Reviews

‘Birds of Prey’ Review

The first trip to the movies in 2020 was not ideal. Turns out the Birds of Prey doesn’t have much wind beneath their wings, as DC continues to find their footing.

harley-birds-of-prey-e1572988569173

After splitting with the Joker, Harley Quinn joins superheroes Black Canary, Huntress and Renee Montoya to save a young girl from an evil crime lord.


People will do drastic things to fit in with the popular crowd. Change their hair, wear different clothes, even adapt to a new speech. The same can be said for the movie industry. Dating all the way back to the beginning of the DCEU, and even at that time, WB didn’t really know what they were doing. It wasn’t until they decided to go ahead with BvS and I truly believe that was never their original plan before the release of Man of Steel. Since then it’s been a rollercoaster, to say the least. Sure, they’ve made plenty of money, but the reception from not only critics but fans has been divided. There were a few standouts, mostly surrounding the casting of key characters in this rich and diverse universe. One, in particular, was none other than Harley Quinn herself, with the casting of Margot Robbie. So after Suicide Squad came and went it was only a matter of time before she got her own solo flick, and I’m going to be perfectly honest, WB once again dropped the ball.

Birds of Prey. Say that to any random moviegoer, and they will shake their head with curiosity and slight confusion. Unless you are a major DC fan or know the deep lure of the comics, it’s hard to put people in seats, when the average ticket buyer doesn’t know who the Birds of Prey really are. Sure they were marketing the shit out of Harley Quinn, but the movie was about so much more, and I thought they did a poor job at executing a well-put-together game plan on how to market this film. Harley Quinn has big as she is, well, she’s not Batman, or Superman or even Wonder Woman, DC’s biggest star at the moment. So if you’re going to center a film around a team of female super-heroes, why not let us all know who exactly we will be rooting for when we go purchase our tickets.

I’ll admit, BOP can be a ton of fun in moments, and the chemistry between all of the ladies is terrific. Quinn (Margot Robbie) Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) Black Canary (Jurnee Smollet-Bell) Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez). When they are all finally teaming up and kicking some butt, it’s entertaining, but it’s certainly not enough to save the entire film. One of the big issues I had with this film, is the lack of backstory we get for any of our characters. Mostly Black Mask (Ewen McGregor) and Black Canary. This movie just expects you to know who these people are and give us very little insight into how they arrived at their place in Gotham. For instance, Black Mask is a pretty great Batman villain, and McGregor is a terrific actor, but they give us no explanation to his name, or why he likes to wear masks, and most importantly, why he dawns his iconic “black mask.” That is a little scene they needed to shuffle into the film. Much like Black Canary, who does, in fact, have a superpower, and when she finally uses it, they don’t explain how or why she is able to do that. fans that know the character, sure, but for the people meeting her for the first time, might be a little confused. It’s just things like that, for me, that bogged down the film.

The film takes a while to get going. Slowly introducing our new female heroes. Huntress really steals the show, and she’s barely even in the thing, which shocked me, to be honest. It just feels all over the place, where random circumstances are leading all these ladies to finally meet up. This wanted to be Deadpool so badly, they decided to go with an R-Rating, which was a massive mistake in my mind. This is a film that wants to be hardcore but doesn’t need to be. That wants to drop ‘F-Bombs’ throughout and they didn’t have to. Harley is breaking the 4th wall, and that’s fine, but the cursing was so forced and just felt awkward at times. It could have benefited more with a lesser rating and kept the action pretty much the same. There is one sequence inside of Gotham Police Headquarters that was the highlight of the film, featuring a really cool fight in one of the cell blocks with Harley.

This just wasn’t the proper next movie for this important character and not having Joker involved was weird. I know Jared Leto might be done, but you got to slip him in for one scene. Because if he doesn’t exist anymore in the DCEU, then I’m not sure why this movie needed to be made? The whole concept and idea behind the film are based on the fact that she and Mr. J just broke up.

I’ll leave it with this. It’s fantastic that a movie like this gets to be made in 2020. An all-female lead comic book movie. Directed by a woman (Cathy Yan) who crafted a pretty unique experience and written by a woman (Christina Hodson). That doesn’t mean it gets a free pass and shouldn’t be criticized. I just didn’t really like the direction that they took Harley in. This for me isn’t the Harley I want to see in live-action. There’s no reason for her to be foul-mouthed the way she’s portrayed here. Again, I think WB thought the R-Rating would benefit this character, wherein all reality, I think it just dumbed her down. For me, go back and watch Batman The Animated Series, where it all began with this character. That’s the true Harley Quinn and the one we deserve on the big screen. Can we get her in the traditional Jester outfit already?

Birds of Prey = 60/100

 

News

First Look At The Birds of Prey

Talk about some serious girl power


We got a little present this morning in the form of our very first look at Cathy Yan’s upcoming female lead super team up Birds of Prey. The sorta pseudo-sister sequel to David Ayers Suicide Squad. It will feature the return of everyone’s favourite psychopath Harley Quinn, where she will be teaming up with some other kick-ass woman to take down the nefarious Black Mask.

After the box-office success that was Suicide Squad one thing was certain, everyone wanted much more Harley. The clear standout of the film, it wasn’t long before WB green-lit her very own movie. Now much like Suicide Squad or Marvels Guardians of The Galaxy, this movie will be made up of a bunch of rift rafts and some serious B level or even C level heroes. That doesn’t mean it can’t be successful or it won’t be great, it just means that the average movie-goer might not know who these lovely ladies are. Suiting up will be Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Huntress who could easily be the new favourite after the film. A cool ass character played by a terrific actress is a deadly combo. Jurnee Smollett-Bell as Black Canary who fans might recognize from the CW and Arrow. I’m guessing she will be much larger in scale and be given actual powers in this. The legend Rosie Perez who will be playing one of the few good cops in Gotham Renee Montoya and Ella Jay Basco who will be the centre of attention as Cassandra Cain.

They will all come together to take down Black Mask who will be played by Ewan McGregor. What an underrated Batman baddie, who if done properly can be one serious threat. He’s a lunatic who enjoys beating people to a pulp while wearing one scary mask. I don’t see him having it until near the end of the film, but we will see how they play out his origin. That’s a ton of great acting talent for this cast, which promises to be fun, while also getting down and dirty with the action. Remember it’s a DCEU movie, don’t be shocked if we see some cameos or are alluded to some other heroes or big baddies (Penguin).

Can’t wait for this one actually, Margot Robbie was born to play Harley Quinn, can’t wait to see what they can do with her when she’s fully unleashed.

Reviews

The Lego Batman Movie Review

“DC, the house that Batman built. Yeah, what, Superman? Come at me bro. I’m your kryptonite.”

1flqcjxyectialxvcokow0q

Back in 2008, when the greatest Batman movie ever made, The Dark Knight came out I saw myself going to the theatres EIGHT times to watch it. It’s more than just a Batman movie; it’s a cinematic masterpiece. Since then WB has had a hard time topping it, with The Dark Knight Rises, and last years Batman v. Superman. Who knew that the latest installment in the Batman franchise, The Lego Batman Movie, would not only be the best Batman since The Dark Knight, but one of the best Batman movies ever made. There is a long-standing debate among hardcore nerds, who is the best actor to play the beloved Caped Crusader? One thing is for sure; we can all agree that George Clooney is the worst. Sorry George, but remember the Bat-nipples? Christian Bale is probably the best, but Ben Affleck is nipping on his heels right now, unless he decides to be a coward and leave the DCEU all together. Well now there’s a new name on the list and he seems to fit somewhere near the top and that’s Will Arnett who voices the aforementioned Batman in The Lego Batman Movie.

Critics and fans alike praised The Lego Movie, the 2014 blockbuster that grossed around 470 million dollars worldwide. WB knew they had a smash hit on their hands, and decided to milk this cash cow for everything it’s worth. Batman was one of the many standouts from The Lego Movie, and WB felt it was only fitting that he got his own standalone movie.

So here we are, The Lego Batman Movie is out and I’ll be the first to say that this movie is awesome! It’s fun, warm-hearted and I loved it to pieces (yeah, that’s a Lego pun). This movie is cool, if you’re a true Batman fan, and get every little easter egg and reference then you will only enjoy it more. Like the return of Batman’s greatest enemies, actually one of comics greatest villains, The Condiment King! (Google him, so you know I’m joking) But even if you don’t there are so many laughs to be had in this movie, which is why I wish I hadn’t be sitting in a theatre with 3 other people, because funny movies work best when you are in a packed house. There’s a scene towards the beginning of the movie, where Batman comes home after defeating some bad guys. So he does what I guess Batman does, he microwaves’ his leftover lobster thermidor, and watches it spin around and around in silence (there’s a great bit where he puts in 20 minutes instead of 2 and he calls himself stupid). He eats it alone, in silence yet again, and then when he’s done he takes out his electric guitar and shreds a nasty solo. Did I mention he’s sitting on a jet ski, floating in his pool; man Batman is just so cool. It was at this exact moment I knew I was going to love this movie. You might be thinking, “Cool, but what does it all mean?” It means this scene kind of summed up what this movie was all about. It’s about how alone Batman is, how he is afraid to reach out to others, he’s afraid of starting a new family, because of the tragic way he lost his mother and father at such a young age.

The moral of this story is simple. That teamwork always trumps working alone. It takes Batman the majority of the movie to figure this out though. Even after the new police commissioner, Barbara Gordon points out that Batman has been fighting crime in Gotham for decades now and that it’s actually worse off now then when he started fighting crime. That was kind of a WHOA moment for me, because I never really thought about Batman like that, he’s Batman, a bonafide badass. The Dark Knight, The Caped Crusader, The World’s Greatest Detective! When Commissioner Gordon calls out Batman for basically being bad at his job, it made me look at Batman in a whole new light. Speaking of fighting crime, this wouldn’t be a Batman movie, without his best pal Joker (Zach Galifianakis). Essentially the premise of the movie is this; Joker is pissed at Batman, because he refuses to tell him that he is his greatest enemy, and that he doesn’t even care for the Joker. It’s kind of like one person in a relationship saying “I love you,” and the other saying “Thanks.” All the Joker wants is for Batman to say three simple words, “I hate you.” He just can’t do it, because Batman doesn’t feel that way towards him, he doesn’t feel anything, he’s Batman, and he simply does not have any emotions. Batman’s and The Jokers relationship can be complicated, and it’s been beaten to death in the comics and movies, so this new interpretation of it was just really refreshing. So Joker ultimately gets fed up with repeatedly getting his heartbroken by Batman, time after time. So he unleashes hell on Gotham, to seek revenge on Batman, you know, that old chestnut. The Joker trying to destroy Gotham and defeat Batman chestnut.

Now lets talk about the best part of this movie, ROBIN! Voiced by Michael Cera, I found myself laughing at pretty much every line he had. Robin is a little flamboyant to say the least, and Michael Cera’s voice casting worked to perfection. From him picking out his costume, which he settles on ‘Reggae Man’ to only rip off the tight pants, and declares “Now I’m free, now I’m movin’, come on Batman, lets get groovin’!” Reluctant at first to bond with his new adopted son, Batman pushes Robin away whenever he feels that he is connecting with him on any level. Much like Batman, Robin is alone and just wants to be loved. He’s been an orphan from a young age, and now his dad is Batman. One thing I thought was hilarious, Robin was calling Batman Pedro (Spanish for Dad) the entire movie, and it was just so out of place, yet it worked so well. Seeing that relationship grow was cute to watch over the course of the movie. It’s tough to be a 28-year-old man, watching a Lego movie pondering life and tearing up over life lessons these Legos are trying to teach us.

Listen, this flick is just so endearing, there’s so much love in it. While this is a Batman movie, it’s not dark and brooding. The first 15 minutes of this movie will actually amaze you, considering it’s a Lego movie. Tons of action, loads of laughs, just an all around great time at the movies. The people behind it, understood the mythology behind the character, and were able to translate that onto the screen in a way that’s just not for kids, but for adults too. I was never laughing at Batman, or any of these other characters for being stupid, or out of place, but rather laughing with them on this incredible journey that this movie takes us on from start to finish. This is the best DC movie since The Dark Knight, and with everything that is going on over at WB right now, they needed this for their morale. Go see this movie, and if you have kids bring them, this is a batastic time!

Check ya later,

Nate’s Movie Tour Reviews — The Lego Batman Movie = 93/100