Harley Quinn Gets To Shine in “Birds of Prey”
I’m not going to lie; I didn’t think I would end up seeing “Birds of Prey” while it was still in theaters. I assumed that I wouldn’t end up seeing it until it graced my TV screen on the likes of FX or SyFy. However, I’m glad I got the chance to see it in theaters when I did because it truly deserves recognition.
For those who have seen Suicide Squad, you have already been introduced to Harley Quinn, the Joker’s girlfriend and the psychotic heroine of “Birds of Prey.” However, the difference in this movie is that she and the Joker have officially broken up. Distraught and lonely, Harley decides to keep the breakup to herself for a while in order to continue enjoying the protection and perks that come with being the Joker’s girlfriend. However, at a club, she drunkenly reveals the breakup to Black Canary and she is overheard by the other club-goers. Suddenly, its open season on Harley Quinn. Harley has pissed many, many people off over the years but retaliation was never an option because of the Joker. As a result, Harley finds herself running into someone she’s spited on every corner.
The man who most wants revenge on Harley Quinn is Roman Sionis also known as Black Mask (but no one calls him that in the movie) played by Ewan McGregor. I honestly find it off-putting every time Ewan McGregor plays anyone except Obi-Wan (I thought his duty was to the republic, to democracy!), let alone a psychotic crime boss. He played the role very well though, as I was sufficiently creeped out and pissed off at his character.
Most of the movie concerned a diamond that was encoded with the account numbers to the fortune of the Bertinelli crime family, who were massacred several years ago with the help of Roman Sionis’ sadistic right-hand-man, Victor Zsasz, who has a penchant for cutting off faces. The theater clapped when he died. His death was actually one of the funniest scenes in the movie for reasons that I won’t spoil for you. Victor gets ahold of the diamond for Roman, but it is stolen by Cassandra Cain, a teenage girl who spends her days pickpocketing the people of Gotham City. Cassandra is picked up by the police shortly after taking the diamond, which is when Victor realizes the diamond is missing. In the cop car, Cassandra swallows the diamond, so most of the movie is spent trying to get it out of her (Harley is seen buying laxatives for this purpose). Roman tasks Harley with finding Cassandra, but Roman then puts a bounty on Cassandra’s head leading all of the gangsters in the city to come after Cassandra as well.
This plotline is complicated by GCPD detective Renee Montoya who is trying to bring Harley in; Dinah Lance (otherwise known as Black Canary), Roman’s “little bird” and driver who is also supplying Renee with information and trying to save Cassandra; and the Huntress, a crossbow assassin and the sole survivor of the Bertinelli massacre.
My main issues with this film had to do with the storytelling and lack of humor. Because this is Harley’s story, she acted as the narrator and main character of the film, but, with Harley being the spacey person she is, this resulted in the plotline being all over the place. We spend most of the movie trying to figure out what’s going on as Harley jumps from plot point to plot point, going back in time and then bringing us forward again.
Based on the trailers, I had hoped this movie would be more entertaining than it was. Unfortunately, a lot of the jokes just didn’t land. There were humorous moments in the film, but Margot Robbie’s voice as Harley Quinn becomes so grating after a while and the overwhelming amount of gratuitous violence takes the attention off the humor.
Although there were issues with this movie, I still feel that it’s an important film. The message that this movie sends about female empowerment, female rage, and women supporting women was truly great. I also really appreciated that this message was portrayed through a group of female anti-heroes. None of the women are without their flaws, which made the story more realistic. Of course the whole plot is outrageous and very unrealistic, but the bond created between women who are imperfect, like everyone is, was comforting to see. I also loved the character development for Harley Quinn. In “Suicide Squad,” she wasn’t really her own person, she was just an extension of the Joker. Now, being separated from him, we got to see more of her in different contexts. The development of her friendship with Cassandra was refreshing and showed that Harley does actually have a heart and is not completely self-serving.
Overall, I did enjoy this movie and would watch it again. I appreciated that this movie didn’t make the same mistakes that most DC movies make. The slow-mo wasn’t ridiculous, the CGI wasn’t terrible, and the characters were more likeable. The movie wasn’t perfect, but few rarely are. I can appreciate what this movie was trying to do and what it did for me as a woman who loves superhero movies. I was hoping for female empowerment that felt natural and believable, and that’s what I got from “Birds of Prey.” I mean, I sure as hell left that theater wanting to kick some ass.
Rating: 6.5/10