Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn. I have been so excited for this movie and I’m so glad that I finally got the chance to see it.
In Birds of Prey we follow one Harley Quinn. After she had the Joker break up, she realises that many people want her dead and, without the protection of Mr J, she has a pretty big target on her back. However, she’s not the only one. When Roman Sionis targets a young girl named Cass, worlds collide and the only way to get out alive is to work together and take him down.
I’m going to tell you right now that I loved this movie. On the surface it’s colourful, hyperactive, full of action sequences and overall was a very enjoyable movie.
Harleen Quinzel
This movie of course follows Harley Quinn. She features prominently throughout the entire film. I love her character and how she’s portrayed. I also enjoyed how she uses her skills as a psychiatrist on virtually everyone.
What I also loved is how she narrates the story. You see everything from her perspective. Towards the beginning, violence looks like colour and fireworks and confetti however, as she and the situation becomes more serious – well, as serious as you can get with Harley Quinn – you see that shift in her perspective as we’re shown a more realistic depiction of the violence on screen.
I so enjoyed that transition. It was subtle but I thought it was so effective. I felt you really got a glimpse into her mind. Now, I will say I’ve only seen this once and I could be completely wrong, but I think it was pretty awesomeHaving said that, after only one viewing there were so many easter eggs and homages that I’m sure, if I were to see it again, I would keep finding more.
Renee Montoya, Helena Bertinelli and Dinah Lance aka. Birds of Prey.
I’m saying this a lot but I loved these characters. I enjoyed how all three of them had a different past or history and together they make a kickass group. Dinah (aka Black Canary) was that ‘I pretend I don’t care about anything but actually I care a lot’ kind of character. Renee Montoya cares a lot, but that caring and dedication is continuously thrown back in her face. Helena Bertinelli (aka The Huntress) is socially awkward – you know, for an assassin. But I loved that other element to her character.
I do wish we had seen more of them together however, I completely understand that we had to get to know them as individuals first. It did take a while for them to come together, but then if you look at The Avengers (or Justice League), they all have their own individual movies before coming together as a group. We got to spend a lot of time getting to know them.
This movie doesn’t have that, and I think it did really well in developing each of their backstories in a limited amount of time. In that way, I think the way the story is told, in order to get each persons perspective on the situation, and how it affects them personally, is brilliant.
Roman Sionis and Victor Zsaz
When we’re first introduced to Roman it’s made clear that he doesn’t like one Harley Quinn, but as far as he’s concerned – she’s with the Joker. She’s off limits.
The second scene we see him, we see exactly what he is capable of inflicting. He’s powerful, his mood swings are explosive and, the most prominent take away, is that he is entirely unpredictable.
In that second meeting he comes across as the spoiled child who has that mind-set of ‘You’ve done something I don’t like, so I’m going to lash out’. Only, to a murderous degree. I don’t know much of Roman’s backstory, so there may be reasons for this. I feel that Roman definitely devolves throughout the movie, helped in part by Victor Zsaz. A twisted individual in his own right, but feeds into Romans indefinite desire for revenge, no matter how tiny the slight against him. Zsaz’s bloodlust rivals that of Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter, as does the loyalty to his master.
It was such an interesting dynamic that came across so well on screen, and the actors worked brilliantly together.
Summary of Thoughts
Overall I thought this was a fantastic movie. One where you can chill out and enjoy the show. I had so much fun watching this that I’m considering going to watch it again.
Something I find interesting is that I don’t think this movie has any through and through ‘good guys’. As in, every character, except maybe Roman and Victor, are grey. Sure, you can understand and empathise with the people you’re rooting for, but every one of them has their demons. They’re not perfect, they’re just trying to do the best they can with the cards they’ve been dealt.
So, in short I thought this movie was absolutely fantabulous and, if you haven’t seen it, I recommend you do.
