‘Suicide Squad’ shows that even bad guys can have their time to shine

It’s been a couple of months since Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment opened the doors to their DC Extended Universe by giving us the first meeting between The Dark Knight and The Man of Steel in “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” While it received mixed reviews, the movie did give an indication as to how the rest of the DC Films could fare on the big screen.

That opportunity now arrives for director David Ayer and his ensemble cast of actors, as they bring to life the “villainous side” of the DC Universe, “Task Force X”...better known to fans as the “Suicide Squad”!

Unlike "Dawn of Justice," which planted the seed for the eagerly anticipated “Justice League” film next year, "Suicide Squad" is literally a gathering of villains forced to do the government's dirty work in exchange for lighter sentences—and not dying by way of explosives planted in the back of their heads.

Commanded by the cold and manipulative Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), a team of the world’s most dangerous criminals—including Deadshot (Will Smith), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), and Boomerang (Jai Courtney)—are sent to foil a metahuman attack sparked by an ancient witch named Enchantress (Cara Delevingne).

Led on the field by Col. Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), the Task Force is forced to contain the situation by any means necessary. Along the way, these “bad guys” and outcasts of society learn camaraderie and discover that they may have some humanity left to save the world and find some form of redemption.

Bringing his experience with squad-based films like “Sabotage” and “Fury” to the plate, David Ayer pairs a great cast together for “Suicide Squad”, and a lot of these guys give life to their roles in the best way possible.

The Fresh Prince himself, Will Smith, leads this crazy bunch as the sharpshooter assassin known as Deadshot, and his backstory is the heart and soul of why there is some path of redemption for members of the Squad.

Margot Robbie just nails the crazy mentality of Harley Quinn, the former psychologist who fell in love with The Joker and turned into his wacky girlfriend. She steals the spotlight with her acting, and is not too shy to show that she can kick ass and take names too. Viola Davis is just cold and calculating as Amanda Waller, and Joel Kinnaman is the dutiful yet conflicted soldier Rick Flag, whose story is actually tied to both the Squad and Enchantress.

Unfortunately, there's not enough time to flesh out the stories of the rest of the Squad, as there are only 130 minutes of screen time. For instance, as the hotheaded Captain Boomerang, Jai Courtney is just there for the unpredictable comedy relief.

El Diablo, Killer Croc, and Katana are able to show some heart, though, and show even those cursed or looking like outcasts can earn a dose of sympathy from the audience.

Probably the most disappointing aspect of the film is Jared Leto, who plays a new version of Batman’s greatest nemesis, The Joker. While he’s promoted as one of the big things to expect in "Suicide Squad", Leto’s interpretation of the evil jester-turned-gangster is more of a supporting piece to Harley Quinn’s story. He has material to show, but it’s relegated to more of a large cameo, which can be compared to other characters from the DC Extended Universe that fans will be pleased to see connects the films and their world nicely.

As a new film added to the growing superhero movie world Warner Bros. is shaping with characters from the DC Universe, "Suicide Squad" is fun and is absolutely worth the price of admission if you want to see something wild and fun that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The film has a great soundtrack pieced together from classic songs—taking its cue from Marvel’s "Guardians of the Galaxy", and that’s probably a good comparison for the most part.

However, this is still a movie about the bad guys, who happen to be really good on screen and shine with flying colors. — BM, GMA News

"Suicide Squad" opens in cinemas on August 4.