As a direct sequel to Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey does a soft reboot of the franchise and presents an experience that can be best described as a teenage girl's acid trip. Is it a fun ride? Yeah, it could be... But as much as it tries, it sure does not redefine the genre.
The movie starts with an animated recap of Harley Quinn's background as an orphan who becomes a psychiatrist, falls in love with her most dangerous patient - the infamous Joker - and then breaks bad. For fans of the character who have followed her development since her first appearance in the Batman The Animated Series in 1992 - co-created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini - this Harley is a post #MeToo reincarnation of the character who demands reparation from everyone for all the bad things that her ex-boyfriend has done to her. She is still a uniquely complex comic book character who can be best described as a female Joker-Deadpool hybrid.
Birds of Prey is produced by Margot Robbie, and as the boss, of course it is her show! She is probably in more than 80% of the scenes and to be fair, she does a great job at presenting a fresh take on the character. As cartoony as Harley is, she is still a three-dimensional character. The other players in the game (Huntress, Rene Montoya, Orphan, and Black Canary) are just there to support Harley - even though the movie's title is named after them.
I don't have much to say, except that it is a high-octane, action-packed movie that does not push the envelop of neither action movies nor comic book adaptations by any means. But it is worth a viewing when it hits the streaming services. For me, Birds of Prey was a 6/10.
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