Fast, Furious, F#$&ing bonkers. Birds of Prey(And the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn)
If a vodka Redbull married Deadpool(2016) and had a baby, this film is what they’d have, and I mean that with all sincerity. Birds Of Prey(and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn) is a movie that leans heavily into absurdity, debauchery and vulgar material all the while never crossing over into unbearable, repetitive, and idiotic behavior.
Directed by Kathy Yan, Birds of Prey follows Harley Quinn as she learns to adapt and live on her own after The Joker breaks up with her once and for all. Wanting to earn some respect for herself, as well as stay alive in a city that wants her dead, she attempts to find a diamond, a girl, and herself all in under two hours.
The positives, this movie moves from start to end. With constant updates either from the narrator, Harley, frequent texts on screen with motives, names and backstories on new characters, who are always entering and exiting the picture; this movie is a zany, off the wall and entirely its own things.
Incredible action scenes, from a police evidence room brawl or to the climactic Amusement Mile showdown, you never find yourself too far from your next adrenaline rush during this movie. Honestly a fun, dynamic comedy that showcases Margot Robbie’s comedic timing, as well as one of the greater aspects of the “Harley Quinn” character, her upfront, analytic observations of those she encounters and the world she encompasses. As well, a notable performance by Mary Elizabeth Winstead as The Huntress, who steals scenes left and right. A character who comes and goes, yet keeps your attention with both her intimidating action scenes and deadpan comedy.
Ewan McGregor as the “big bad” Roman Sionis aka Black Mask, chews the scenery as a narcissistic, outburst prone, gangster, who like any other gangster, want the city for themselves. What keeps the character fresh is his frequent habit to let his quasi henchman-boyfriend Victor Zsasz, played by Chris Messina, off his “leash” and enact the punishment he wishes to deliver. Otherwise, neither Ewan or Chris’s characters are able to enter into the echelon of top tier villains, as they never really give anything to make them stand out among the crowd in terms of noteworthy moments that would go down next to the greats like Ledger, Brolin, or Hiddleston.
Some negatives about this film though, Birds of Prey is not what this film is about. Through and through this is a Harley Quinn film, for fans of the BoP characters get ready to sit back and wait as you won’t get as much character building as you’d probably like. As well, some creative liberties are taken with some characters. Cassandra Cain, known in the comics as Orphan, is a stoic, driven, assassin raised weapon who struggles to find humanity in her actions while striving to be a better person, emphasis on person. In this film she is a pickpocket who steals the wrong thing, who idolizes Harley and isn’t afraid to speak her mind or rack a joke. Now I don’t hate the character, in fact I found myself frequently enjoying myself during her scenes, but I wish the production had used a different character instead of changing Cassandra so drastically from her source material.
A nitty gritty, street level story of gangsters, psychos and cops, where people get hurt, and where things don’t always work out for the heroes, is what you get with Birds of Prey. Add in a splash comic book charm and fun, a dash of Hot Topic for clothing choice and you have yourself a movie.