters (watch End of Watch and Fury!), and the cast is top notch. So is Suicide Squad DC’s next big thing? Probably not. It’s got a lot of problems and won’t win over many new converts. However, I thought Suicide Squad was a decent movie that succeeded on its entertainment value.

Pros: By far the best things about Suicide Squad are the characters. As I said before, David Ayer is a solid actors’ director and the cast they assembled for this movie is impressive. But what impressed me was how the characters made the movie worthwhile. Here are the highlights:

-Will Smith was terrific as Deadshot! Yes, Smith is a solid actor with a lot of charisma, but playing a nihilistic hitman was a stretch for him and he pulled it off handsomely. But Deadshot’s not just a villain. He may be a brutal, cynical man who’ll kill people at the drop of the hat, but he loves his daughter and respects people who gain his trust, making him one of the most “real” characters in the movie. Finally, Smith did something I wasn’t sure he could do; he brought his signature charm and lit up the screen without stealing the spotlight from everyone else. Nicely done, Will!

-Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and the Joker (Jared Leto), who I put together because they’re so closely linked. Harley’s basically the Squad’s crazy one with a bit of vamp, an attractive, seductive woman who happens to be the Joker’s (almost as) insane girlfriend. You never know what she’ll do next, but it’ll always be entertaining. As for Leto, he had some big shoes to fill. Where Heath Ledger went for a chillingly realistic Joker, Leto’s is much more cartoonish, but he works in this universe. He may not be as evil, but he gets the bizarre attitude of the Joker down pretty well, an unpredictable clown prince of crime with a magnetism that can’t be described.

-Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney). I’ve always thought Jai Courtney has been kind of short-changed in Hollywood. He was great in Spartacus, and he’s a capable supporting actor, but a lot of his bigger roles have been devoid of personality. Not so here. Boomerang is one of the funniest members of the cast, and I give props to Courtney for being such an unhinged, entertaining presence.

-If anyone can be called the show-stealer, it would be El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), a Latino convict with the ability to control fire. Of all the members of the Squad, he’s the most tragic, a man who committed terrible sins who just wants to be left alone. He and Deadshot were definitely my favorites, because they had the most to their characters and were sympathetic despite their questionable morality. I know Hernandez has been in a lot of movies already, but now I’ll consider him being cast a big plus for any project.

One of the complaints about Man of Steel and Batman v Superman was that they weren’t fun. I disagree, but I do think Suicide Squad had a goofy energy its predecessors lacked. The humor is more prominent and usually works very well, especially from Harley Quinn and Captain Boomerang. The action, while not on the scale of a Kryptonian smackdown, is well choreographed and brutally manic. And of course, the cast of characters is a fun bunch who work very well together. These qualities separated the film from the superhero pack and went a long way in making up for its flaws. Speaking of which…

Cons: If the best thing about Suicide Squad is the characters, the worst thing is the story they’re in. It was clear I’d like the characters from the first scene, but in the first act I thought to myself “they’re also setting up a good story”. Unfortunately, it goes to waste once the bad guy’s introduced and the plot kicks in, and when its revealed what the goal of the mission is I was left completely cold. The story also wasted a great opportunity to make the Joker the main antagonist rather than a peripheral character, instead opting for supernatural baddies with no personality. It pains me to say it, but you can tell that David Ayer needed a lot more time to work on the script.

While I really liked a lot of the characters, there were some that disappointed. The only one that I had a problem with was Enchantress, who initially has some cool stuff going for her but is a big letdown when her role in the story’s revealed. Cara Delevingne was fine in the role, but the way the character was executed was pretty disappointing. There’s also a few characters who were underused and didn’t need to be there. Killer Croc is a threatening presence who can kick some serious ass, but he has hardly anything to do (and has a really cringeworthy black stereotype line till the end). Same with Katana. If these characters weren’t in the movie I think it would’ve kicked the movie up a notch and let the good ones have even more screentime.

Verdict: Although it could’ve been a lot better, Suicide Squad is a really entertaining movie that’s a nice showcase for its heavy-hitting characters. I just wish they could’ve inhabited a better story.

Score: B-

Ender’s Game Review

Premise: In the wake on an alien attack, a child super-soldier is called in to command the human fighting against the invasion. Directed by Gavin Hood. Starring Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford, Abigail Breslin, Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, and Viola Davis.

Pros: I’m a fan of the novel, and I’ve wondered what a film would be like. But since Orson Scott Card is a hugely controversial figure and the material has the potential to become a political minefield. Ender and his brigade are essentially child soldiers, and most moral guardians don’t take kindly to that sort of thing, to say the least. But I must say Gavin Hood and company have preserved the spirit of the book while omitting parts that are unnecessary or unsavory. This is quite a good adaptation. (But is it a good film? We’ll get to that later.

Butterfield’s performance as this young military commander is quite good. I’ve been convinced since the BBC’s “Merlin” that Butterfield is one of the top young actors working today, and this film re-validates that sentiment. It’s hardly Oscar-worthy, but coming from an actor this young, I’d say his performance is pretty good. 

Cons: The film’s downfall lies in it’s storytelling. There’s the old rule that you “show, don’t tell”. This film, unfortunately, does neither. Many elements are just…there. For example, why are the child soldiers used? Why did the aliens attack? Why is Ben Kingsley even there? There’s a lot of questions that I feel were answered poorly. 

The dialogue is pretty bad as well. Harrison Ford phones his lines in, but even someone who cared wouldn’t really be an improvement. Viola Davis and the extras also get some frankly laughable excuses for dialogue that harkens back to the former two “Star Wars” prequels. If you want Shakespearian-quality dialogue, you’ll probably die of shock before you get to the credits.

Verdict: Although props go to Gavin Hood for getting the film made at all, “Enders Game” is a clunky would-be sci-fi epic that always feels worse than it should. Not bad per se, but not really worth seeing either. Overall, I give it a 5/10.