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Suicide Squad (2016) - Movie Review


Suicide Squad is the third and latest entry into the DCEU, and is about a bunch of bad guys that are rounded up to fight for someone else. And just like this year's BvS, this movie received overwhelmingly negative reviews by the critics and was divided among the fans. I was super curious to watch it because unlike many, I actually enjoyed the DCEU till this point. Enjoyed both Man of Steel and BvS. But unfortunately, this one's a mess.

The majority of the movie just feels choppy, editing was all over the place. Like they had a final product but because of disagreements, they took out a lot of scenes, shorten the runtime, and added others, making a giant choppy mess in the end. Scenes don't properly flow, including the flashbacks. Some scenes feel like they were added later (Probably the re-shoots) and they definitely didn't fit, particularly the elevator scene with Harley. The songs were all over the place as well. Some worked with their respective scenes, but most of them didn't, and again it felt like something added later, to give the movie a more jolly feel. And difference between development given to each member of the squad is astounding. Some were completely left in the dust, while some got a bit of line here and there, while some got a lot more development. Basically, to me it felt like that the movie reeked of studio involvement.

Also, the focus was just off. Movie is called Suicide Squad yet there is a whole lot of other stuff that gets way too much screentime. The whole end of the world plot was totally generic, uninteresting and unnecessary. The villain wasn't good, and the movements were weird, and not in a good way. Joker-Harley romance was also something padded on, and could have been removed in exchange for more screentime with the squad. 

Speaking of the Joker, he and his whole weird mafia/gangster lord type vibe didn't work for me. Jared Leto felt like he was trying too hard at times. There were moments where I saw the Joker I wanted in him, but those moments were swiftly followed by over the top feel that he gave most of the time. And that laugh....Yeah NOPE!!  

Even the action was mostly OK, apart from a couple of good scenes. There was no proper thrill, no proper buildup. Too many cuts. Say what you want about Snyder, but you have to admit that the dude can atleast direct amazing action sequences. 

And all of that sucks because there is stuff in the movie that works, like the main squad. Will Smith as Deadshot was great. He played his usual cool self and it worked. Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn was sexy and mostly good, because there were few instances where her dialogues gave me cringe. These two had a good chemistry together too. Also liked other members like El Diablo, Killer Croc, and captain Boomerang, all of whom were likable, had some fun moments etc. 

Plus, among all the mediocrity, there were glimpses of what the movie could have been like. Fun moments between the squad, some touchy moments, rare cool action sequences, full group scenes or rather a scene, the bar scene and such. 

Ultimately, The movie is like a mediocre cake covered with a thin layer of good frosting. The overall taste isn't bad, but it isn't good either. You enjoy the good frosting for a short while, and then have to deal with a whole lot of mediocre tasting body of the cake. I was disappointed. I really REALLY wanted to like this film. Pushed back all the negative or positive criticism and went in with an open mind. I'm not too hopeful what the extended cut will improve as 13 mins of footage isn't much, and I'm guessing it is Joker footage mostly.

It's funny that after watching this, I respect MCU more now considering what they were able to do with the more risky project: Guardians of the Galaxy. 

6/10
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