Jared Leto and Margot Robbie Lift "Suicide Squad"

Rating: 7/10 (12 November 2016)

The first time I saw "Suicide Squad" I found that the focused too much on non-super villain Deadshot, played in the film by Will Smith ("Men in Black"; "Independence Day"), and missed the mark. However, I saw the film a second time, I found the film better than I remembered.
When Jared Leto (Academy Award winner for "Dallas Buyers Club") is on screen as the Joker with Harley Quinn, played by Margot Robbie ("The Wolf of Wall Street"), I was captivated. Their scenes are like "Scarface" meets "Romeo & Juliet" painted in neon carnival colors while sitting on a whirling out-of-control merry-go-round. They may be the most fascinating romantic characters portrayed on film this year, and their performances stayed with me.
Writer/Director David Ayer ("Fury") may have been too tied to the source material, DC Comics "Legends #3" graphic novel of the same name that self-consciously tried to humanize lesser known villains. Deadshot's story is mundane in an extraordinary world with a Dark Knight and a Man of Steel, and drags the whole film down.
The film includes other lesser known villains, including Amanda Waller, (played by the brilliant Viola Davis of "The Help"), Katana (played by martial arts star Karen Fukuhara), Boomerang (played by Jai Courtney), and Rick Flag (portrayed by Joel Kinsman). But we don't ever get to know them as characters and do not match the maniacal darkness and glee found in the Joker and Harley. I believe Writer/Director David Ayer, and the producers, could have benefited from a re-write before green-lighting the screenplay to make this film from good to great.
The film is helped by good cinematography by Roman Vasyanov ("Fury") and composer Steven Price (Academy Award winner for "Gravity"). The soundtrack relies heavily on good 70s rock ballads and hits that tries to keep the film's tempo up.
I saw it in 3D and while a few shots were made more interesting, the 3D glasses darkened some scenes so much that I had to remove the glasses to see what was really going on. So, I recommend seeing the film in 2D.