The Squad Delivers A Gory Yet Worthy Return (The Suicide Squad)

 

The DCEU hasn't always made movies that have been considered to pass with flying colors according to critics and some fans, as much as the MCU does (but then again, many internet trolls believe that Disney pays critics to write good reviews). In 2016 when Zack Snyder was still in charge of most of the DCEU, Suicide Squad was harshly received albeit the introduction of Margot Robbie's iconic portrayal of Harley Quinn and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller, which led audiences not wanting to watch any attempt of a sequel to such a bad movie. 

However, this sequel also works itself as a reboot by bringing back only three members from the original roster as it introduces a whole bunch of underrated DC villains to be featured in THE Suicide Squad, without caring how much the title will definitely confuse fans as to which movie is which. Ignoring that fact, Amanda Waller has apparently been continuing the Task Force X program for quite a while now and we just happen to be witnessing a crucial and large mission within this complicated version of the DC universe. 

The most obvious difference between the two adaptations of the iconic villain-centric team is the choice of director. James Gunn helms the sequel/reboot with more freedom than David Ayer could have ever had 7 years ago and it's about time Warner Bros. took the stick out their butts to allow the directors they hire to create the vision they set out to bring to life. After seeing his genius unravel through the lens of the Guardians of the Galaxy films within the MCU, we are given a chance to see him go all the way to write and direct supposedly violent characters that are forced unto unnecessary violent circumstances.

In the case of casting, there's no doubt Gunn found the most capable amount of talent to fill up this large movie. It is also very easy to say that this might be some of their best performances especially with the likes of John Cena as Peacemaker and Idris Elba as Bloodsport when it came to channeling the more vulnerable and darker shades of their characters. Watching Margot Robbie's portrayal as Harley Quinn is a treat to watch as always, but felt underused due to the focus on the newcomers. Both David Dastmalchian and Daniela Melchior starring as Polka Dot Man and Ratcatcher 2 respectively were memorable but they deserved their own mini-stories beforehand or at least they could be further explored in future projects. 

Unlike its predecessor, The Suicide Squad does in fact feel like you're reading Suicide Squad comics, whether it's the original ones by John Ostrander or the recent ones that are gorier and flashier. This can be proved due to the number of characters Gunn decided to focus on -- which wasn't that many -- as well as the war genre he was clearly paying homage to. David Ayer might have had a vision that looked and felt better towards fans but the version that was released, whether it was what Ayer wanted or not, was, unfortunately, not as grossly satisfying as its sequel. Apart from that, even deaths that occur are much more effective, assuring audiences will involuntarily start caring for these characters no matter how messed up they may seem. 

For some reason, a lot of critics and viewers had a problem with the dark humor featured in the film but there was honestly no problem with any of it. All of it worked, I was still laughing by the end of the movie -- especially whenever King Shark was in the scene -- and the comedic timing seemed unconventional but always on point.  With that, it's the dark humor that made these characters so odd and compelling. Taking away such a vital piece of these characters, let alone a tiny bit of what made the Suicide Squad stories so fun and entertaining, would have gotten the movie to flush itself down a toilet at Belle Reve Prison. 

I can guarantee that The Suicide Squad creates its own level of hype and pressure that wasn't there before the movie came out for other DCEU properties to become just as good or even better to finally create the shared universe these iconic characters deserve and possibly even gain the amount of attention the MCU gets, ultimately becoming Marvel's very first viable competitor for box office numbers. Watch THE Suicide Squad for everything its previous movie wasn't and allow yourself to finally enjoy a widescreen superhero-action movie at home or at the big screen if you live in a place where theatres are in fact open.