There’s something to be said for a comic book film that doesn’t overcomplicate itself and that might be why I enjoyed this story as much as I did. It’s fairly low-stakes, easy to understand, but a lot of fun to watch. Once Harley finds Cassandra, the story shifts into one of survival as Harley tries to survive her life in a post-Joker breakup world while trying to keep Cassandra safe from Roman, who intends to kill Cassandra and retrieve his diamond from her. Boiled down to its basic elements, the story is just about Harley Quinn trying to find a teenaged pickpocket, Cassandra Cain, who has stolen (and swallowed) a diamond from a Gotham City Crime Lord, Roman Sionis/Black Mask. It’s a simple one, but it’s simple and focused and it works really well. But let’s be clear: Birds of Prey has a really good story.
To have a successful universe, you need to tell a successful story in each film. Some of the early DCEU films, and most of the recent entries in the MCU, have felt more interested in building up their respective universes and setting up future films instead of focusing on telling a good story within a single film. Lately, it’s seemed as though comic book movies have forgotten to focus on telling good stories. The first thing that struck me when thinking about Birds of Prey after I saw it was how much I enjoyed the film’s story. Harley, Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), and Renee Montoya’s (Rosie Perez) paths collide, and the unlikely foursome have no choice but to team up to take Roman down. When Gotham’s most nefariously narcissistic villain, Roman Sionis (Ewan McGregor), and his zealous right-hand, Zsasz (Chris Messina), put a target on a young girl named Cass (Ella Jay Basco), the city is turned upside down looking for her. You ever hear the one about the cop, the songbird, the psycho and the mafia princess? “Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” is a twisted tale told by Harley (Margot Robbie) herself, as only Harley can tell it. Written by Christina Hodson and directed by Cathy Yan (Mild spoilers follow!)īirds of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) Luckily, the film is an utter delight from start to finish and ranks among the best entries of the DCEU to date.
Couple that with the slightly-unusual way the film was promoted and it became quite hard to predict just what kind of film Birds of Prey would be. The DCEU has a historically uneven track record, with only Wonder Woman and Shazam being particularly good and this film is technically a sequel to the atrocious 2016 Suicide Squad film, so there was certainly no guarantee of quality here.
So, going into this movie I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Of course, I’ve seen some of his various animated films and shows, so I’m familiar with characters like Harley Quinn and Renee Montoya, but I’ve never been introduced to Huntress or Black Canary.
While I’ve always been more of a DC fan, and Batman has always been my favorite of the DC heroes, I’ve rarely ventured too far outside of his main title. Birds of Prey is one of those comic properties that know very little about.