Here we go again folks, Memorial Day weekend has made me bold and here is another review of yet another thing that some people might call a “movie”
Wow, just wow what a shit show that was. Let’s see what we have here
- Gratuitous violence
- Non-sensical plot
- loosely based on original characters.
Just about what I expected from this movie really. No wonder Warner Bros renamed the movie towards the end of its run, though I don’t think it really stuck. The IMDB entry still has it at its original title “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn” That should tell you a lot bout this movie right there.
This is a live-action cartoon if that makes any sense. All kinds of breaking of the 4th wall (I always get a kick out of that if its done right), funny drawings etc.
What it got right:
- Harley Quinn- No doubt about it, Margot Robbie has that character down. Just like Hugh Jackman was born to play Wolverine, she has captured the essence of the character to the point that I can’t imagine anyone else doing it. Now mind you I don’t get why this character is so popular, as anyone that knows me enough knows I am not fond of glorifying super-villains. Yes Harley Quinn is a super-villain in case you forgot, no matter how you dress her up; she is a stone-cold killer just like the Joker and that shouldn’t be celebrated.
- Roman Sionis\Black Mask – Ewan McGregor’s overacting aside, Black Mask is an evil son of a bitch just like the rest of them. Really old spoilers, this character killed himself a kid sidekick just like the Joker killed Jason Todd back in the day.
What the movie got wrong, in my opinion:
- Renee Montoya – This was incredibly maddening to me to say the least since this is one of my favorite characters. At her least, Renee is a top-notch cop, at her greatest, she was the 2nd Question by Greg Rucka’s hand and in this movie she was kind of a half-assed joke. Sad really
- Cassandra Cain – Once again, one of my favorite characters. In the comics, Cassandra is one of the greatest martial artists in the DC Universe. Someone that could stand up to Batman in hand to hand combat. the 2nd Batgirl later called Orphan after a reboot or two. A serious bad-ass and one of the most original characters to appear in the Batman mythos in years reduced to a punk kid pickpocket in the movie. Seriously disappointing.
- Huntress – This one is probably the closest of them all. The origin is down, but they made the lady kind of an idiot it was sad to watch
- Black Canary – Also close, but no cigar This is obviously taken from the failed reboot of the character where she ran around as a singer in a band. I read one issue of that and hated it. Still she could kick ass she had powers like the comics, so there is that. Nowhere near the world-class martial artist that she was in the comics or in other TV shows she has been shown in.
So bottom line, it didn’t fill me with hate as the Joker did, I just didn’t care for it all. A total waste of time and money in my opinion. I can see why WB is going to spend so much on the Synder Cut
For me however, when I think of the Birds of Prey, this is what I think about.
I guess I should be glad that they didn’t have a half-ass, Barbara Gordon in the movie too.
Maybe WB should stop making comic book movies altogether and save us the trouble.