"Suicide Squad"- Another misfire for the struggling DCEU, though it is not without its moments. Entertaining but woefully messy.

Rating: 5/10 (29 May 2017)

There comes a certain point where as fans, we need to stop the squabbling, in-fighting and blame-throwing and face the bottom line. It's a tough pill to swallow, but it needs to be said- as it stands, the DC Extended Universe is failing. From the mediocrity and bizarre dreariness of "Man of Steel", through the intolerably disjointed and obnoxious "Batman V Superman", to the patchy filmmaking of "Suicide Squad"... things are not looking good. And the worst part is the excuses and denial. I've seen it time and again. Justification for the sub-par storytelling and hackneyed direction... excuses for the complete lack of character motivation and humanity... dismissal of any criticism no matter how constructive it may be... all because people are too in love with these characters to admit that something is critically wrong. People... something is wrong. Very wrong. And we need to admit it, whether you like it or not.
"Suicide Squad" is the third entry in DC's growing cinematic universe. And while it may not quite falter and fall as flat as 2016's other major release in the franchise ("Batman V Superman"), it still stands as merely a blaring example of mediocrity. Obviously butchered by re-shoots and re-edits and lacking a strong narrative cohesion, it may very well be an entertaining and sometimes thrilling experience, but it's a very troubled on. But hey... at least it's kinda fun to watch.
In a refreshingly straightforward tale, "Suicide Squad" follows the assembly of a task-force made up of various imprisoned super- villains and criminals, including the reptilian "Killer Croc" (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), pyrokinetic "El Diablo" (Jay Hernandez), conflicted mercenary "Deadshot" (Will Smith), mouthy crook "Captain Boomerang" (Jai Courtney) and the lover of the legendary clown prince of crime, Harley Quinn. (Margot Robbie) When one of the team's recruits- the incredibly powerful "Enchantress" (Cara Delevingne)- goes rogue and threatens to destroy the world, it's up to the bad-guys to save the day. ...oh, and I guess there's some stuff in there with Jared Leto as "The Joker", but it doesn't really matter.
The big problem here is that the film has a lot of potential that feels lost at the hands of a director sloppily trying to juggle several different tonalities and a studio trying to make the film as widely appealing as possible by sheepishly cutting around the more challenging scenes and throwing in pandering references for hardcore fans that come off as contrived and irritating. It's no secret that there was a great deal of behind-the-scenes drama with re-edits and re-shoots galore, with the studio going so far as to hire a trailer-editing company to do their own cut of the film to make it faster and more similar to one of the more popular previews... and oh boy, do these production troubles rear their head often. The pacing and focus is a complete mess much of the time and the film rockets by many key scenes with all the grace of a tap-dancer on a greased floor, leaving the viewer too often lost in the shuffle even with a relatively standard and predictable story.
This isn't helped by the painfully generic "gritty" guidance from writer/director David Ayer, who is so focused on shaky camera-work, aesthetically "dark" visuals and general bland "ugliness" that you might actually stop and ask yourself if you somehow wandered into a Rob Zombie film. I'm sorry, but I've just about had it with these falsely manufactured "gritty" films where it goes so far over the top with its style that it becomes laughable and cringe-worthy. If its to the service of nothing but self-indulgence and a misguided attempt at being "edgy", it's not innovation... it's tedium. I'm not saying you can't make a gritty film... I'm saying you have to make it right. And this just feels ridiculous. Do we really need a Joker covered in High School goth tattoos, a Harley Quinn with smudged makeup and fishnets and a villain who is so "evil" that her henchmen are literally made of anthropomorphic grime? It's forced.
But at the same time... I'd be lying if I said I didn't have some fun with the film, and can see hints of brilliance desperately clawing beneath the surface. So I can't say the film is a total loss. Outside of a woefully miscast and sometimes painful to watch Jared Leto, the rest of the cast shines. (And that's all the mention Leto will get, as he's barely in the movie as has been stated over and over.) Particularly Robbie, who is a complete joy despite being over-sexualized way too often. She's a ton of fun and I could see her being phenomenal in the role in future installments. I also quite admired Will Smith and even the absolutely delightful Viola Davis, who appears in a supporting role. And hey... the movie even made me like Jai Courtney! And that's nothing to sneeze at, as he's usually the cinematic kiss of death. The action can be very thrilling and there's some great effects work being done both digitally and with its award-winning makeup. Some of the jokes land well, and there's a few genuinely great sequences peppered in. And hey, even if I hate his work in the majority of the film, Ayer does have some very creative visuals up his sleeve that pop up now and again.
It comes down to this. If you're looking for the film to redeem the struggling DC Extended Universe, this sadly isn't it. It has potential, and it's arguably the best of the three thus-far released. But it has many problems all its own. However, if you're looking for some mindless fun with some good action, a couple of laughs and a few great performances, it won't disappoint. I just firmly believe that we need to put the pressure on the studio-suits and push them to do better work. DC deserves better.
I give "Suicide Squad" an average 5 out of 10.