Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn

◊ ◊ ½

This is a rather inauspicious start to what is likely to be my last year of movie reviews. This film had not been at the top of my list. I didn’t particularly like “Suicide Squad” and saw no reason to think this would be any better. But, an 80% on Rotten Tomatoes surprised me, and I read a good review, and my boyfriend wanted to see it. So… here we are. From its first scene, I was concerned. The animated intro (designed to bridge the gap between “Suicide Squad” and this film, and to explain where The Joker is) was painfully cute and self-aware. Its animation reminded me of Cartoon Network’s “Teen Titans Go!” And the whole movie felt like that– like it was trying to be really cute and fun and right now. Perhaps, that works if you’re fourteen. For me, it was a barrage of exploding images, jarring editing, and dialogue that was meant to sound clever but said little. Likewise, the music was overly loud, beat driven, and seemed to be chosen with a wink to the audience (aren’t we clever). When the final battle scene started with the bass line from Heart’s “Barracuda,” it made me think immediately of “Thor: Ragnarok’s” use of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.” All that did was remind me of how much better a film that one was. That is not to say that this film is without its charms. Margot Robbie is a fantastic actor, and she brings a chaotic glee to this character that is, by far, the best part of both films she’s in. I appear to be the only person who actually liked Jared Leto’s Joker. He is an utterly different beast than the Ledger or Phoenix versions, but I thought he was well-matched for Robbie’s Harley Quinn. I think I would have been more entertained by a film with both of them in it. Instead, we got Ewan McGregor. His Black Mask was probably the most entertaining character outside of Harley Quinn. Most of the rest of the characters, including the titular “Birds of Prey” were all fairly boring. I will give a nod to teen actress, Ella Jay Basco; I think she brought a lot of personality to her character. This isn’t a terrible way to spend your time, and it won’t be close to the worst film I see this year, but it isn’t one I would ever waste time watching twice.