Was "Suicide Squad" Really That Bad?
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| Suicide Squad (2016) |
Immediately after the release of Suicide Squad reviews poured in, each one dragging the movie through the mud with reports of how absolutely terrible it was from beginning to end, of how Jared Leto's performance of the Joker was the worst performance of the Joker in the history of Batman, and of how the film was a confusing and jumbled mess. Perhaps it is for this reason that my hopes were low enough to the ground for me to be pleasantly surprised after my first viewing of the infamous dreaded Suicide Squad.
Suicide Squad almost immediately gained notoriety when press photos of Jared Leto as the Joker sporting terrible tattoos (such as "damaged" scrawled across his forehead as if he's the protagonist of an angsty sixteen year old girl's fanfiction) and a grill, and with people both dreading and eager to see his performance if only for the hope that it would fall into the "so bad it's good" category of filmmaking, the majority of audience members were disappointed at how little screen time he actually earned. For what screen time he did earn, however, they were infuriated by the romantic chemistry between him and Harley Quinn, which is portrayed as something genuine and true rather than the horrendous abuse and manipulation depicted in the actual Batman comics. However, in the film's defense, I do applaud the movies for making a decision which runs against the comics and turns the Joker and Harley Quinn into a sort of demented Bonnie and Clyde rather than making audience members uncomfortably watch their favorite Batman villain physically beat and belittle his girlfriend. That being said, I prefer the changes which were made in the movie, and have always held fast to the belief that movies need to be viewed as pieces of art which are completely independent from the original work which they are based on.
Aside from the Joker, who played a very minor role in the film, I genuinely enjoyed the movie. It wasn't incredible by any means, in fact a lot of the sequences were rather forgettable (particularly the action scenes, which were muddled with shaky cam and too dark to decipher what was happening in some moments), but it still was a nice breathe of fresh air after sitting through so many Zach Snyder interpretations of the DC Universe. The flashback sequences and artistic introductions to each character were a blast, and it was fun watching a group of popular villains attempt to work together because they have to, and never really find themselves wanting to. Did it feel more like watching a ten year old play a Batman themed video game than it did watching a movie sometimes? Absolutely. Did I wish that Captain Boomerang and some of the other lesser known villains who weren't portrayed by Will Smith or Margot Robbie had more background and screentime? Yes. Was it really awkward hearing Killer Croc say things like "I live underground, y'all are just tourists"? Agonizingly so.
However, the film wasn't as bad as I expected, and perhaps people's expectations are why everyone either absolutely loathed it or found themselves convinced it was fantastic. Truth be told, Suicide Squad wasn't all that bad. It wasn't great by any means, and sometimes it's difficult to even say it's good, but it was decent and it was moderately entertaining, which is more than could be said for Batman Versus Superman.
Suicide Squad almost immediately gained notoriety when press photos of Jared Leto as the Joker sporting terrible tattoos (such as "damaged" scrawled across his forehead as if he's the protagonist of an angsty sixteen year old girl's fanfiction) and a grill, and with people both dreading and eager to see his performance if only for the hope that it would fall into the "so bad it's good" category of filmmaking, the majority of audience members were disappointed at how little screen time he actually earned. For what screen time he did earn, however, they were infuriated by the romantic chemistry between him and Harley Quinn, which is portrayed as something genuine and true rather than the horrendous abuse and manipulation depicted in the actual Batman comics. However, in the film's defense, I do applaud the movies for making a decision which runs against the comics and turns the Joker and Harley Quinn into a sort of demented Bonnie and Clyde rather than making audience members uncomfortably watch their favorite Batman villain physically beat and belittle his girlfriend. That being said, I prefer the changes which were made in the movie, and have always held fast to the belief that movies need to be viewed as pieces of art which are completely independent from the original work which they are based on.
Aside from the Joker, who played a very minor role in the film, I genuinely enjoyed the movie. It wasn't incredible by any means, in fact a lot of the sequences were rather forgettable (particularly the action scenes, which were muddled with shaky cam and too dark to decipher what was happening in some moments), but it still was a nice breathe of fresh air after sitting through so many Zach Snyder interpretations of the DC Universe. The flashback sequences and artistic introductions to each character were a blast, and it was fun watching a group of popular villains attempt to work together because they have to, and never really find themselves wanting to. Did it feel more like watching a ten year old play a Batman themed video game than it did watching a movie sometimes? Absolutely. Did I wish that Captain Boomerang and some of the other lesser known villains who weren't portrayed by Will Smith or Margot Robbie had more background and screentime? Yes. Was it really awkward hearing Killer Croc say things like "I live underground, y'all are just tourists"? Agonizingly so.
However, the film wasn't as bad as I expected, and perhaps people's expectations are why everyone either absolutely loathed it or found themselves convinced it was fantastic. Truth be told, Suicide Squad wasn't all that bad. It wasn't great by any means, and sometimes it's difficult to even say it's good, but it was decent and it was moderately entertaining, which is more than could be said for Batman Versus Superman.
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