Review: Birds of Prey (2020)
Feb. 9th, 2020 04:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
glitter_n_goreIf you're wondering whether you need to see Suicide Squad first to "get" this movie--you don't. All you need to know is Harley Quinn used to date the Joker, and Margot Robbie's "fantabulous" voiceover narration will give you the rest.
GIF: Harley Quinn walking away from rainbow-colored explosion
Source.
Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is everything I never knew I needed in a comic book movie writ large, colorful, and ridiculous. Tone-wise, it has more in common with 2010's Scott Pilgrim vs. The World than anything else DC has produced, with all the absurd funhouse logic that implies. It's loud, fast, action-packed, and gloriously, unapologetically queer. All it asks of you is to get on the ride and hang on.
The most basic of plot summaries: Harley Quinn and the Joker have split up, "for good this time," and Harley is starting to realize that a massive chunk of Gotham's criminal population only put up with her because they were scared of her boyfriend. So once word gets out that Harley is no longer under Mister J's protection, it's open season for the crime lords and the Gotham police. Harley's got to prove to herself, and the rest of the world, that she is strong enough to stand on her own.
Running underneath all this is a MacGuffin hunt for a rare and extremely valuable diamond which was stolen from one of the oldest, wealthiest families in Gotham many years ago--not to mention a mysterious vigilante known to the papers as the "crossbow killer." As you'd expect, all three of these things get tied up together, along with the respective character journeys of pretty much everyone here.
Speaking of the characters: I keep trying to make up my mind as to which actor is the true MVP here, and I cannot do it. Everyone is bringing their A game. I've loved Jurnee Smollett-Bell since Friday Night Lights, and as Black Canary she has this arresting presence that's hard to look away from. She just quietly pulls the focus even when she's in the background of the scene, and when she steps into center stage, she's electrifying. And I don't just mean her voice, although you will be treated to her rendition of "It's A Man's Man's Man's World." Savor it!
Rosie Perez has the time-tested role of Good Cop who never gets the credit she deserves, and is on the verge of having her most important case taken away for not getting results as fast as her department wants. She reminded me a little Ernie Hudson in The Crow, complete with the side-plot about going through a messy breakup--with a woman! Did I mention this movie is unapologetically queer? This character type is a staple in crime dramas, even those set in a superhero universe, but the fact that it's a gay woman of color in this case, and she's as solid and tough and competent as any man I've seen in this archetype, is significant.
Somebody please recognize Mary Elizabeth Winstead's talent for comedy and let her do something more substantial with it, because her Huntress is simultaneously wicked-cool and endearingly awkward, which I didn't know was possible. I can't say much about her character without giving a lot away. However, her entrance and all the subsequent reveals about what she's up to are timed perfectly for maximum awesome. I need more Huntress now.
Ewan MacGregor is absolutely terrifying as our Big Bad, along with his cohort, Zsasz, with an extra dose of fabulosity. Every time he's in frame, I got hit with this wave of, "I want that outfit" and "Please don't hurt me." And I'll just mention here that if you haven't seen MacGregor as a villain before, find a copy of Shallow Grave and watch it. You won't regret it.
Finally, Robbie is a treasure as Harley, which we already knew from Suicide Squad, but she's really allowed to stretch and dance with the role in a way she couldn't before. This is Harley at her messiest, noisiest, and least concerned with decorum or having to impress anyone. I've heard some reviewers compare her to Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, and I agree. Not that the characters have a whole lot in common (apart from breaking the fourth wall every so often), but I get the impression Robbie got attached to the character and said, "This girl deserves better. I can do better." Then gave herself a spot in the producer's chair to make it happen. Suicide Squad kept Harley on a short leash; this movie lets her fly.
You should know that there's a very specific type of ridiculousness in both pacing and logic in this movie. It has this whiplash nonlinear structure pinned together by fourth wall breaking asides and flashbacks, all told through Harley's scattered narration. There was a recurring device in Suicide Squad where various characters were introduced via onscreen cue cards including their names and stats. Something similar happens here, but done SO much better. It works because Harley has a tendency to go off on tangents and get distracted, and since she's the one telling this story, you're along for that ride. There's one scene where she breaks into the police station and blows away half the low-grade rent-a-cops with a bazooka that fires confetti, BEFORE stopping mid-scene and going, "Oh yeah, I should probably tell you why I'm here."
It's that kind of movie.
Did I mention this has a kick-ass fight scene set inside an abandoned funhouse? I swooned!
There's a lot more I could say about Birds of Prey. Underneath the splatter and rainbow glitter is a theme of learning to love yourself, and it's subtle enough not to feel cheesy or overcooked. The nonstop action definitely helps. It's easily my favorite DC movie since The Dark Knight. Easily. Yes, including Wonder Woman, although the two are clearly playing to very different audiences. So go see it. See it twice. Take your special lady out to see it this Valentine's Day, especially if you're a woman who loves women. I'm gonna try to see it again. And probably draw some Huntress/Black Canary fanart.
GIF: Harley Quinn walking away from rainbow-colored explosion
Source.
Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is everything I never knew I needed in a comic book movie writ large, colorful, and ridiculous. Tone-wise, it has more in common with 2010's Scott Pilgrim vs. The World than anything else DC has produced, with all the absurd funhouse logic that implies. It's loud, fast, action-packed, and gloriously, unapologetically queer. All it asks of you is to get on the ride and hang on.
The most basic of plot summaries: Harley Quinn and the Joker have split up, "for good this time," and Harley is starting to realize that a massive chunk of Gotham's criminal population only put up with her because they were scared of her boyfriend. So once word gets out that Harley is no longer under Mister J's protection, it's open season for the crime lords and the Gotham police. Harley's got to prove to herself, and the rest of the world, that she is strong enough to stand on her own.
Running underneath all this is a MacGuffin hunt for a rare and extremely valuable diamond which was stolen from one of the oldest, wealthiest families in Gotham many years ago--not to mention a mysterious vigilante known to the papers as the "crossbow killer." As you'd expect, all three of these things get tied up together, along with the respective character journeys of pretty much everyone here.
Speaking of the characters: I keep trying to make up my mind as to which actor is the true MVP here, and I cannot do it. Everyone is bringing their A game. I've loved Jurnee Smollett-Bell since Friday Night Lights, and as Black Canary she has this arresting presence that's hard to look away from. She just quietly pulls the focus even when she's in the background of the scene, and when she steps into center stage, she's electrifying. And I don't just mean her voice, although you will be treated to her rendition of "It's A Man's Man's Man's World." Savor it!
Rosie Perez has the time-tested role of Good Cop who never gets the credit she deserves, and is on the verge of having her most important case taken away for not getting results as fast as her department wants. She reminded me a little Ernie Hudson in The Crow, complete with the side-plot about going through a messy breakup--with a woman! Did I mention this movie is unapologetically queer? This character type is a staple in crime dramas, even those set in a superhero universe, but the fact that it's a gay woman of color in this case, and she's as solid and tough and competent as any man I've seen in this archetype, is significant.
Somebody please recognize Mary Elizabeth Winstead's talent for comedy and let her do something more substantial with it, because her Huntress is simultaneously wicked-cool and endearingly awkward, which I didn't know was possible. I can't say much about her character without giving a lot away. However, her entrance and all the subsequent reveals about what she's up to are timed perfectly for maximum awesome. I need more Huntress now.
Ewan MacGregor is absolutely terrifying as our Big Bad, along with his cohort, Zsasz, with an extra dose of fabulosity. Every time he's in frame, I got hit with this wave of, "I want that outfit" and "Please don't hurt me." And I'll just mention here that if you haven't seen MacGregor as a villain before, find a copy of Shallow Grave and watch it. You won't regret it.
Finally, Robbie is a treasure as Harley, which we already knew from Suicide Squad, but she's really allowed to stretch and dance with the role in a way she couldn't before. This is Harley at her messiest, noisiest, and least concerned with decorum or having to impress anyone. I've heard some reviewers compare her to Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, and I agree. Not that the characters have a whole lot in common (apart from breaking the fourth wall every so often), but I get the impression Robbie got attached to the character and said, "This girl deserves better. I can do better." Then gave herself a spot in the producer's chair to make it happen. Suicide Squad kept Harley on a short leash; this movie lets her fly.
You should know that there's a very specific type of ridiculousness in both pacing and logic in this movie. It has this whiplash nonlinear structure pinned together by fourth wall breaking asides and flashbacks, all told through Harley's scattered narration. There was a recurring device in Suicide Squad where various characters were introduced via onscreen cue cards including their names and stats. Something similar happens here, but done SO much better. It works because Harley has a tendency to go off on tangents and get distracted, and since she's the one telling this story, you're along for that ride. There's one scene where she breaks into the police station and blows away half the low-grade rent-a-cops with a bazooka that fires confetti, BEFORE stopping mid-scene and going, "Oh yeah, I should probably tell you why I'm here."
It's that kind of movie.
Did I mention this has a kick-ass fight scene set inside an abandoned funhouse? I swooned!
There's a lot more I could say about Birds of Prey. Underneath the splatter and rainbow glitter is a theme of learning to love yourself, and it's subtle enough not to feel cheesy or overcooked. The nonstop action definitely helps. It's easily my favorite DC movie since The Dark Knight. Easily. Yes, including Wonder Woman, although the two are clearly playing to very different audiences. So go see it. See it twice. Take your special lady out to see it this Valentine's Day, especially if you're a woman who loves women. I'm gonna try to see it again. And probably draw some Huntress/Black Canary fanart.
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Date: 2020-02-10 03:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-02-10 05:10 pm (UTC)SO MUCH GLEE!! ♥ Do see it in theaters if you can swing it--totally worth it.