Suicide Squad

Score:  ***1/2 out of ***** (B)

Directed by David Ayer
Starring Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, et. al.
Running time: 123 minutes
Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Suicide Squad lands in theaters as the film that promised to change what we think of as a superhero film.  It seems at this point that most critics would say it failed, but after getting past all the fanciful expectations, it's a solidly made and entertaining film with all kinds of things we haven't seen before.  Will Smith and Margot Robbie lead the team of "bad guys" in different but compelling ways, and plenty of humor and a greatest hits soundtrack keep it all humming along.


With Superman gone, a world filled with mad men such as Lex Luthor and the Joker (Leto) is suddenly quite vulnerable.  One woman willing to do whatever is needed to bring back a sense of security is a mysterious government officer named Amanda Waller (Davis).  Rather than risk the lives of America's best and bravest, she intends to force some of the world's darkest and most dangerous individuals to do the dirty work for her.  Waller recruits a former soldier, Colonel Flag, to oversee this wild group, which includes the Joker's girlfriend, Harley Quinn (Robbie); the world's best marksman (Smith); and his own girlfriend, Dr. Moone (Delevingne), who had become transformed into a sort of Jekyl-and-Hyde after being possessed by an ancient spirit.  Dr. Moone is kept under extra control by Waller, who possesses the spirit's, known as Enchantress, physical heart.

Sensing a chance for escape, however, Enchantress summons her powerful brother and the two begin to rampage through Midway City.  Told that their first mission is to suppress a "simple" terrorist attack, the Suicide Squad grudgingly enters the city under Flag's command.  Even as they encounter an enemy far more formidable than expected, the Squad is also pulled back to loved ones long separated - some of whom are quite eager to reunite...

Suicide Squad has an eclectic cast that works effectively in a movie about bad guys playing good guys.  Will Smith and Margot Robbie - who also co-starred in Focus - take on the lead roles in the squad as Deadshot and Harley Quinn.  Smith, always charismatic and one of my favorites, seems at first to be playing way against type here as a smart-mouthed hit man.  However, his character has a "good" side, his connection with his young daughter.  Smith succeeds in giving the film its emotional core, and some good laughs, even if it's still a stretch to buy him as a ruthless killer.  Margot Robbie is even better as the Joker's girlfriend, Harley Quinn.  As the clown's one-time psychologist turned obsessed lover, Robbie is magnetic as the unhinged woman.  She appears, both physically and at times through her girly behavior, to be harmless, yet in an instant a dramatic change in expression and tone makes her seem like the most dangerous character in the film.  Leto has gotten a lot of press playing the Joker, following in Jack Nicholson's and Heath Ledger's famous footsteps.  He's much closer to Ledger's interpretation though it's still his own - and for the time being, we get only an appetizing introduction.  Viola Davis, a top-notch actress, is a great choice for Waller, the government official who coerces the Squad into obeying her.  She is brutal, whip smart and completely in - and (acting) under - control.  Other notes:  Joel Kinnaman does a solid job as the Squad's non-bad-guy leader; Jai Courtney is finally interesting here even if he nears overplaying his Aussie-accented baddie; and Ike Barinholtz gets a small but hilarious role as a prison guard.

Much like last month's Ghostbusters, the success or failure of Suicide Squad hinges almost entirely on expectations - critics', fanatics', general audiences' and so on.  This doesn't just mean whether it's expected to be good or bad, but what tone and style it "should" have.  After working through my own expectations to evaluate the film, I believe that Suicide Squad is a successful film overall thanks to solid execution of a new take on the superhero genre.  It all starts with the characters.  Whereas a traditional superhero starts with a core goodness and has flaws of some kind and degree, Squad's "bad" guys must do the reverse: start with the significant flaws, and find where the good is.  The film is not always subtle in how it does this - particularly with Smith's character and one named El Diablo - it still is an interesting exercise, and one which audiences can sometimes identify with better than other heroes.  A slower point set at a bar - while the city continues to burn outside - is critical and well done in this regard.  And Quinn is a character with rich complexity and intrigue, thankfully one not ruined by the filmmakers.  From a more direct action/superhero perspective, there is also plenty to enjoy here.  There's both plenty of humor with LOL moments courtesy of Smith, Robbie and Barinholtz's characters as well as some genuine chills, mostly from Leto's Joker and Davis' Waller.  The action is frequently fun, even if not in Marvel's league; Quinn's "batting" practice and Deadshot's marksmanship offer a little something out of the ordinary, at least.

By no means is Suicide Squad a perfect film, and depending - once again - on expectations, you can nitpick it until the cows come home.  The plot is not the most interesting in the genre, nor is the antagonist; although I would argue that at least the former is driven along with good pacing and the latter makes sense for the characters and their origins even if the details are generic and a bit stale.  At times the styling, script, and filmmaking can be sloppy to varying degrees.  Squad takes Guardians of the Galaxy's idea of a pop soundtrack which is smart but it's done less effectively and feels ripped off at times.  And probably the biggest complaint (not having read any full reviews yet - I didn't want my review to be slanted by them) is the tone.  This is NOT The Dark Knight trilogy, it doesn't have those films' grittiness and relative realism.  Heck, it's not even as dark in tone as this year's Batman v Superman.  For a film about bad guys, this might seem strange, and likely the film is being panned as just being a regular old superhero film with this "gimmick".  I can see where they're coming from, but ultimately I disagree.  I think the filmmakers chose, consciously or not, to focus more on the bad guys' capacity for good - for humanity - rather than on simply reveling in being bad.

***

Suicide Squad is not the landmark film in the ways that many thought it might be, but it still has good qualities.  In the wider superhero genre, this marks the third film in DC's attempt at a multiverse, and ironically, the worst of them in my opinion, Man of Steel, has the best Rotten Tomatoes score.  I think there are a few reasons for critics' drubbing of DC's films.  First is likely simple superhero fatigue; I get it, and that's fine (but critics would do well to at least be more honest about the fact).  Second, it shows just how good the Marvel series of films have been.  They are remarkably consistent in tone and quality, yet (usually) manage to not just repeat themselves over and over.  The new DC universe is still in its infancy and while it's clearly a departure from Marvel - a good thing! - it hasn't yet nailed down its overarching tone as effectively as Marvel.  Sure, the DC films also haven't been as consistent in their level of quality either, but they have brought some truly interesting new elements, attitudes and ideas to the table that haven't yet been given the credit they deserve.  Circling back to Suicide Squad at last: no, it isn't for everyone.  But non-superhero film fans might also be surprised by how much they enjoy it, particularly the performances from Smith, Robbie and Leto.  So tune out the critics, if you can, and give it a shot.



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Jason Bourne

Score:  ***1/2 out of ***** (B)

Directed by Paul Greengrass
Starring Matt Damon, Alicia Vikander, Tommy Lee Jones
Running time: 123 minutes
Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Matt Damon returns to arguably his most famous role as Jason Bourne for the first time in nearly a decade.  He slips easily back into the silent but tough mystery man, and there's plenty more fun chase and action scenes here.  However, the series strays from its storytelling roots in going bigger, and it's a turn for the worse.  There's some good potential that was left on the table here, but it's still an entertaining time at the movies.


Former CIA asset Jason Bourne (Damon) is living off the grid when an old friend - and fellow former CIA employee - Nicky Parsons (Stiles) drops in for a surprise visit.  She has joined an international hacking group which managed to penetrate the CIA's server and retrieve information on top secret projects, several of which directly relate to Bourne.  CIA Director Dewey (Jones) tracks Parsons, however, and Bourne barely escapes a riot-consumed Athens on his way to further investigate the leaks.  Dewey has been working to partner with a Silicon Valley-like CEO who is unveiling a newly integrated social media platform, and is determined to put an end to the Bourne loose end once and for all.

When Dewey attempts to bring down Bourne in London, who meets with a former CIA contact, one of his top cyber espionage officers, Heather Lee (Vikander), decides to give Bourne a chance.  After another close escape, Lee tells Bourne where to find Dewey, who is off to meet with his social media ally.  Even though it will put him right in the hornet's nest, Bourne is driven to confront Dewey and discover the full truth behind the secrets Parsons unveiled.

Jason Bourne has a strong cast of mostly new faces in this fifth installment of the franchise.  Matt Damon returns as Bourne for the first time in nine years, and it's difficult to detect any difference in his performance from the earlier films.  Of course, that's hardly a bad thing as Damon has made Bourne into an intriguing figure, a man of few words and ever-furrowed brow who nonetheless conveys deep inner turmoil and acts for justice, both his own and the world's.  All's well here.  He is once again joined by a woman on the inside who (at least partly) tries to help him, this time played by bright young star Alicia Vikander.  Vikander aces the outwardly business-like, even stoic presence of her talented, savvy, tech-genius CIA agent.  But she also communicates her discomfort with the CIA's stance on Bourne, mostly with her face; Greengrass's style gives plenty of close-ups, which has the added bonus of showing off Vikander's stunning beauty.  Tommy Lee Jones is the new big bad at the CIA, and of course he's a perfect choice.  His character has little nuance, but Jones is so good at these roles and he doesn't phone it in here.  There's also an evil super soldier for Bourne to contend with, as always, though this time he, played by Vincent Cassel, gets a bit more to do than his predecessors.

Jason Bourne is at least as thrilling an action film as previous films in the franchise, but the plot is a significant downgrade.  Admittedly, there's a bit less tension to the action here, since the feel is quite similar and so we know essentially what to expect, but it's still excellently choreographed and shot.  Bourne's escape through Athens, as the city is exploding with rioting, is the best action sequence I can remember in the franchise.  There's also an entertaining car chase in Vegas, though a bit over the top and at one point disturbingly reminiscent of the Nice, France tragedy.  And of course, a great, all-out slugfest between Bourne and "the Asset".  Unfortunately, the story suffers from being too similar to previous entries, while at the same time even less plausible and too trendy.  As mentioned with Jones, the bad guy is basically the same as always and predictable, but he also goes quite a bit further in his evil than one expects in a Bourne movie - too far, yet without much sense of the implications.  And the main plot also involves the government trying to make the mother of all tech surveillance programs... *yawn* which is painfully obvious bandwagon jumping, and is too on-the-nose, anyway, for Bourne.  Fortunately the pacing is quite good which keeps the two-hour run time clicking just fine, and the script - within its disappointing overall framework - is solidly done.

***

Jason Bourne is a good movie, very well done in some ways yet lazy enough in others that it doesn't quite measure up in the high quality franchise.  It has been a while since I've seen the first three films, but as I remember they offered tighter, tenser, more personal stakes and scope than this more broadly staged entry.  Broad is fine, but that's entering Bond territory and the franchise is better off staying on its own turf.  Still, the action is still a lot of fun and Damon is as good as ever.  And Vikander was a great new addition, who could possibly be in the next film if they make another.  Her character was poised to have a unique, series-altering ambiguity, but the film even spoiled that right at the end, which for me is the last straw in bringing it down to a "B" from a "B+".  If you want an entertaining time at the movies - as I've been saying for the last few weeks - here's another good choice.  It won't go down as a classic, but it's an alternative for those wishing to avoid its sci-fi competition.



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