Fantasia Film Festival 2021 Review: The Suicide Squad

Written by Alexander Reams

97/100

“We’re all gonna die”
Bloodsport

“I hope so”
Polka-Dot Man

“Oh for fucks sake”
Bloodsport

This interaction between Bloodsport (Idris Elba) and Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian) tells you all you need to know about James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad. The film, and the marketing are seemingly reacting to the question “Is this a sequel or a reboot to Suicide Squad (2016)?”. The answer is simpler than you would think: yes. It is a continuation, as proved by the existing relationship between Flag, Harley, and Captain Boomerang. While also starting over, not ignoring Ayer’s film, but also paving a new path for this group of villains. The major difference in this film to Ayer’s is that everything here is turned up. The dark humor is borderline nihilistic, but never quite feels like a downer. The action is way more realistic, making you feel every grain of sand and every speck of dust that hits the screen.

The plot is a simple one, something that James Gunn thrives in. The squad, led by Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) and Bloodsport (Idris Elba), are tasked with going to the fictional island of Corto Maltese and destroy an old Nazi research post known as “Jotunheim” (reference to Norse mythology, the planet Jotunheim was the home world of the frost giants). As you would expect the mission gets very out of hand and they get a lot more than they expected. The beauty of Gunn employing a simple plot is that he can go anywhere he wants with it (Finally Warner Brothers has seemingly decided to trust its filmmaker), and he does, quickly subverting any audience expectations within the first 10 minutes of the film. I won’t spoil what he does, because it is so exhilarating to see it without knowing anything.

Fantasia Film Festival 2021

I was excited to see this from the first casting poster, and I’m happy to report that this film not only good but fun. Such has been an issue with the DCEU thus far. They can be good, but not enjoyable (Wonder Woman), or they can be bad, but there is fun to be had (Suicide Squad, more like Good Time, if youre drunk, but my point stands). Thankfully in 2021 we have gotten 2 high quality DCEU films, this, and Zack Snyder’s Justice League. If you remember I sang the praises of that film. After years of mixed to meh films, we’ve had a banner year, that brings me hope for whats to come.

The squad ends up being Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Peacemaker (A wonderfully macabre John Cena), Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian, my favorite nihilistic performance since Edward Norton in Fight Club), Nanaue/ King Shark (Sylvester Stallone, with in my opinion his best performance since the first Rocky), and Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior, the heart of the flick). This ensemble plays off of each other deftly, and Gunn gives time for each of them to shine. As well as moments for everyone to play off each other. One of the best, and one of my personal favorite moments, is when Peacemaker and Bloodsport have a kill count competition, their facial reactions and body movements elevate the scene into one of the funniest in the film with only 2 lines of dialogue.

Gunn has managed to make a multi-genre film that exists within the current DCEU and make it work. He clearly has a lot of passion for this film and these characters. With all of that behind the camera, and the borderline legendary ensemble on screen, each manages to shine throughout and leave a lasting impression on myself long after the credits rolled. From one DC fan to another, thank you James Gunn.

The Suicide Squad Trailer

The Suicide Squad was screened at Fantasia 2021 Film Festival and is currently in wide theatrical release and streaming on HBO Max.

You can connect with Alexander on his social media profiles: Instagram, Letterboxd, and Twitter. Or see more of his work on his website.

P.S.: Peacemaker has his own TV show on HBO Max, and after this, I can’t imagine what Gunn has cooked up for us, but I know I want to see it.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League

Written by Alexander Reams

100/100

I’ve always been a fan of DC, their comics, TV shows, and film. Yes, even the highly controversial DCEU. Three, almost four years ago when Justice League was released most, including myself, were let down by the half baked film. Now after much campaigning from the fans we have Zack Snyder’s original, uncut version, much to the glee from fans and filmmakers alike. Especially after the numerous reports coming from the 2017 Justice League set in which Joss Whedon at best behaved poorly. This in conjunction with reports of Warner Bros. tampering with other DCEU films, Suicide Squad being a major example led many to speculate just how much more grandiose and joyful Snyder’s version might be.

Martin Scorsese criticized superhero films broadly claiming they were like “theme parks” and not “cinema”. Zack Snyder’s Justice League seems to be the closest example of what a superhero film might look like after the advent of the Avengers that Scorsese may like. There is a clear vision and style to the film. Shot differently than most contemporary superhero films and brimming with a fantastic cast who work well together. Ray Fisher has long been a big campaigner for the Snyder Cut to be released. After watching this rendition of the film you can clearly see why, as he’s it’s heartbeat.

There’s been talk about the runtime, 242 minutes is a long film, and the longest superhero film of all time, beating Snyder’s previous record with Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut. The runtime feels completely earned, at this point in the DCEU we had not been introduced to Aquaman, Flash, or Cyborg. So this is a continuation of Wonder Woman’s story as well as a sequel to Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice and an introduction to those respective characters. Something that’s easy to forget now, on the other side of those films release.

By the end of the film, I was in tears, there are some of the best fan service moments I’ve seen. I don’t want to delve into spoilers but the last 80 minutes of the film are some of Snyder’s best filmmaking in his career. I hope to see the Snyderverse restored, expanded on, and continued in the future. This is better than any film the MCU has put out yet. I loved this film so much and I can’t say that enough. To me this film is perfection.

#restorethesnyderverse

Zack Snyder’s Justice League Trailer

You can watch Zack Snyder’s Justice League on HBO Max.

You can connect with Alexander on his social media profiles: Instagram, Letterboxd, and Twitter.

Wonder Woman 1984

Written by Anna Harrison

60/100

The first Wonder Woman was a breath of fresh air not only for the struggling DC Extended Universe, but for superhero movies as a whole. It was charming and oftentimes stirring (the No Man’s Land scene!), and despite its somewhat bizarre and bloated third act, the movie managed to succeed on almost every level.

Wonder Woman 1984, on the other hand… not so much.

The movie opens with a wholly unnecessary flashback to Amazon homeland of Themyscira, then reintroduces us to our hero, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot), who goes around stopping mall heists when she’s not working at the Smithsonian. She still longs for lost love Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), who sacrificed himself at the end of the first movie, and while it’s been quite some time since Steve died—66 years, in fact—Diana still mourns him. I too would be sad for over half a century if my Chris Pine-looking boyfriend died, so no judgement there. Diana meets Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig), a fellow employee at the Smithsonian, though one much more awkward than Diana; Diana and Barbara meet Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal), a wannabe oil tycoon. The three of them encounter a strange stone that grants wishes, and then we’re off to the races.

Wonder Woman 1984 commits to its name, and the movie stays true to the time period in which it’s set: returning director Patty Jenkins populates the movie with vibrant 80s colors, Jazzercise, the good old Soviets versus Americans shtick, and, unfortunately, an increasingly ludicrous plot and cheesy writing, even for superhero movies. And we don’t even get any fun 80s songs.

The first act opens innocently enough. Steve Trevor mysteriously returns (and some dubious moral implications about the manner of his return remain largely undiscussed), giving Pine and Gadot a chance to reignite their chemistry from the first movie. Pine is great as the fish out of water in this movie, mirroring Diana’s journey in the first, and I could watch him marvel at parachute pants all day. It’s fun! It’s Chris Pine in a fanny pack!

Then, unfortunately, the plot kicks into gear, and even good performances can’t distract from bad writing.

There are interesting granules in there, to be sure. Maxwell Lord clings to the American dream by exploiting the Middle East, Ronald Reagan wishes above all else to have more nuclear missiles closer to the Soviets, a megalomaniac businessman amasses power through false promises and backstabbing to become a dangerous demagogue—but all of these elements remain uninterrogated or are turned into bizarre jokes and stereotypes, leaving me scratching my head at their inclusion in the first place. Instead, we are left with truly cringe-worthy lines like, “I wanna be number one. An apex predator like nothing there’s ever been before,” which even a game Kristen Wiig can only sell so well. (She then promptly gets turned into a reject from Cats.)

Still, there are some nice moments. Pedro Pascal has a great time slowly losing his marbles, and there is a fun and too brief scene where he and Chris Pine get handcuffed together. Shenanigans ensue. Gadot gets some cool action sequences (and some that really drag), albeit ones that would have looked much cooler from a seat in a movie theater and not from my yoga mat on the floor. Steve and Diana share a sweet conversation in a jet in what seems like the only real heart-to-heart they have in the entire movie. Diana soars through the winds as Adagio in D Minor from the (superior) movie Sunshine plays, because I guess Oscar winner Hans Zimmer couldn’t be bothered to write something original.

And yet.
Wonder Woman 1984 overstays its lengthy runtime, has a completely unbelievable ending even for the superhero genre, and ultimately hits many of the same character beats for Diana as her first solo outing did. Frankly, there seems to be very little point to its existence. I’m not expecting extreme intellectual rigor from superhero movies, and at its worst Wonder Woman 1984 is still fun enough. But is it too much to ask for more?

Wonder Woman 1984 Trailer

Wonder Woman 1984 is currently available to stream from HBO Max until 1/25/21

You can follow Anna on Letterboxd and her website