First Take: The Suicide Squad - the reboot done right

SYNOPSIS: Supervillains Harley Quinn, Bloodsport, Peacemaker and a collection of nutty cons at Belle Reve prison join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X as they are dropped off at the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese.

Exactly five years ago, Warner unleashed David Ayer’s attempt to adapt DC’s equivalent to Guardians of the Galaxy, and while I was one of the few critics to support it, seeing the studio interference on that 2016 film makes it difficult to watch nowadays - but they have learned their lesson. Enter James Gunn. The man behind the film which inspired the original in the first place, with full freedom to do what he wants. As expected, it’s bloody marvellous.

Gunn’s direction and script is much more polished compared to his other films, taking full advantage of that 2 hour 12 minute runtime and the freedoms afforded by the 15 certificate to create a film that is way more faithful to the comics, paced incredibly well, and of a much better quality than what we got in 2016. Handling cinematography duties is Henry Braham, who nails it, returning to score a film for the first time since 2010 is John Murphy, but the real technical star is the soundtrack. The music choices in this film are incredibly inspired, and hearing The Fratellis - a band I seen way back in 2006 before the release of the album which sent them into the mainstream - during a pivotal scene in a Hollywood film was an epic moment.

On to the cast, and returning from the Ayer cut is Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Joel Kinnaman and Jai Courtney, who do way more with the script than the ‘trailer park cut’ that was the 2016 version, and joining them are some heavyweight talents - Idris Elba, John Cena, David Dastmalchian, Peter Capaldi, Pete Davidson, Michael Rooker, with Sylvester Stallone as the voice of a shark (yes, really). It’s typical James Gunn filmmaking, but it does come with a big warning: this film is not for the faint hearted. Anyone who has issues with gore should read that BBFC guidance to the letter, as there are moments which feel more 18 than 15.

THE VERDICT

The Suicide Squad is the film we deserved to see back in 2016 - with the creative freedom allowed to be unleashed, this reboot packs a hell of a punch throughout, passing the 6 laugh test with flying colours, and helping the industry to its first £10million box office weekend since February 2020.

RATING: 4/5