Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, as the name suggests, is a movie that primarily revolves around Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and her antics. Directed by Cathy Yan, the movie picks up after Harley's breakup with the Clown Prince of Crime. The pacing of the movie is good starting off with an animated short featuring her origin story and the prologue grasping the audience into the wild ride that is about to ensue. The movie does not beat around the bush for the most part and is straight-up balls-to-the-face content.
You are introduced to a liberated version of Harley Quinn who has to stand on her own two feet in a world (or rather, City) where everyone she has pissed off wants a piece of her. The fear of her being the “Joker’s Girl” does not loom over anyone anymore. Amongst them, is Roman Sionis (Ewan McGregor) aka Black Mask, the antagonist in this story assisted by Victor Zsasz (Chriss Messina).
Harley Quinn
Harley is the narrator, a rather engaging one at that, and recounts the entire movie in first-person by occasionally breaking the fourth wall. By doing so, she pulls the audience into her psyche. Her emotions, thought process, planning (barely any), bluntness and craving a breakfast sandwich with a 6-month-old expired cheese after a rough night out, all seem relatable thanks to the first-person perspective. Character descriptions and backstories narrated by Harley, with overly dramatic expressions shot in slow motion and the orchestral music only adds to the humour in the film. You see and feel things the way Harley does. Straightforward and irresponsible. The Elena Bertellini (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) aka the Huntress character description, despite being a tragic family massacre story about a child losing her family at a young age, feels absurdly normal due to Harley’s narration. As a viewer, you feel barely any, if not no, sympathy. That makes you think – is that what Harley feels? Irresponsible and delayed character descriptions only add to the character of Harley.
Usually, not much focus is shed on the fact that she, in fact, is a psychologist except for when her origin story is brought up. This script, however, sheds light on Doctor Harleen Frances Quinzel PhD. In certain parts of the film, you can see Harley diagnosing the people she encounters, reading their body language and making casual remarks about their next plan of action.
Other characters or ‘Harley’s misfits’ such as Dinah Lance (Jurnee Smollet-Bell) aka Black Canary, Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) aka the future Bat-Girl, Detective Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) and the Huntress got minimal amounts of screentime, which was disappointing. The antagonist(s) got some well-deserved character development rather than just being kept in the backdrop until it was their time to shine. Scenes shot from the back of the villains showing the impending doom only added to the depth and eeriness in the film. The fight scene edits, however, felt choppy and not in sync at times. Nevertheless, the overall choreography is stellar.
Harley and her "misfits"
The use of colours and elements in this movie is brilliant. Bright colours such as pink and glitter and smoke for Harley, a grey overtone for scenes involving Black Canary, Cassandra Cain and Renee Montoya, a darker tone with subtle ominous music for scenes with Black Mask, Victor Zsasz and Huntress or any intense moment including fights for that matter, a yellowish hue for scenes shot outside and royal colours such as red and brown and a white background for scenes involving Roman Sionis (not wearing the Black Mask mask).
The use of sound is clever. Jumpy upbeat music for Harley, soft classical music for Black Canary, loud music with good bass for the fight scenes, dark ominous music for intensity and the use for just plain background noise for the scenes shot at GCPD (Gotham City Police Department) indicating how busy they are.
Overall, the movie was a fun-filled experience with action. Nowhere did it feel like it was dragging or stalling for content. The pace was constant with beautiful cinematography and kept us engaged throughout. The main downsides for us were the lack of character introduction and to some level, character innovation *cough* Montaya *cough*, choppy edits, and the lacklustre soundtrack. Regardless, we would say that this movie is a positive for the DC Entertainment Unit. The next movie in the DCEU franchise, Wonder Woman 84, will be released on the 5th of June 2020, the sequel to the previous Wonder Woman movie, which seems promising by the looks of the trailer. Also, Matt Reeves’ The Batman starring Robert Pattinson with the speculated release date in 2021 has started filming with fans questioning the casting choices despite Robert Pattinson’s brilliant performances in other indie movies such as Good Time (2017) and The Lighthouse (2019). Here’s to hoping for a brighter DC future.
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