Failed supervillains, scummy criminals, and a… weasel. Not exactly Amanda Waller’s first picks, or indeed most qualified, but they are James Gunn’s and they are brought together in the DCEU’s latest “superhero” outing. Rest assured when you pay for a big screen ticket price, you get plenty of chaos and a giant starfish kaiju battle to boot. But what is it that makes this The Suicide Squad movie and not just a Suicide Squad movie?
Bloodsport: We’re all going to die.
Polka-Dot Man: I hope so.
Returning from 2016s Suicide Squad, Amanda Waller forms a new ragtag team of criminal miscreants and cold blooded assassins for hire to infiltrate the South American island nation of Corto Maltese, after its government is overthrown by an anti-American regime. Tasked with destroying a Nazi-era laboratory called Jötunheim and uncovering its secret experimental project known as “Project Starfish”, their mission may be suicidal, but then that’s why they’re called the “Suicide” Squad.
Following on from David Ayer’s 2016 Suicide Squad, panned for its flimsy plot, thinly written characters and messy directing, James Gunn’s take on Task Force X succeeds in every area Ayer’s Suicide Squad was criticised for, with better pacing, character writing, and most importantly: style. In many ways, there’s an impression his experiences with Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies have influenced aspects of The Suicide Squad, resulting in a team-based super-movie – certainly not “hero” – that manages to balance screen-time between its members without putting the weight of its success on Harley’s shoulders, as was the case with its 2016 forerunner. In a similar vein, Gunn succeeds at bringing his experiences at Marvel Studios to the DCEU in a way the now-dethroned King of Nerds, Joss Whedon, spectacularly failed to do when he reworked Zach Snyder’s Justice League after his success with Marvel Studios’ The Avengers.
I cherish peace with all my heart. I don’t care how many men, women, and children I need to kill to get it
Peacemaker (John Cena)
Like the first Suicide Squad we are presented with themes of control. Stemming from Amanda Waller’s abusive use of her power over Task Force X, including micro-explosives at the base of their skulls to ensure their cooperation, The Suicide Squad blends its fun, bright and colourful visuals and cast of outcast rogues with a comical critique of American Imperialism and corruption. It dives into the anti-superhero and anti-security-state cynicism of The Boys and The Watchmen, drenched in gory visuals that present a cynical side to the superhero genre, bringing attention to the brutality and corruption of the US prison systems and intelligence services. And what’s more is it takes a band of anti-heroes, criminals and supervillains to present these themes in such a way that is at once dark and brutal, yet has its gung-ho moments and never forgets to be a fun, colourful comic book movie. In contrast, Ayer’s Suicide Squad was visually darker and made more of an attempt to redeem its villainous band by showing that even they have a morale compass to do the right thing, rather than acknowledge that they are supervillains and anti-heroes, while Gunn’s team for the most part aren’t reduced to such morally black and white familiarities.
He’s a Weasel. He’s harmless. I mean, he’s not harmless. He’s killed twenty-seven children. But, you know, we got him to, I think he’s agreed to do this
Colonel Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman)
For a movie involving a giant intergalactic starfish, The Suicide Squad is ultimately a tribute to James Gunn’s abilities as a writer and director, but also for how well implemented the cast are. Going in, Bloodsport could have been judged as a stand-in for Will Smith’s Deadshot, taking up his role as the new team leader. However, Idris Elba’s acting and charisma elevate Bloodsport to a surprisingly powerful, prominent role in the movie, especially for a character not exactly recognised as a mainstream antagonist. Yet this is something The Suicide Squad almost ironically finds strength in. With a team of some of the more obscure of DC’s hefty catalogue of rogues, James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad manages to be pulpy fun and comical, yet push its darker, critical themes, in part because of the ridiculous nature of some of these forgotten DC characters, showing how his writing in conjunction with the expert casting have brought these characters to life who realistically have no right being part of a major superhero ensemble.
Suicide Squad is all about the rejects and outcasts. Simply put, with its humour and more political themes, a cast of more mainstream characters – and moreover, “superheroes” – simply wouldn’t have worked as well. The fact that we have Javelin, Ratcatcher II – not even the first one! – and Polka-Dot Man is absurd, but heightens the comical element while reminding us that these are, to someone like Amanda Waller, utterly expendable. While Margot Robbie demonstrates once again how perfect she is at portraying the “cuckoo for cocoa puffs” Harley Quinn, John Cena is positioned opposite Idris Elba’s Bloodsport as Peacemaker (soon to receive an HBO series of his own) causing some team friction, and it is baffling to think we have an endearing portrayal of Polka-Dot Man of all characters thanks to David Dastmalchian, alongside a loveable Ratcatcher from Daniela Melchior, and even Sly himself as King Shark.
Javelin: You name is TDK, correct?
TDK: Yeah.
Javelin: And it stands for what?
TDK: It stands for me. It’s what a name is.
Javelin: Your name is letters?
Captain Boomerang: All names are letters, dickhead!
But of course we have to recognise how Viola Davis manages, yet again, to make Amanda Waller’s presence known through every corner of The Suicide Squad as the team overseer, thanks to her tyrannical abuse of power. She’s powerful, calculating and prepared to shed her morals – and explode a few heads – to get the job done. Offering a faint glimmer of hope at freedom for the death-row inmates at Belle Reve, she pulls that illusion away by manipulating the members she wants for Task Force X by any means: and she can be… very persuasive. But certainly won’t be winning any “boss of the year” awards.
Like Guardians of the Galaxy, or even the first Suicide Squad, James Gunn’s team of rejects are accompanied by a great selection of tracks that come together to create a well compiled soundtrack. From the thematically appropriate “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash, played during the opening sequence as we are taken back to Belle Reve, to The Fratelli’s “Whistle for the Choir” – which comes in full blast before fading into a comically diegetic role. Moments like this remind us once again of James Gunn’s creative mastery at relating expertly crafted cinematography with musical accompaniment, whether it’s a mix of licensed music or original score from John Murphy.
Savant: So this is the famous Suicide Squad.
Colonel Rick Flag: Well, we consider that term degrading. The official term is Task Force X. And love them or hate them, these are your brothers and sisters for the next few days.
After David Ayer disowned 2016s Suicide Squad, citing studio interference for the poorly received end product, the promise of a follow-up seemed like an unlikely possibility, if not for Margot Robbie’s iconic portrayal of Harley Quinn and the announcement of James Gunn’s name being attached to the project! Bringing his flare, bombastic energy and creativity from the MCU’s cosmic outlaws to reinvent DC’s own band of disreputable outcasts, and the DCEU’s latest addition proves that this isn’t just Suicide Squad: this is The Suicide Squad.
