Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn
Foul-mouthed, violent and lots of fun, Birds of Prey is powered by an entertainingly energetic central performance from Margot Robbie in the DCEU’s first R-rated movie.
Premise: Following the events of Suicide Squad, Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) finds herself targeted by most of Gotham City’s underworld after breaking up with the Joker. Meanwhile, Roman Sionis aka Black Mask (Ewan McGregor) plans to position himself as Gotham’s biggest crime lord, setting in motion a chain of events that bring together veteran detective Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez), nightclub singer Dinah Lance (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), teenage pickpocket Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco), and a mysterious vigilante (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).
Review:
The first thing that struck me as the film started was that it was so unashamedly R-rated – which I have to confess, wasn’t something that the marketing seemed to make a big deal of (unlike it had done with Logan and Deadpool, for example). Right from the off Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) is dropping F-bombs, and it’s not long before the surprisingly wince-inducing violence follows (there’s a particularly nasty leg break within the first 20 minutes or so). But the R-rating never feels gimmicky; instead, it feels perfectly in keeping with the characters and the storyline, and the more adult (yet still very playful) tone really sets the film apart from the other films in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).
The playful tone of the film is quickly established by having Harley Quinn narrate the story – complete with humorous asides and animated flashbacks. But not only does Harley’s narration provide a lot of humour, it also dictates the film’s entire structure – so her unreliable narration results in the film jumping back and forth along its timeline, as Harley “remembers” things she forgot to tell the audience about earlier. All of which helps to give the film a very distinct feel, that’s closer in tone to Deadpool than any other DCEU or MCU film.
“…Margot Robbie’s performance is not only hugely entertaining, but also shows moments of genuine vulnerability…”
This is perhaps nowhere more evident than in the title itself – Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn. This is not a film that is taking itself too seriously, but also, the film is about Harley Quinn’s character arc and journey of self-discovery as much as it is about any standard superhero movie plotline. In fact, if anything, the title oversells the “Birds of Prey” angle, as this is very much an origin film for the comic-book team of female superheroes, who are introduced individually in this film but never really come together as a team until the very end.
But the fact that the film focuses so much on Harley Quinn can be completely forgiven when the central performance is as entertaining as Margot Robbie’s is. Opinions on Suicide Squad seemed fairly evenly divided (I really enjoyed it, for what it was), but everyone seemed to agree that Margot Robbie was the best thing in it. Her casting as Harley Quinn seems to be one of those inspired pieces of casting where the actor becomes synonymous with the character, like Robert Downey Jr and Iron Man, or Hugh Jackman and Wolverine. Harley Quinn carries this film, and Margot Robbie is more than up to the task – giving us a performance that is not only hugely entertaining, but which also peeks behind Harley’s mask occasionally to show genuine moments of vulnerability, uncertainty and pain.
“…Ewan McGregor balances the pathetic, narcissistic nature of his character with moments of horrific brutality & sadism…”
The rest of the cast is also great, particularly Ewan McGregor as Roman Sionis, the disinherited spoilt rich kid now trying to make a name for himself as the new crime lord Black Mask. Ewan McGregor balances the pathetic, narcissistic nature of the character with moments of horrific brutality and sadism, giving a really layered performance. Sionis’ right hand man is Victor Zsasz, played with unhinged menace by Chris Messina, and as a lifelong Batman comic-book fan, I did get a thrill at seeing these villains make an appearance on the big screen.
On the other side of the law, it was great to see Rosie Perez back in a major film, as jaded and cynical detective Renee Montoya, whose career has been sabotaged by male colleagues taking credit for all her major busts in the past. Jurnee Smollett-Bell also made a really big impression as Dinah Lance, a singer in Sionis’ nightclub, and her complex relationship with Montoya was a very interesting one to watch unfold. Ella Jay Basco was interesting casting for Cassandra Cain, but at this stage, her character appears to share nothing more than a name with the similarly monikered comic-book character. If I had one criticism, it’s that there wasn’t nearly enough of Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s character, but she did a great job with what screen time she had, and nicely undercut the usual tropes for her kind of character.
“…the action sequences are as impressive as anything I’ve seen recently…”
Some viewers may find the tonal shifts in the film a bit jarring at times, as it switches from moments of surreal or laugh-out-loud humour, to moments of violent sadism or threatened sexual assault – but director Cathy Yan makes sure that those moments never feel exploitative or misogynistic, and the audience’s sense of revulsion and unease is arguably needed to justify the protagonists’ own extreme actions.
And speaking of action, I was surprised by just how impressive the action sequences and fight choreography are in this film. There are a few scenes – including a roller derby inspired action sequence, and a fight scene involving a baseball bat – that are as impressive as anything I’ve seen in recent action films. This is perhaps not surprising given the involvement of the infamous 87Eleven stunt crew, including stunt coordinator Jonathan Eusebio (who worked on John Wick Chapter 3, Deadpool 2 and Black Panther) and fight coordinator Jon Valera (who also worked on John Wick Chapter 3 as well as Atomic Blonde). But credit also has to go to director Cathy Yan for knowing how to film the action sequences so effectively (with lots of long takes, moving around the action), and to the cast for clearly committing to doing so much of the fight choreography themselves.
“an anarchic, free-wheeling, female-led, action-packed take on the genre…”
If I was looking for a negative, it would be that the plot in this film feels like it kind of runs out just as you enter the final act; but until then, writer Christina Hodson (who wrote the excellent Bumblebee) did a great job of balancing the various plot threads and giving everyone an interesting character arc, so I can forgive the slightly predictable final act. As a fan of both the Batman comic-books and the Arkham Asylum games, I also love that the final act of the film visits a couple of very iconic locations in Gotham City which haven’t really appeared on the big screen before.
Overall, Birds of Prey won’t appeal to everyone, with its R-rated violence and language, its potentially jarring tonal shifts, and its plot shortcomings. But if you enjoyed Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad, or you’re a fan of these characters from the comic-books, or you just like the idea of an anarchic, free-wheeling, female-led, action-packed take on the genre, there’s a lot of fun to be had in the company of these characters for a couple of hours.
