Suicide Squad (2016)
★★½ — Suicide Squad (2016)
David Ayer arrived at Suicide Squad on the back of Fury (2014), a well-received World War Two picture, and before that wrote the script for Training Day (2001), so a filmmaker with genuine credentials took on what was, at the time, a considerable gamble for Warner Bros. The film was part of the studio's accelerated push to build a DC Extended Universe to rival Marvel, rushed into production after Batman v Superman (2016) drew a mixed critical response. Released in August 2016 on a $175 million budget, it went on to gross nearly $750 million worldwide, a commercial success that somewhat obscured a notoriously troubled post-production, with reports of heavy re-editing and competing cuts prepared by the studio and a separate marketing company.
Suicide Squad (2016) is a film held together almost entirely by Margot Robbie's magnetic, scene-stealing turn as Harley Quinn. She doesn't just play the character, she is Harley: chaotic, vulnerable, darkly comic, and utterly compelling. Without her anarchic charm and genuine pathos, this would be a far more forgettable affair. Jared Leto's Joker, meanwhile, deserves a reappraisal, he's certainly divisive, but there's a wiry, unpredictable menace to his performance that fits the character's mythos, even if the script gives him little to do beyond posturing and purple-lit brooding. Beyond Robbie, however, the film unravels quickly. The plot (a ragtag team of villains forced into black-ops missions) is undermined by studio-mandated reshoots that leave the pacing choppy and the tone wildly inconsistent. One moment it's trying to be Guardians of the Galaxy, the next a grim DC slog, with Will Smith's Deadshot caught awkwardly between. The villain Enchantress is a CGI afterthought, the action sequences feel weightless, and the much-hyped squad chemistry rarely gels. It's a film that mistakes needle drops and graffiti aesthetics for personality. A deeply flawed, tonally confused mess that survives solely on Robbie's brilliance. She carries it hard, but even she can't salvage a film that feels less directed than assembled in committee. Watch for Harley; endure the rest.
Rating: ★★½ | Year: 2016 | Watched: 2026-04-01
Where to watch (UK)
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