Bloodsport: “Nobody likes a showoff.”

Peacemaker: “Unless what they showing off is dope as fuck.”


James Gunn recently said in an interview that he finds superhero movies “mostly boring” right now. Anything ranging from safe and boring or technically well-made but disposable, at best. Gunn received at bit of heat from fans for those remarks, but in some sense, he’s not wrong. Because sometimes following the same formula will eventually wear fin and more risk taking needs to happen.

And here we have ‘The Suicide Squad’, the soft reboot to the 2016 film, but this time directed by Gunn himself, where he delivers a highly entertaining movie that is bursting with creativity and ultra-violence. James Gunn once again shakes up the superhero formula with a slick style. I’m just glad DC is finally letting directors have a voice and a vision, and I hope it stays like that.

The first 10-15 minutes tells you exactly what the movie is going to be.

I just can't believe we got something like this. It's 2 hours and 12 minutes long, but it's always on the move. It’s bonkers from start till finish, and I enjoyed every minute of it. This is probably one of the best shot movies in the DCU. The soundtrack is great as well and used effectively. The action scenes were insane and made the overall experience one of the most fun I had at the cinema in a long time.

A massive improvement over the 2016 film, AKA ‘the studio cut’, is that the movie doesn’t look ugly and isn’t chopped together by trailer editors. The movie is vibrant in colours that made it look pleasing to the eye. The structure at times is messy, and yet strangely well-paced, as there’s a lot going on.

Did I mention the movie is very gory? It’s cartoonish violence, or what people call "adult superhero movie", so it's not for kiddies or for the faint of heart. You would probably guess that not everybody on the team is going to make it to the end credits, so deaths are to be expected, but how certain characters “bite the dust” are so unexpectedly gruesome and brutal, it took me by surprise each time. The marketing for the movie was right, don’t get too attached. As I said before, James Gunn had complete creative control over the movie, and he doesn’t hold back on what he wrote and show on screen. But then again, it's a movie, it's not real, the actors who die on screen are fine in real life...I think.

All the cast members have equal amount of time to shine, and you like these super villains this time around, as each character had wonderful chemistry with each other. John Cena plays Peacemaker, who can be best described as a “douchebag version of Captain America”. An extreme patriot who will do the most horrific things for liberty. John Cena excels in the deadpan line delivery for comedic effect, but surprisingly enough, worked well in the serious moments. Looking forward to the spin-off show ‘Peacemaker’.

Margot Robbie once again nails the role of the chaotic but gleeful Harley Quinn. While the character isn’t front and centre this time around, more of a side character, but whenever the character is on screen, it’s instantly memorable.

Idris Elba plays Bloodsport, a contract killer who’s doing time in prison after failing to kill Superman with a kryptonite bullet, while also dealing with family issues, especially with his daughter. While the character may sound like Will Smith’s Deadshot from the 2016 film, but trust me, the execution here is much stronger. This is by far Elba’s best work in a while. Charismatic and a strong leading presence.

Polka Dot Man, played by character actor David Dastmalchian, a socially awkward, weird, and lame sounding character that has some serious mummy issues, which has a funny running visual gag throughout. However, because of Gunn’s writing and Dastmalchian's performance, the character is more than a joke, but a unique character to watch.

Ratcatcher 2, played wonderfully by Daniela Melchior, who brought so much warmth and heart to the film. I loved how they tied in her tragic backstory into the finale, as it honestly made me cry. And let’s not forget the king himself, King Shark, voiced by Sylvester Stallone. He stole every scene he’s in, because he’s so adorable and has such kind eyes, but when he’s hungry, he can be a killing machine.

The rest of the supporting cast, even in the smaller roles, still manage to stand out amidst all the chaos. I liked Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag a lot more this time around, because the actor was given more to work with in terms of good material. Viola Davis is brilliant as the cold and ruthless Amanda Waller. And Peter Capaldi is always a pleasure to see. Also, I like the character of Weasel, who I can describe as a unholy offspring of Shin Godzilla and Rocket Racoon. He may not be beautiful to look at, but he's beautiful to me.

Like ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’, the movie has a lot of heart and I like how they took certain characters, who on page sound stupid and ridiculous but are handled with such love and depth, while also being self-aware of its own characterization.

You can literally watch this as a standalone movie and you won’t be lost or confused, as you don’t need to watch 22 other movies to understand it. This is by far the strongest entry in this jumbled mess of a cinematic universe.

Overall rating: Nom-nom!

I cannot help wondering if the writer of this movie was on a LSD trip or something when he wrote it. It is over the top crazy, weird and outrageous. It is also incredibly gory. It is a super hero / bad guy comedy with emphasis on comedy. I was thinking comedy version of Kill Bill (for the gore and killing) with supers in it when I was watching it.

I have to say that I enjoyed watching it though.

The movie makes absolutely no pretense of being taken seriously. The “heros” are outrageously wacky and so are most normal persons in the movie. The plot is just as wacky as the characters and this is a movie in which the normal ludicrous and illogical plot twists that the Hollywood hacks usually comes up with actually feels right for the movie.

I got a bit of a what the f… moment at the beginning when the movie had but started and everything went to hell right away. That was before I had realized how much of a comedy this movie really was supposed to be. If there is a sane moment in this movie I missed it.

If there was one thing I didn’t like about the movie it was the liberal use of jumping back and forth. I hate this “24 hours earlier…” bullshit or any permutations thereof.

I also really didn’t like the “It’s the evil US government conducting illegal evil experiments and we’re supposed to cover it up” story line. It just typical Hollywood overused crap.

I did like the action though. As I wrote before it is ridiculously gory and very very comical. So is a lot of the dialog which of course is as crazy and weird as the rest of the movie. In any other movie as large shark with legs walking on land saying “yum yum” and then eating someone, repeatedly, would be just cringeworthy. In this movie it actually works.

The movie is 2 hours 12 minutes long and it really did not feel too long. It was 2+ hours of fun entertainment.

The post credit scene was a bit lame though. Not at the same level as the rest of the movie.

Movie is different in terms of the violence it handles, but I feel that it falls into many things previously seen. The beginning of this film is brutal but as the second act progresses it becomes a bit tedious and there is a lot of sentimentality that ends up overshadowing the violence. The special effects are good and the sound is good too, most of the performances are convincing. While I didn't think it was that funny, it has it's few moments, and the main cast of characters is also more likable.

For sure has its moments and also has James Gunn's fingerprints with the dark humor. Not sure I would rank this all that high amongst all comic book movies, nor is it near the top compared with some DC, but it's a step up from the previous entry. The performances all around were well done with Idris Elba and John Cena being the highlights but everyone else were great. **3.75/5**

**Where the first film was a good action movie with Suicide Squad characters, The Suicide Squad (2021) truly is a Suicide Squad movie in all its psychotic, unpredictable glory.**

While I am one of the few that really enjoyed the 2016 Suicide Squad, I can't deny that this movie captures the chaos, instability, and expendable nature of the Squad in the comics. James Gunn introduces the audience to a whole cadre of characters that are very deep cuts into DC lore with unknowns like Polka-dot Man, Peacemaker, Bloodsport, Ratcatcher, Javelin, and more. These obscure villains serve as perfect cannon fodder for Amanda Waller's hopeless suicide missions. These C-list villains almost scream that no one is safe. Both new and old characters constantly die throughout the film. Still, somehow Gunn manages to make us care about these obscure and insignificant comic book characters making their deaths more potent and heartbreaking. He also knows how to direct Harley Quinn better than any director who has brought the character to live action. Her insanity and charm are delightfully deranged and perfectly showcased repeatedly. With an army of bad guys, there is plenty of action and fighting to keep the runtime moving and put each squad member's skills on display. After what Gunn did with The Suicide Squad, I am excited to see what he brings to the rest of the DC Universe.