Support NeoGAF

[Future Foundation]

Okay, it's time. Here are some of the early impressions for Suicide Squad. As with the Beyond thread, I'll update this OP with as many reviews as I can.

Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/suicide_squad_2016/

Critical Consensus

Suicide Squad boasts a talented cast and a little more humor than previous DCEU efforts, but they aren't enough to save the disappointing end result from a muddled plot, thinly written characters, and choppy directing.

---

SlashFilm

But the characters are lovable, the world they live in is intriguingly weird, and all in all Suicide Squad offers a playful alternative to DC’s more straightforward superhero films. Can Suicide Squad singlehandedly save the DC cinematic universe? No, probably not. But it’s an encouraging reminder that yes, DC knows how to have a good time.

The Hollywood Reporter

Unfortunately, the result resembles a sports dream team whose combined efforts don’t nearly measure up to the talents of its individual players.

Telegraph

When you compare Suicide Squad to what James Gunn and Marvel Studios achieved in Guardians of the Galaxy – low-profile property, oddball characters, make-it-fun brief – the film makes you cringe so hard your teeth come loose. But it’s a slog even on its own crushingly puerile terms.

TimeOut

The big fear about the punky, not-for-kids comic-book movie ‘Suicide Squad’ was that it might be too try-hard: Hollywood awkwardly slumming it with the alt crowd. But this loony wise-cracking DC Comics story, directed with anti-glossy grit by David Ayer (‘End of Watch’, ‘Fury’), plays like a twisted B-side to some of the slicker movies in the comics world.

Empire

So it’s only sensible they’re finally placed front, centre and in the firing line. Filling its entire super-team with previously unseen antagonists, Suicide Squad represents a Flash-speed sprint of a catch-up for the rapidly forming DC Cinematic Universe. And, on that front at least, it’s a real hoot.

The Playlist

And while “Suicide Squad” isn’t as poorly stitched together as its nearly unintelligible forebear “Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice,” it’s still a patchy, makeshift effort of mismatched tones, tacked on jokes and messy narrative. While a flippant sense of humor assists its entertainment factor, the second DCU film ain’t no “Deadpool” either.

HitFix

Whatever the case, when Suicide Squad gets it right, I like it a lot, and it gets it right often enough that I like a lot of it. It won’t deliver the decisive knockout blow that ends the DC/Marvel rivalry that the most impassioned fans seem to want, but nothing will. What it does is make a case for how much fun this universe can be when the characters are embraced fully and when a filmmaker seems excited by the opportunities afforded by those characters.

The Wrap (video review, with a small-ish text review)

After a week of avoiding overzealous fanboys on social media curious for my take on “Suicide Squad,” the embargo is finally lifted and I can now share my thoughts on the movie. And they’re mostly positive,

USA Today

There’s both undeniable sincerity and an over-the-top punk rock vibe to writer/director David Ayer’s completely bonkers ode to supervillains (***½ out of four; rated PG-13; in theaters nationwide Friday) tapped to contribute to the greater good. It helps flesh out the comic-book world of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, plus makes a bunch of obscure outsiders just as engaging and fun to watch as that well-known Dark Knight.

ScreenCrush

Director David Ayer tries to liven things up with a couple of flashy DC cameos and lots of iconic rock songs on the soundtrack. But that’s just the proverbial lipstick on the dead pig that Jared Leto sent to his co-stars to prove his Method bona fides as the Joker. This opening sequence has all the excitement of a mildly contentious HR meeting, and the movie gets no better from there. Bland, boring, and sometimes borderline incoherent, Suicide Squad is a disappointing disaster.

Village Voice

Luckily, that bit of poetic portent is among the very few sops to shared-universe franchise-building in this otherwise gleefully nihilistic movie. David Ayer's film may not always work, but when it does, it's a perverse delight.

CinemaBlend

It was hoped that Suicide Squad could be a major step forward for the DC Extended Universe, but it's not exactly that -- with the film frustratingly and consistently stepping on its own toes. It lacks the convolution problems of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but is also so simple that it doesn't carry any weight. It has a sense of humor and fun, bolstered by a bombastic and multi-textured soundtrack, but its action is also repetitive and disengaging (hurt by the villain's plot lacking clarity and specificity). And while Ayer's vision for these characters is exciting, you're still left wanting more out of the ensemble as a whole within the story being told. It's definitely an improvement over the last chapter of the DCEU, but we've still come to expect more from the comic book movie genre.

Chicago Sun-Times

Suicide Squad does have its moments of beautiful comic-book visuals.... Those are just tantalizing hints of a better movie that never materialized.

GameSpot (?!?)

Superhero movies typically focus on the "good guys" fighting some irredeemable and malevolent force--the kind that's easy to hate. Suicide Squad takes that narrative in a different direction. It's still an exciting roller coaster ride full of glitz and predictable set-piece moments, but this isn't the sort of comic book movie you're probably expecting. It's better.

The Guardian

Suicide Squad promises madness, and a dense downpour of madness is what it delivers. I could have done with more fun and more lightness of touch.

 

[DeathoftheEndless]

 

[DeathSparks]

It's here!

 

[giancarlo123x]

I really hope this movie is good.

 

[illmatic22]

Welp

 

[Dash_Riprock]

Let the blood flow...

 

[bananafactory]

Not a great start. Hoping things turn around

 

[BronsonLee]

Act like you've been here before.

 

[ReiGun]

 

[Rooster12]

That first review seems pretty good...

 

[Phediuk]

lol, that first review feels like such faint praise.

"Well...at least the characters are alright..."

 

[Jarmel]

So can it beat BvS RT score?

And by beat I mean go under.

 

[Indrid Cold1]

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

 

[zsynqx]

Not looking good

 

[FreshCakes]

Variety's released theirs. Don't have link rn

 

[JSevere]

here we go

 

[AAMARMO]

 

[munchie64]

Shit, you beat me lol

Well let's get this started.

 

[Rockandrollclown]

Wow, this is really going to review worse than BvS huh?

 

[Sgt. Kabukiman]

The fire rises.

 

[HStallion]

While that review was positive it wasn't exactly gushing. Hoping that the rest are a bit more positive.

 

[CapitalismSucks DonkeyBalls]

Not looking good

1 review and that's your conclusion?

 

[Orbis Tabula]

Oh god, is it happening again? Last thread was so much fun.

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

Ghostbusters review thread didn't deliver the fuckery.

This one though? All the fucks will be delivered. Let's get it.

 

[George Oscar Bluth II]

Is this gonna be BvS RT thread 2.0

 

[Broken Joystick]

Screencrush 3/10

After one of the crummiest summer movie seasons in recent memory, asking one film to redeem four months of tepid blockbusters might have been a suicide mission in and of itself. But Suicide Squad doesn’t even come close. From the first scene to the last, it’s an absolute mess, one whose harried pacing, jumbled narrative, and blaring soundtrack of radio hits suggests a desperate post-production attempt to reconfigure what Ayer got on set into something palatable and poppy. The movie opens with a shot of the logo for Belle Reve Prison, which serves as the Suicide Squad’s home base; the facility’s slogan is “’Til Death Do Us Part.” The direness of this movie, along with the staggering number of films yet to come in the DC cinematic universe, makes these words feel like the ultimate threat.

Vanity Fair

David Ayer’s super-villain team-up is dull, uninspired, and perhaps worst of all, forgettable.

CutPrintFilm 4/10

Empire 4/5

Independent 2/5

'Nowhere near nasty enough'

CNET

Warner Bros. certainly learned its lesson from the overly serious "Man of Steel" and "Batman v Superman", and the ingredients for a fun, fresh superhero flick are all here. "Suicide Squad" tries very, very hard to make you like it rather than trusting in those raw ingredients. Considering the forgettable plot, abundance of central characters and confused editing, that effort would have been better spent trying to make you care.

The Playlist [C-]

“Suicide Squad” isn’t a terrible movie per se and judged against its forbearer, ‘Batman v Superman,’ it resembles a shining beacon of coherence. But “Suicide Squad” isn’t a very good movie either, a mediocre effort with commonplace ideas of rebelliousness and salvation. Assembling a new gallery of colorful characters, there was clearly a concerted effort to push the DC Films Universe into new territory, but sadly, “Suicide Squad” only sees minor progress made, and a fair distance remaining to catch their competition.

 

[Paskil]

The other thread has some pretty awful reviews.

 

[zsynqx]

1 review and that's your conclusion?

I've seen a bunch of reviews. OP is late in updating

 

[PBY]

DC wtf


Is this universe going to even survive past JL/WW? Cant believe this is bad.

 

[Dash_Riprock]

I think this will score lower than BvS guys...

 

[Kibbles]

^ill lose faith in humanity then because it's far better than that snoozefest

From Empire

Still, at least elsewhere there’s a proper bad guy to chew on. Though only a wild card, occasionally capering in and out of the main plot, Jared Leto’s incarnation of the Joker is essential to its success. Where Heath Ledger’s version was scarred, shabby and countercultural, Leto’s has a smooth, blingy gangsta swagger; a modern take on the way the original comic-book creation riffed on ’30s mobsters. But it’s not his swish, purring style and elegant, slo-mo cackle that really hooks you, it’s something we’ve never seen before: the Joker in love. Here’s a fascinatingly jagged new angle (cinematically at least). It’s unsettling and compelling — almost enough to make you wish it were more than a subplot.

But there’s more to come, surely? Judging by what Ayer’s pulled off here, you can bet there will be.

Yup, he's my favorite on screen joker albeit how brief he's in it and small of a role he plays. He is definitely going to shine in Batfleck: The Movie.

 

[Violence Jack]

Indiewire Review - D+

‘Suicide Squad’ Review: These Heroes May Be Bad, But Their Movie Is Even Worse
“Suicide Squad” promises to flip the script on superhero movies by forcing the audience to root for the bad guys. But that isn't enough.

Slashfilm Review

‘Suicide Squad’ Spoiler-Free Review: DC Finally Loosens Up and Has Some Fun.

… But It’s Got Some Issues

Margot Robbie Kills It as Harley Quinn

Actually, Most of the Cast Is Pretty Good

Jared Leto’s Joker Is… Fine

 

[Phediuk]

lol, here we go.

 

[vinnygambini]

Damn Suicide must have rated badly, it's 0% on rottentomatoes.

 

[bananafactory]

Is this gonna be BvS RT thread 2.0

We could only be so lucky

 

[Anth0ny]

oh my fucking lord

DC

DC pls


why u do dis

 

[Einchy]

Based on what we got so far, Ima say it'll be 55%.

 

[crimzonflame]

Indiewire Review - D+

lamo

 

[Nudull]

Is this real life?

Or is this just fantasy?

Caught in a landslide. No escape from reality.

 

[Real Hero]

It's gunna suck!

 

[ShockingAlberto]

Damaged

 

[DecoReturns]

Yeah WB got really lucky with getting Nolan.
Because their DC films have flipped in reviews.

 

[Coin Return]

DC is a disgrace.

 

[WhateverItTakes]

Screencrush 3/10


Vanity Fair


CutPrintFilm 4/10

Empire 4/5

Ooooh shiiiit my pessimism may have been justified.

 

[GAMEPROFF]

LOL!

 

[Sgt. Kabukiman]

Fuck, this is the worst timeline.

 

[Colonel Nasty]

Goddammit.

 

[kurahador]

Welp...meltdowns imminent!!!

 

[Geist-]

I expected it, but it still hurts.

 

[Phediuk]

How long before the DC universe is rebooted?