How do I start talking about a movie based on a comic book team I utterly love to death? There are only two comic book super hero groups that I hold close to my heart. The Titans are one of them, and the Suicide Squad is the second (with the Legion of Super-Heroes a distant third). That being said I have decided to change my regular approach to reviews I make. And with the way this movie was made, I cannot help but spoil myself. So…WARNING THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS. You have been warned to proceed expecting there would be no spoilers would be….SUICIDE.
I’ll start with these two books. By now, it’s no secret that James Gunn shared one of his inspirations for ‘The Suicide Squad’ was the ‘Doom Patrol and Suicide Squad Special’. When that news came out I was wondering if he would copy the premise of this comic book. You see, if there was any one book that highlights what the Suicide Squad is like, it’s this book. It was a slaughterfest with only Rick Flag surviving the Task Force X unit that was part of the story. It also had the Thinker and Weasle in it, just like what was promoted in ‘The Suicide Squad’. Then the movie comes out, and this explains why James Gunn found inspiration in this book. It also explains why he had SO MANY villains cast: he wanted to kill them off. Most of them anyway. So here comes the film and BOOM, James Gunn has the audacity to do just that, even offing one of the staple of the Suicide Squad, Captain Boomerang, in the first act. Squad members fall like flies upon entering the fictional country of Corto Maltese, and the hits do not end there.
The second book is Suicide Squad 26 with Rick Flag on the cover. This is the issue where Rick Flag dies, albeit not by the hands of Peacemaker. Though he does die in a familiar place also mentioned in ‘The Suicide Squad’. This place is Jotunheim which is also used as an important location in James Gunn’s film. In fact, James Gunn blows Jotunheim up while Rick Flag dies in it. This is a blatant tip of the hat to this particular issue of the Suicide Squad. Speaking of blatant tip of the hat, take a look at logo of the comic book for Suicide Squad. The font used for the film completely mirrors the one used in the 1980s series penned by John Ostrander. James Gunn shows a lot of reverence towards Ostrander’s interpretation of the Suicide Squad enough to even cast him in the role of Dr. Fitzgibbon: the man who placed the brain bomb in Bloodsport’s head.
Next, I have two more books to show just how much detail James Gunn was in his casting and research. One of the beauties of the comic book series was its willingness to incorporate big roles to outlying characters. This was evident in the 1980s first issue of Suicide Squad. Writer John Ostrander did it by introducing John Economos in the very first issue. John is the jail warden of Belle Reve penitentiary. He is seen in ‘The Suicide Squad’ film as that bespectackled man taking and making bets as to which inmate would die on the assault of Corto Maltese. Suicide Squad is a series about characters, and James Gunn ingeniously incorporates that in his film. Also, here we find the first appearance of Jotunheim, and we already know what happened there. Fast forward decades later to the Rebirth era of Suicide Squad and he picks out another supporting character to round out his bevy of console jockeys who monitor the status of Amanda Waller’s Task Force X. This time in Suicide Squad: Rebirth #2, Gunn takes the character of Emila Harcourt. With Economos and Harcourt, Gunn provided a more layered set of characters to supplement the already strong character that is Amanda Waller within the confines of Belle Reve while her Task Force X does the dirty work on the field.
Speaking of characters, aside from Amanda Waller, Harley Quinn was one of the more important members of the Suicide Squad. James Gunn’s inclusion of her in his film not only provided star power in the form of Margot Robbie, it also gave the film pop culture power as Harley is one of the most popular comic book characters around. Harley Quinn became a member in the New 52 iteration of the Suicide Squad written by Adam Glass. Additionally, another important character who joins the team (and arguably THE breakout character of the movie) also makes his appearance here: Nanaue aka King Shark.
From what I’ve seen, James Gunn was willing to take from different itterations of the Suicide Squad, and incoporate them as his own. This worked to his advantage, and the result is one of the best movies, not just comic book movie, of 2021.
‘The Suicide Squad’ is a mix of grit, action, violence and comedy that pays homage to its comic book roots. Ten minutes into the film, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing and clapping my hands to the movies sheer beauty and spectacle. Yes, the movie is not for children. But, the Suicide Squad as a comic book tells its best stories with violence and villainy even among its members. Amanda Waller is manipulative and conniving. Harley Quinn is charming and crazy. Nanaue is your gentle man-eating monster. Bloodsport is your antiphero hero. These are just some of the characters with mismatched personality quirks. At their surface, they shouldn’t be able to work together. And yet, with James Gunn’s guidance, they complement each other and ‘The Suicide Squad’ benefits from it.
If you are expecting a film that follows the traditional super-hero trope, then prepare to be disappointed with ‘The Suicide Squad’. The movie is one big funny and bloody mess which justifies its ‘R’ rating. I don’t think you can make Suicide Squad into a proper film withou the rating. These are villains not the heroes. However, ‘The Suicide Squad’ introduces us to a completely different type of hero: one that comes from being the villain.
With the fate of the world in the balance, ‘The Suicide Squad’ shows that it is part of basic human nature to seek redemption. And, though our heroes are essentially villains, when it boils down to it, the call for redemption cannot be dennied. So, if the vilest of villains have a chance at redemption and make it, what more for the rest of us who are not so far off? To cite a critical scene in ‘The Suicide Squad’: even rats can play an important part in saving the world.
Obskura And Then Some 