There is a lot packed in with little time for heavy impact but that doesn’t mean its all bad’

Suicide Squad was one of the most anticipated movies of the year so its release was always going to be watched with scrutiny.  Film critics were chomping at the bit for 5 p.m. August 2nd to arrive. Why? well there was an embargo on reviews until then. Many view embargo’s as a studio being worried their blockbuster won’t live up to the hype around it. Perhaps however its more a clever ploy to whip everyone into a frenzy just before release date. Whatever the case may be there was a flood of mixed reviews circulating the internet at 5.01 p.m.

Now while I’m no film critic I am a film enthusiast and personally I think Suicide Squad is worth a watch. Yes its been savaged by the more prominent critics but then again everyone has their own opinion. The movie has a lot to do in its two-hour time slot. It has to introduce us to a whole squad of characters and somehow slip in enough back story for each to keep us interested. That alone takes up a chunk of screen time.  Then we need to get to know Amanda Waller, played incredibly well by Viola Davis.  She is the cold calculating mastermind behind the assembly of our cast of villains.

Viola Davis as Amanda Waller

That line up of villains includes Jay Hernandez as Diablo, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Killer Croc and Jai Courtney as Boomerang.  Apart from Diablo in this group to be honest there is little for them to do. Screen time is at a premium and is given over to the more stand out characters such as Will Smith as Deadshot and absolute scene stealer Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn.  She is to Suicide Squad what Wonder Woman was to Batman Vs Superman, the character that might just save the movie.  Harley we learn gets her particular brand of crazy from The Joker played by Jared Leto.  In my opinion he gave an excellent performance and despite his less than twenty minutes on-screen he is loaded with menacing potential and I can’t wait to see more of him.

Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn

Jared Leto as The Joker

In a nutshell the premise is simple.  What if Superman chose to be our enemy rather than our friend.  Who exactly could we turn to in a crisis. Waller’s idea is to cobble together a band of capable misfits who will become the Suicide Squad.  A task force of  dangerous villains on a short leash capable of fighting the deadliest of foes. Their services are required sooner than expected when June Moon/Enchantress (Cara Delavingne, who is not up to much to be honest) frees her brother and the squad must use their abilities to stop him.  Almost one-third of the movie is given over to Enchantress and her brother wreaking havoc while their CGI henchman have numerous gunfights with our villains, who are quite frankly very light on villainy.

There is a lot packed in with little time for heavy impact but that doesn’t mean its all bad.  Smith, Robbie, Leto and Davis give strong performances.  It has a cracking soundtrack which no doubt everyone will compare to Guardians of the Galaxy and of course the DC versus Marvel fight will be kicked up a notch while the movie is picked apart and pitched against The Avengers, sure that alone is reason enough to see it.

Its written and directed by David Ayer (Fury, End of Watch) who seems to have divided fans. I’m going to give Suicide Squad a 2.5 out of 5.  Its loud, its fun and whatever way you look at it, it’s going to keep you entertained for over two hours. It’s in cinemas now, go see it and check out the trailer below for a snippet of what to expect.