BUFFALO, N.Y. — There aren’t any good guys in Birds of Prey (also known as Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). Every single male character depicted in this film is, to one degree or other, bad. They range from a fink to a psychopathic, murderous crime lord. There’s only one good woman (and she’s not all that good); the rest are, again to one degree or other, bad. They range from a petty criminal to a psychopathic, murderous former girlfriend of a psychopathic murderous crime lord (not the same one as referenced above). The girls are just a lot more likeable with the most psychopathic and murderous being the most likeable.
Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie, Mary Queen of Scots, Suicide Squad) and the Joker have broken up, and Harley decides to strike out on her own. Apparently she had somehow left the federal prison she found herself in at the end of Suicide Squad (2016) and takes up roller derby (a sport for which she seems eminiently well suited), and blows up the Ace Chemical plant where she and the Joker plighted their troth and where Harley took a deep dive into a vat of toxic chemicals, marking her transformation from psychologist Harleen Quinzell to Harley Quinn.
One of the problems that she’s facing is that she’s no longer under the Joker’s protection, and all of the folks she has wronged in the past (and they are legion) can now come after her to extract revenge. Now, Harley has the wherewithal to defend herself from most of these attacks, but early one morning, a drunken Harley is in the alleyway outside of a nightclub owned by gangster Roman Sionis (Ewan McGregor, Little Voice, Doctor Sleep) when it looks like one of her old enemies is about to get the better of her.
Nightclub singer Diana Lance (Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Gridiron Gang, One Last Thing) rescues her, demonstrating some pretty impressive combat skills in the process, earning her a promotion in the Sionis Crime Empire from nightclub singer to Roman’s personal driver. At about the same time, Gotham City Police Detective Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez, The Dead Don’t Die, The Other Guys) is investigating the Sionis organization, and discovers that a very special diamond is about to be delivered that has encoded within it the offshore account numbers for all the wealth of the ousted Bertinelli crime family (there are lots of crime lords in Gotham, of course).
Before it can be delivered to Roman, it gets pilfered by pickpocket and general wastrel Cassandra Cain (Basco, TV’s Superior Donuts, TV’s Grey’s Anatomy). Roman wants it back. Harley, having been captured by Roman and about to be killed, bargains for her life by promising to retrieve the diamond with Diana. And the hunt is on.
The plot and backstory in Birds of Prey is anything but straightforward. One of the many, many good things about this film is the way Director Yan (Dead Pigs) manages to present the story in a decidedly non-linear timeline in a comprehensible fashion. It is very nicely done. The films many fight scenes are also incredibly well choreographed. Oh, the fight scenes are violent and brutal, but also almost like dance sequences.
The very best thing about this film is Robbie’s amazing performance. She finds a way to make a psychopathic killer likeable. Her performance, while over-the-top, is also right on the money. (It is a comic-book movie, after all). Oh, the other female leads are great as well, but Robbie’s portrayal of Quinn is by far the best in the film.
Birds of Prey may be based on a comic book, but it is filled with adult language and situations, so parents should not believe that this film is family friendly. It is, however, very funny and even winsome, while at the same time it is thrilling and exceeding violent. Fans of the DC Universe should love it. I found it to be worth 4 and a half out of 5 stars.
Birds of Prey is directed by Cathy Yan and stars Margot Robbie, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Rosie Perez, Chris Messina, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, and Ewan McGregor. It's rated R for strong violence and language throughout, and some sexual and drug material. It runs 109 minutes.
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