MOVIE REVIEW: Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) (2020)
Harley Quinn has come a long way since her invention on the TV soap opera Days of Our Lives in 1987 by comedian Arlene Sorkin, to her 1992 TV debut in Batman: The Animated Series (voiced by the same actress), all the way up to her big-screen debut in DC’s Suicide Squad (played by Margot Robbie). The latter actress has received enough clout in Hollywood to produce a movie about said character, and she did not hold back. Gathering a collection of actors to play around in Gotham City, Margot Robbie shows us the big-screen debut of the superhero team called the “Birds of Prey” but told through the eyes of Harley Quinn as she negotiates life after leaving the Joker…for reals this time, you guys.
Normally the abusive relationship between these two clowns is the template for romance by people who only know dysfunction and/or nothing else to make a comparison, solely for the intensity of their union. But this movie has a message: women don’t need relationships like that. Thus, Harley Quinn chooses the danger of life without Joker’s “protection” but tries to keep it a secret because she knows she’s got a target on her back. Without the threat of retaliation from the Clown Prince of Crime, she’ll be attacked by everyone she’s wronged…and the list runs long.
Enter Roman Sionis AKA “Black Mask”, a big-time gangster and a member of Batman’s “Rogues’ Gallery”; he’s wanted to hurt Harley for a litany of reasons and captures her. She gets out of having her face cut off by serial killer Mr. Zsasz (Black Mask’s boyfriend) by working for him to find a McGuffin to inject several member of the Birds of Prey (“BOP” for short) into the plot: the Bertinelli Diamond. Tied to that diamond are the other members of the BOP:
- GCPD Detective Renee Montoya, fellow transplant from Batman: The Animated Series who’s building a case against Roman Sionis
- Mafia heiress and trained assassin Helena Bertinelli AKA “the Huntress”, sworn to kill the men responsible for killing her family, of which Mr. Zsasz is one of them
- Dinah Lance, daughter of the original Black Canary, now a double-agent for Black Mask AND the GCPD. She is also a next-door neighbor to…
- Cassandra Cain, a young pickpocket who nabs the Bertinelli Diamond and swallows it for safekeeping thus becoming the MacGuffin.
The movie has a few action set pieces that are built to show the actors’ abilities to do the stunts, and some dramatic points where the emotional scene dictates a character’s next action, even if it didn’t make sense in a logical way — and it’s great to see. Not everything needs to be defined by logic in film anymore. On a related note, I understood why the camera often held on Harley’s face to get her emotion and sometimes she would break the 4th wall. It comes through in the film-making: there are very few deliberate “male gaze” shots, as Harley is clearly hetero-normative in film (as opposed to some comic book interpretations). She sees the world through her base desires — there seems to be more emotion on the screen than what’s written and said.
At the end of the day this is a vanity project for Margot Robbie, not a feminist clarion call. She’s producing it, and she gets to do what she wants in it. It’s a fine step in her career going forward, and I hope to see more women using their opportunities to tell us their stories AND helping other women tell their stories also. That sounds patronizing, but real talk: if the creative efforts of women were ignored, we’d have no Maya Angelou, no Star Wars, and no American flag.
CHOICE CUTS (SPOILERS AHEAD):
- Watching the movie, I realized Joker put Harley out and she stayed out. If you go by who let go first, then Joker dumped Harley — she did not leave him. If you go by the decision to stay away as the definition of the end of the relationship, then Harley did leave him. Given Harley’s forgiving nature when concerning Mistah J, he probably expects her back sooner than later. Here’s hoping she stays away for good.
- This movie went out of its way to poop on the Joker from Suicide Squad (aka Jared Leto), but did not include Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker.
- Harley using her medical degree in psychology and medical expertise to break people down in dialogue. Most people forget she’s a doctor, and I LOVED these scenes.
- Watching Rosie Perez as Renee Montoya reminded me how much time has passed since Do The Right Thing, but at the same time how much better she’s become. I nearly jumped from my seat when she quit the police force and became a vigilante.
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Huntress character came through perfectly. That is all.
- Jurnee Smollett is built for this superhero stuff. But I already know this, because she was in WGN’s Underground — an unforgettable show so good it got cancelled. I’d go on about it but that’s another story for another time.
- Ewan McGregor was a joy to watch, as he’s a psychotic weirdo encased in finery. His scenes were amazing due to the parade of cruelty he dishes out and how he carries himself during each scene. The direction and editing makes it clear we are not supposed to enjoy the action on screen in a positive way. We are not supposed to empathize with Roman Sionis.
- That breakfast sandwich looks good AF; I want one.
- Even though this is a Birds of Prey movie, no Barbara Gordon/Batgirl is mentioned. Cassandra Cain
- So wait: you mean to tell me Harley’s broken a man’s knees for talking to her out of sorts, but the man that sold her out to Gotham’s criminal element for half a mil can escape with his life by saying “It’s just business”? GTFOH.
- You and your team just had a melee with a collection of goons but you’re ready to celebrate when we all saw how many goons were outside in total. Why celebrate like nothing’s gonna happen if you didn’t get everybody?
- There’s a scene near the end that is obviously shot for the trailer, because nobody behaves the way they did 5 minutes ago. It’s quite jarring.
- There’s a comic-book call-out to Harley Quinn’s roller-derby costume from Amanda Conner’s run on the book and it’s awesome to see it implemented.
- This movie is not as exciting as The Rise of Skywalker, but it is objectively better.
