Suicide Squad

Rating: 4/10 (19 August 2016)

The trailer for this DC Comics based movie looked great, many of the most well known supervillains brought together, I was certainly hoping it would be an improvement on the awful Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, directed by David Ayer (The Fast and the Furious, Training Day, End of Watch, Fury). Basically in the aftermath of Superman's death, at Belle Reve Penitentiary, intelligence operative Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) has assembled a team of dangerous criminals: former psychiatrist Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), elite hit man Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot (Will Smith), pyrokinetic ex-gangster El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), opportunistic thief Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney), monstrous cannibal Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) and specialised assassin Slipknot (Adam Beach). Under the command of Colonel Rick Flag (RoboCop's Joel Kinnaman), the team are to be used as disposable assets in high-risk missions for the U.S. government, the criminals are told their individual sentences will be reduced, and they have small bombs implanted in their necks, which will detonate if any try to rebel or escape. Former archaeologist and Flag's girlfriend June Moone (Cara Delevingne) was intended recruit, touching a cursed idol she is possessed by a witch-goddess known as "Enchantress", she has turned on everyone and wants to eradicate mankind, she has surrounded Midway City with monsters, begun creating a weapon, and summoned her brother Incubus (Alain Chanoine) to assist her. The squad is deployed and briefed, they are under the impression they are tackling a terrorist attack, but they are convinced it is a suicide mission, they are joined by mystic sword wielding Katana (Karen Fukuhara), she is acting as Flag's bodyguard. Meanwhile, Harley's lover, psychopathic supervillain the Joker (Razzie nominated Jared Leto) finds out about her predicament, he tortures Waller's man Griggs (Ike Barinholtz) and is lead to the facility where the nano bombs are made, the Joker blackmails a scientist into disabling Harley's bomb. The team's helicopter is shot down as they approach, forcing them to continue on foot, Slipknot is convinced by Boomerang the bombs are a ruse to keep them under control, he is killed attempting to escape, while the Enchantress' minions attack the team. The team manage to escape and reach a safe room, where they learn Waller herself is their mark, she is trying to cover her involvement, the squad escort Waller to the roof for extraction, but the Joker and his men have hijacked the helicopter, they open fire while Harley climbs aboard, however they are shot down, Harley jumps out while the Joker seemingly perishes in the explosion, Harley rejoins the team. Waller is kidnapped by the Enchantress' minions, while Deadshot confronts Flag about secret files found with the truth about the Enchantress, the squad members and Katana leave Flag after he confesses the truth, with Waller compromised, Flag chooses to continue and relieves the squad of the mission. The team realise they have the opportunity to prove themselves, they rejoin Flag, locate the Enchantress and Waller at a partially flooded subway station, the squad fight the Enchantress and her forces, while Killer Croc and Navy Seals, led by Lieutenant GQ Edwards (Scott Eastwood, Clint's son), plant a bomb underneath Incubus. El Diablo embraces his abilities and manages to hold Incubus down, the bomb goes off underneath, El Diablo, Incubus and Edwards are killed, the squad members are defeated battling Enchantress, in exchange for their allegiance she offers to fulfil their deepest desires, Harley appears to accept in order to get close to Enchantress and cut her heart out. The weapon is destroyed by explosives thrown by Killer Croc and shot by Deadshot, Enchantress' heart is crushed by Flag, Enchantress is killed and June is freed, Waller emerges alive and the squad members are returned to Belle Rave with ten years off their sentences. In the end, all but Captain Boomerang have special privileges, the Joker breaks out Harley, and Waller meets Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), who agrees to protect her backlash, in exchange for access to government files on the expanding metahuman community. Also starring Common as Monster T, Jim Parrack as Frost, David Harbour as Dexter Tolliver and We Need to Talk About Kevin's Ezra Miller as The Flash. Smith is great as the expert assassin, Robbie is terrifically mad and flirtatious as Harley Quinn (the big screen live action debut for the character, introduced in Batman: The Animated Series), Leto is a questionable alternative Joker with gold teeth and tattoos, Delevingne is rather average as the witch wanting to take over the world, Davis is menacing, and some of the other supporting stars do well. It has a brilliant soundtrack, including Grace feat. G-Eazy - "You Don't Own Me", Eminem" Without Me", The Animals - "The House of the Rising Sun", Creedence Clearwater Revival - "Fortunate Son", Black Sabbath - "Paranoid", The White Stripes - "Seven Nation Army", Norman Greenbaum - "Spirit in the Sky", K7 - "Come Baby Come" and Queen - "Bohemian Rhapsody". It seems that the trend of superhero movies are dominated by the more successful Marvel Universe, but this is certainly better than the last offering from DC. The special effects and makeup are fantastic, there are small flaws, the story is only just passable, the editing style can be a bit much, and the over-the-top action and stunts border on ridicuous, but there is some fun to be had, it's not a bad anti-superhero fantasy action film. It won the Oscar for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and it was nominated the Razzie for Worst Screenplay for David Ayer. Okay!