Thursday, December 14, 2017

Movie review- "Suicide Squad" (2016) ** (warning: spoilers)

So many good things about it - the concept, the cast, the production design, the ideas. It's made by talented people. But it doesn't work. It was written too quickly. It doesn't click.

Like Batman vs Superman there's too much going on. The film should be relatively simple - bad guys get out of prison to get someone even badder. The Dirty Dozen did it well - establish the characters, give a few of them back story, spend act two having them bond (the training/war games sequence) then send them into battle for act three. Pick some to actually die to give it some stakes.

So we have Deadshot, Harley Quinn, El Diablo. That's all good. The Lee Marvin character is Amanda Waller - oh and also Rick Flagg. And now things get confusing because Flagg is in love with June Moone who is possessed by the Enchantress. The Enchantress wants to... rule the world I think.

Deadshot's motivation is clear - it's for his daughter. Harley is tormented by the Joker. I got Flagg's issue. I was confused by El Diablo.

The Flagg stuff is interesting - too interesting. It pulls focus from the Suicide Squad. I like the story - give it to the Suicide Squad people - El Diablo or someone. They would've been better off dumping Flagg and the Enchantress  - having Amanda Waller do the Lee Marvin role. And make the Joker the villain. That's right, the Joker is a supporting character - you could cut him out of the movie and it wouldn't affect anything.

Margot Robbie is amazing. Will Smith is good as is Viola Davis. Jared Leto isn't very good. I hope they get to do it right for the sequel.

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