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MOVIE REVIEW
'The Suicide Squad' Is Soft And Overly Cartoonish
By Sal LoCicero | August 9, 2021
Ever since ‘Suicide Squad’ released on August 5, 2016, many fans were left upset with the outcome of the final product. The studio had decided to continue with a sequel, but found it difficult to grab the right creator for the job. DC Comics has gone through many ups and downs to the point where they have become disparate for new ideas. When James Gunn was fired from Marvel Studios (for a limited time) over offensive tweets he made in the past, Warner Bros snatched him right up and collaborated on what is now titled ‘The Suicide Squad’.
Expected to be a hard R rated movie with tons of blood, mayhem and vulgarity throughout, got many hyped up for what was to come. Delivering on the promise, James Gunn and the studios released the first trailer - a red band trailer - to give fans a little taste. According to news, Gunn only had a short amount of time to finalize the script before production.
Reviews have been wild towards it, some have praised it as “The Best Superhero Movie Of All Time” and “The Best DC Movie Since The Dark Knight”. James Gunn has shown himself to be such a creative storyteller who isn’t afraid to share his unique style no matter who likes it or not.
Wacky, gory, stylized and funny ‘The Suicide Squad’ may be, however the best comic book feature of all time is an extreme overstatement. It’s hard to even describe this as a good movie. There are some redeemable aspects here and there. The performances were great and not one actor lacked a performance. The comedy - for the most part - is funny, though at times it comes off unnecessarily weirdly. The chemistry between every member of Task Force X works insanely well together, including King Shark (Slyvester Stallone) who is as funny as he is menacing. Viola Davis gives another strong performance as Amanda Waller; the true villain here. And of course, there is Margot Robbie.
With all of the great elements, there comes the iceberg. What claimed to be a hardcore, stylized, vulgar bloodfest turned out to be nothing that was shocking. The violence is bloody, but it’s nothing you haven’t seen before in any adult rated comic book film. It’s handled in a more cartoonish way. The antagonists are nothing special either. The writing is also uneven in a few acts. One character starts out as the comic relief only to end up as a villain. The change of this character was abrupt.
What kills most of the potential, is the lack of original energy that was promised. Nothing that is shown here is new. James Gunn’s limited writing time is (without a doubt) noticeable. There are some improvements over ‘2016’s Suicide Squad’, but nothing that is so tremendous. Great performances, likable characters and funny humor are overshadowed by poor and uneven tone, writing and structure.
In the end, ‘The Suicide Squad’ is yet another DC failure that manages to find another way to disappoint. Let’s just hope Gunn’s upcoming projects are better, and Peacemaker’s standalone series exceeds greatness.
Grade: C-
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