Rated R
Four years ago, Suicide Squad hit theaters during the dog days of summer, and a craze erupted over the Joker’s match-made-in-heaven: Harley Quinn. Their relationship was one to be admired on social media for the rest of 2016. And during October? Forget it, you couldn’t go to a single Halloween party without seeing a couple dressed as the Joker and Harley Quinn. News of a sequel focusing only on the female villain-turned-antihero was announced shortly after the success of Suicide Squad, and in the beginning of February, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) officially released in theaters! Don’t worry, I’ll use Birds of Prey for short.
Birds of Prey concentrates on Harley after her breakup with the Joker, and Harley is going through it. She has to figure out how to be steady on her own, independent of a “master,” and has to avoid all of the people she greatly wronged while she was with the Joker. One of those people is Roman Sionis, a gangster who doubles as the supervillain Black Mask. But Roman is searching for a beautiful diamond leading to the fortune of the Bertinelli crime family, and when he tries to take out revenge on Harley, she convinces him that she’s the best mercenary in Gotham to find the precious diamond.
Where is the diamond located exactly? Oh, just in the stomach of a pickpocketing girl named Cassandra Cain, who had the bright idea to steal it from Roman’s right hand man and swallowed it in a panic. After some shenanigans, Harley is able to track Cassandra down and keep her safe from Roman until she can … extract the diamond, if you know what I mean. With the help of the Huntress, Black Canary, and Detective Renee Montoya, Harley and Cassandra ensue on crazy, action-packed pursuits to protect themselves. Birds of Prey holds nothing back as it’s only the second film in the DC universe to be rated R – lots of swearing, a hint of gore, and enough jaw-dropping fighting scenes to make every girl feel eager to kick some tail.
Something I found interesting about Birds of Prey is that the story is told similarly to the Marvel film Deadpool. Harley doesn’t shy away from popping up in voiceover to explain each step of her journey, much like Wade Wilson did as he transformed into the iconic antihero. The narrative timeline of the film also jumps back and forth, like in Deadpool, which works in favor of Harley’s character; it wouldn’t feel like an organic storytelling from Harley Quinn if there wasn’t this much manic energy traveling from plot point A to plot point B.
Overall, these DC universe movies are attempting to get better as they continue to retell stories about our cherished superheroes; they always make for an exciting, thematic experience (Martin Scorsese would know about that). The soundtrack is also full of potential hits, my favorite being “Diamonds” from Megan Thee Stallion and Normani. I do suggest checking out Birds of Prey and deciding for yourself, but don’t forget to sneak in your bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich!
