When looking at comic book movies, the best ones are crafted by filmmakers with a clear vision on where they aim to take the story and characters. Sometimes these visions feel right for the story while other times they end up being a misfire, which became the case with David Ayer's 2016 Suicide Squad. Despite that film being hugely successful financially, it was critically slaughtered upon its release with the consensus being that it missed the mark. Fast-forward 5 years later, the misfit team gets a second chance to shine with James Gunn's fantastic sequel/reboot. The latter's Suicide Squad not only feels more consistent in tone, but feels like the true introduction for the characters.
Gunn's Squad revolves around a government agency sending two teams of obscure supervillains that include Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Bloodsport (Idris Elba) and Peacemaker (John Cena) to a South American island in order to destroy a Nazi-era laboratory responsible for an ongoing secretive experiment known as "Project Starfish." The newest Suicide Squad works as being a loose sequel to the previous film, as well as a redo for the characters. The story isn't anything groundbreaking but Gunn does an efficient job of taking an already established universe and adding greater depth while presenting a style that makes it widely appealing to watch. James Gunn's The Suicide Squad is a prime example of ones vision being fully realized on screen with the material marking a significant rebound from David Ayer's picture with the new film serving as a funny and fast-paced reboot that works marvelously.
A key ingredient of the films success comes from it's stellar ensemble cast which consists of returning faces from Ayer's film along with newer additions to the pack. Each character feels perfectly cast with everyone playing their roles to perfection. Margot Robbie continues to do great as crazed criminal Harley Quinn with her showing that she was born for the role. Idris Elba proves terrific as ex-mercenary Robert DuBois/ Bloodsport, who agrees to join the Squad to help his daughter. John Cena impresses as ruthless killer Christopher Smith/Peacemaker, who believes in achieving peace at any cost. Joel Kinnaman reprises his role as the teams field leader Rick Flag with him seizing the opportunity to play a sillier version of his character. Sylvester Stallone steals the show as King Shark with him making his character both funny and exciting to watch. Viola Davis returns as the director of the Task Force X program with her character being even more cold-hearted than previously shown. Other noteworthy performances from the main cast include David Dastmalchian in a run role as Abner Krill/Polka-Dot Man, along with Daniela Melchior as Cleo Cazo/Ratcatcher 2 with the latter's character serving as the heart of the film. The rest of the supporting cast include Jai Courtney returning as Captain Boomerang from the first, along with newbie Michael Rooker as weapons expert Brian Durkin/Savant. The acting overall plays a significant role in the reboot working as well as it does with everyone sharing chemistry, which feels natural along with providing the film with a carefree tone.
Much like the Guardians Of The Galaxy films, Gunn's directing once again is flashy with him utilizing the same style that made those movies work, along with a slick mixture of humor and hip soundtrack that makes Gunn's skewed vision ideal for the story. Whereas Ayer's world was dark and gritty, Gunn's comes across as being gleefully gory with the tone being significantly jokier. The cinematography does an impressive job of blending realism and fantasy together with the audience believing that both the human and non-human characters are real on screen. Both the colorful camera work as well as the films editing keeps everything constantly moving with Gunn's Squad never feeling boring. The soundtrack also adds to the films level of energy with a mixture of classic rock and pop tunes. A prime example of Gunn's exploitation style of filmmaking is the insanely over-the-top opening sequence that consists of characters being shockingly killed off in a hilarious fashion with Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues playing in the background. Gunn proves to be the perfect filmmaker to take a group of unfamiliar comic book characters and present them in the most extreme fashion, which instantly draws the audiences attention to the story from the start.
The one area where Gunn's Squad greatly improves upon Ayer's film is the writing with the script feeling more rounded with deeper insight given to the characters. Every member of Gunn's Suicide team gets his or her moment to shine with the audience being able to connect with them on a personal level. Not only are the characters more lovable, but the film carries a fun-spirited and carefree tone which feels like the special recipe that makes the source materials reinvigoration work. What's most surprising isn't the silly jokes that accompany the story, but the surprising amount of heart it possesses with the script showcasing the power of teamwork. Characters who represent the heart of the story this round are Ratcatcher 2 with the script emphasizing her empathy through her devotion to her fuzzy companions, and Bloodsport first shown as being hard-headed with him and his daughter having a rough patch at first before choosing to do good. The characters brought over from the previous film are given makeovers that makes their representations more likable and accurate to their comic book versions. As a whole, the scriptwriting for The Suicide Squad thrives over the previous work due to the fact that it places its characters front-and-center with the action taking an appropriate back seat to the story. By making these characters more relatable and human, Gunn assembles a team that audiences want to see.
Whereas the DC characters depicted previously were dark and bleak, Gunn's team feels like a breath of fresh air for the universe with the film not only getting so much right, but shows that going excessively dark isn't always required in order to make a DCEU story work. Those who were dissatisfied with the previous attempt at bringing the story to the big screen will be pleasantly surprised with the results here. James Gunn's film is a prime example of of what emerges when both a skillful and highly talented storyteller is given complete creative freedom in bringing their vision to the screen. It's a vision that shows what the DCEU can be if other filmmakers are granted the same creative control. Like Zack Snyder's Justice League, The Suicide Squad is a must see experience that rightfully ranks among the DCEU's best work yet.
Final Verdict: SEE IT
Images Courtesy Of Warner Brothers
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