Movie Review: Suicide Squad

So I just got back from an advanced screening of the new film Suicide Squad, and I've got to say it was a pretty fun movie.  For those of you who haven't been affected by the massive ad campaign for the film, the movie is set in the same world as Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, but instead of focusing on the heroes, focuses on a group of villains being blackmailed into doing some good.

Although the squad itself has six members, the standouts for me were the leads, Will Smith and Margot Robbie (as Deadshot and Harley Quinn, respectively), who brought a lot more heart and fun to this movie than I was expecting.  The previous films in the new DC cinematic world have been filled with darkness and earnestness, but not a lot of humour or pizazz and director David Ayer has created a film that has to stand up to a lot of pressure; with questions like "Would this type of movie even work" and how will it stand up compared to Marvel?  Also, what could possibly be scarier than this band of villains.

The answer is a surprisingly intense performance by Viola Davis as Amanda Waller, the mastermind who puts the team together and has to both seem reasonable and terrifying (often at the same time), as well as a pretty fun appearance by The Mindy Project's Ike Barinholtz as a particularly nasty guard charged with keeping the Squad in lockdown.

Although I'm sure there were all sorts of easter eggs for bigger DC comic fans than me, (and a couple obligatory cameos of future Justice League characters), I found the movie stands well on its own, and definitely has me hoping for a sequel.

...and I didn't even get to say how much fun I had with Jared Leto's take on the Joker! 

...oh year, I guess I just did.

Things I’ve Noticed: MIB3 Something The Third Time is the Charm

Back in 1997 my BFF Mike took me out to see the film Men In Black, and honestly I thought it was a lot of fun, the aliens were weird and cool, the concept was weird and fun, and the chemistry between it’s two stars, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones was a lot of fun.

So fun in fact that when Men in Black 2 came out in 2002 I checked it out with my BFF Mike and my lovely wife.

Not a good decision.

Honestly as much fun as Men in Black was, Men in Black 2 was not.  I thought the concept was kind of old, the story felt contrived and the ending really bugged me (for whatever reason, reality in a marble seemed okay, reality in a bus station locker, not so much).

So I've got to say I'm pretty suprised by how much I enjoyed Men in Black 3.  The story is a time travel one, allowing our lead to travel back in time and play the experienced partner to the man who would become his mentor.  The story was sharp, the aliens fun, and Josh Brolin's performance of Agent K has to be  seen to be believed.

Although I never said I would eat my hat if I ever went to another Men in Black film, if I had, I certainly would, brim and all.