Friday, March 13, 2020

Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020, R)


It really bummed me out that I wasn’t able to see this movie as soon as it came out. In addition to the everpresent threat that if movies about women and people of color don’t pull in big box-office numbers, Hollywood execs will get scared/reactive and not make any more, it also just looked like an awesome movie. Unfortunately, some unexpected expenses/time commitments prevented me from seeing it until recently (and with the way things are going, it’ll probably time the last movie I see in a theater for quite a while!) Premise spoilers.

Harley Quinn has some difficulties carving out her own space for herself after breaking up with her longtime toxic beau, the Joker. Crooks and thugs with grudges against her held off before, knowing the Joker would rain down retribution on anyone who tried to touch “his girl,” but now, all bets are off. Harley fends off assailants from all sides, including club owner/crime boss Roman Sionis, and she soon finds herself embroiled in a much more complicated web of Roman’s enemies and associates. There’s Renee, the veteran detective building a case against him. There’s Black Canary, a singer at his club who’s gotten into more than she expected with him. There’s Huntress, a mysterious assassin who’s been killing guys he “owns.” And there’s Cassandra, a young pickpocket who just stole an invaluable diamond one of his guys was collecting for him. One way or another, all five have gotten themselves in Roman’s crosshairs, and the only way they’re getting out of it is together.

I’ll preface this by saying I really haven’t read any DC titles, including Birds of Prey. I have awareness of some of these characters from DC movies (Harley, obviously) or TV shows (Renee and Zsasz from Gotham, the general idea of Canary from CW DC crossovers, though I understand that the Canary here is a different character than either of the ones I’ve encountered,) but I don’t know enough to be invested in how this movie stacks up to the comics. From pop culture blogs, I’ve gleaned that it’s weird to center a Birds of Prey movie on Harley, since she isn’t a Bird of Prey, and this version of Cassandra bears no resemblance to her comic counterpart. But intellectually knowing those facts doesn’t really make a personal difference to me, since this is my main exposure to these characters.

And I have to say, I enjoyed the crap out of this movie. It’s bright and bouncy, with vivid colors, implausible leaps, and a bit of the old ultraviolence – down-and-dirty Gotham without being grimdark or self-important. The characters all pop, the main ladies especially, but also the baddies and plenty of the minor characters too. A breezy narration from Harley keeps us apprised of whatever little details we need to know, such as the fact that Renee’s captain is her former partner or just what “grievance” this or that goon has against her.

The action is fantastic. I love basically every fight scene here. There’s so much inventiveness and creativity on display in the fight choreography, and the actresses all do a great job of selling it. From Harley wailing on some prison inmates under the sprinklers to Huntress taking out targets with rage-fueled precision to a climactic throwdown in a funhouse, it’s all just so damn cool. Behind it all is a terrific soundtrack, every song superbly matching the tone of the fight it’s set to.

From a feminist standpoint, I like how the gender dynamics at play are both very much on display but at the same time not belabored. It’s little things peppered throughout the film, like Renee’s aforementioned partner-turned-captain getting his promotion based on the credit he took for her work or the way Roman claims ownership of female bodies. And it’s big things too, like Harley’s attempts to define herself beyond being “Joker’s girl” and the fact that everyone thinks she’ll be easy to kill without his protection, but it comes across in a way that feels organic. And who doesn’t love one badass mofo offering another a hair tie in the middle of a heated knockdown drag-out?

The cast is great from top to bottom. At the center of it is Margot Robbie, having an absolute blast letting loose as Harley, and the rest of the ladies hold their own just as nicely. Rosie Perez as an “I’m getting too old for this shit” Renee, Jurnee Smollett-Bell as a conflicted Black Canary, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as a damaged Huntress, and Ella Jay Basco (younger sister of Dante Basco a.k.a. Rufio!) as a streetwise Cassandra – all of them are awesome and play excellently off each other. Additional kudos go to Ewan McGregor’s mercurial Roman and Chris Messina’s menacing Zsasz, and the film also features a brief appearance from Ali Wong.

Warnings

Violence (including sexual harassment/threats,) language, sexual content, and drinking/drug use.

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