Birds of Prey superhero film based on the team Birds of Prey comics from DC. It is the eighth film in the DC Extended Universe, and both a follow-up to and spin-off of Suicide Squad (2016). Directed by Cathy Yan and written by Christina Hodson, and stars Margot Robbie, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Rosie Perez, Chris Messina, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, and Ewan McGregor.
This is a bit of an overdue movie review so bear with me on this one. I also like to point out before we get into it all that I haven't watched Suicide Squad so I won't be comparing or referencing it as I do the review for this film. Also there might also be minor spoilers.
Birds of Prey follows Harley Quinn after her supposed break up with the Joker. Without the crazy clown on her side Harley soon finds out that a lot of people wants a piece of her. Soon find out life can get really chaotic very fast. And her latest exploit finds her crossing paths with both heroes and villain alike.
Birds of Prey is mostly the story of Harley Quinn after her supposed break up with the clown prince of crime. Its a toned down story with no world ending consequences and more of a character focused tale of Harley as she tries to survive as everyone she has ever wronged wants a piece of her. basically the movie is a a lot less Birds of Prey team up stuff and more Harley Quinn. The movie is entertaining as PG-16 could get with a lot of swearing and violence.
Character wise Robbie as Harley Quinn is the best part of the film. She embodies the character to near perfection and making her the center piece of the film works sadly the side character seem to take a back seat. So if you expected more of the other Birds of Prey character they are only there mostly for plot devices and at times comic relief. It's clear the movie didn't know what to do with the other cast in the movie and their role felt a bit forced.
Visually the film is surprisingly decent with action scenes done in wide shot and done well enough that they are easy to follow with some slow camera treatment. Sadly this barely translates to the other characters as the majority of the best fights are mostly done by Harley. You feel like the action scenes by the other characters are done by a different director and just taped together in the final cut. Still the film is entertaining enough that the action scenes is worth the ticket already.
The film also suffers from a weak villain as Black mask feels like just a random gang leader with just a lot of money to pay an army of thugs at his command. McGregor acting is tops but he feels underutilized that he isn't much of a threat aside from ordering people around all the time. I'm not even sure his character could win in a one on one fight against any of the movies protagonist.
There's little to no character development found outside of Harley Quinn. I felt little to no attachment from the other main characters even if they try to tie in these characters to what Harley Quinn was going through in some way. They even try to make a running joke about Huntress crossbow and her supposed anger issue in the movie. The plot could have been a lot better with a little minor tweaks here and there surely. The movie also jumps from being too dark to being too kid friendly. The film is PG-16 so expect a lot of mature content that are definitely not for kids. Bones will break...a lot.
So is the movie bad? Nope. In fact the movie is entertaining and the action scenes are some of the best scenes I've seen from a DC film outside of a batman centered movie. The movie does have issues with plot and lacking a villain that is an actually a real threat. The third act it feels underwhelming compared to how will the first and second act was like in terms action due to the lack of a slow cam as it dives from one character fight to another in a matter of minutes.
Fans of Harley Quinn should definitely see this movie is more a movie about her. The film has problems but it's still an entertaining film for an R-16 rating with lots of good action sequences. If you are not familiar with Harley Quinn than this is a good introduction to her. Plot and villain wise the film could have been leaps better. If you are into superhero action and don't mind a weak plot and antagonist than this is a film for you.
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