With yet another critically-lauded film, it’s safe to say that DC is on the right track. Out of their last 6 movies, 5 of them (Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Shazam, Oscar-nominated Joker, and Birds of Prey) have been varying degrees of good to great. With Wonder Woman 1984 coming this summer, and The Batman and The Suicide Squad well under- production, the future looks strong for DC.

Birds of Prey takes place after the events of Suicide Squad. Jared Leto’s Joker and Harley break up (happens in-between movies), which takes away Harley’s “immunity” which she enjoyed as the Joker’s girlfriend. Now that they’re not together anymore, everyone that she ever hurt wants revenge, including the crime boss Roman Sionis (Black Mask). However, he offers his “protection” if she were to retrieve a precious diamond stolen from him. As the story starts to unfold, Harley ends up protecting a young girl (Cassandra Cane) from the diabolic Sionis, with the help of other female characters (Black Canary, Renee Montoya, and the Huntress).

Positives

BoP excels when its main characters are interacting with each other, which unfortunately only happens in the final act of the film. However, the cast has solid chemistry and plays well off each other. Margot Robbie is once again gleefully delightful as the maniacal-yet-lovable Harley Quinn. She’s crazy yet endearing, vulnerable yet strong, which gives Robbie a chance to display a wide range of emotions for her character. It’s almost as if she was born to play this character. Other characters like The Huntress and Black Canary don’t have much of an arc and often feel like sidelined but to be fair, both Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Huntress) and Jurnee Smollett-Bell (Canary) are fine with the material given to them. However, one of the biggest positives is easily Ewan McGregor’s Black Mask. McGregor’s having the time of his life and absolutely relishes playing this over-the-top, maniacal villain. Even though the character itself ends up being wasted and doesn’t really do much in the film, McGregor’s performance differentiates him from some of the other DCEU villains and is a welcome, refreshing addition to the DCEU.

One of the film’s biggest strengths is in its action and gotta say, it is extremely well-choreographed. Similar to the action in John Wick, it was always clear as to what was happening on-screen, which can partially be explained by the fact that the filmmakers behind John Wick were hired to improve the action. Also, BoP is easily the most vibrant and colorful DCEU film thus far, although that looks to be topped by Wonder Woman 1984.

Courtesy of Warner Bros & DC Films

Thanks to a female director (Cathy Yan) at the helm, the ‘male gaze’ is also gone and instead, Yan gives us strong, badass female characters without necessarily overtly-sexualizing them.

Negatives

As mentioned before, this movie really isn’t a Birds of Prey movie, as the majority of the focus is on Harley herself. Characters like Huntress, Canary, Montoya are relegated to side-roles and don’t really have much justification for being in the movie. Speaking of, this film ‘borrows’ a ton of elements (4th wall-break, non-linear storytelling) from Deadpool but simply isn’t as funny or as creative as the Merc with the Mouth’s first adventure.

The story is pretty lackluster, but my biggest gripe is easily the decision to keep these characters apart for the majority of the film. As a result, certain unions often end up feeling contrived and lacked an emotional punch. In addition, the fight scenes (albeit great) had very low stakes because none of the villains/henchmen pose any form of a threat for our superheroines, which takes away any tension whatsoever.

Lastly, there was no reason for making this film R-rated. The sporadic f-bombs or occasional spurts of blood don’t take me out of the movie but looking back, the film could have easily circumvented that. Unlike superhero films like Deadpool, Logan, or Joker that necessitated the R-rating for the themes they were tackling or for staying truthful to the character, this iteration of BoP is an example of one that would arguably have benefitted from the PG-13 rating and appealing to young girls. Aside from a really out-of-the-blue sexual assault scene (that’s horrifying, of course), it’s not like BoP tackles any adult/mature issues. Had the movie delved deeper into Joker and Harley’s toxic relationship and Harley ‘breaking’ free from her “puddin’s” manipulation and control, this movie would arguably have been more powerful and empowering.

Conclusion – Mild Recommendation

Even though Birds of Prey continues DC’s hot streak, it’s a bit of a mixed bag overall. The lackluster story, coupled with the ‘heroes’ being apart for the lion’s share of the runtime, ultimately left me feeling empty. It’s definitely not as re-watchable or as enjoyable as Aquaman or Shazam but, if you’re looking for a decent time at the movies, Birds of Prey does deliver a semi-enjoyable experience.