Spoilers for 2016’s Suicide Squad.
From left: Captain Boomerang, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Katana, Rick Flag, Killer Croc, El Diablo
With James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad constituting a breath of fresh air in comparison to its near-laughable first installment, we decided it would only be fitting to revisit the arguably unpalatable 2016 film to discover the top 5 reasons that made it such a trainwreck to begin with.
1. A Bland Task Force X
While the members of Task Force X may have outwardly looked the part depending on who you ask, there was next-to-nothing in terms of proper characterization or any semblance of a story arc that would make them unique individuals for audiences to invest their interests in, save for Harley Quinn and Deadshot (the latter of which we will revisit later on).
2. The Opening 15-Minutes of the Film
As visually striking as it may have been, the brief, yet flashy character introductions ultimately proved to be a disservice to the film as a whole, choosing to list out potential plot threads as an exposition dump rather than being utilized as an organic way to allow the characters to develop over the course of the film, killing any potential for an intriguing story to unfold.
3. The Uneven Tone
What was originally meant to be a dark and character-motivated tale according to the film’s director, David Ayer, who has been speaking up about the film in recent months, became a sort of Frankenstein’s Monster, stitched together by haphazard reshoots and odd recuts, resulting in a film that essentially faced its own crisis of identity. Maybe an AyerCut is warranted now that we have learned more about that particular version of the film.
4. Will Smith
The decision to cast Will Smith to portray the character of Deadshot was the first red flag that audiences picked up on in the trailers. While the actor is certainly charismatic and entertaining to watch, it would not be far from the truth to also note that Will Smith often plays Will Smith in most roles he undertakes. This is quite evident in the film, as there was no inkling of believability that a Deadshot character even existed throughout the 2 hours and 17 minutes run time, only Will Smith.
5. The Tattoo-Crazed Joker
Jared Leto’s Joker can only be summed up as being somewhat of an odd duck, and not in a good way. Whether it was the actor himself or the weak writing that was to blame for this version of The Clown Prince of Crime is up for debate, but nevertheless, the attempt at developing this rendition of the character fundamentally resulted in a string of bizarre character traits that were more cringe-inducing to watch rather than compelling.
And that’s our list!
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