Two decades after her inception on Batman: The Animated Series, Harley Quinn has quickly become one of DC’s most popular and recognizable characters. After her somewhat successful live-action introduction back in 2016’s Suicide Squad, it was only a matter of time before she got her own movie. As a pseudo-sequel to the 2016 film Suicide Squad, as well as being a spin-off for Harley Quinn herself, Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is that film. After the overall lackluster nature of Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey not only needed to make good on the titular character’s presence but also introduce a new set of female characters into the DCEU. Now that Birds of Prey has arrived in theaters, how does the film stack up to its predecessor? Let’s find out!
Cover Photos: Warner Bros.
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Even though Suicide Squad certainly has some merit, there’s no doubt that Birds of Prey is a movie that is heads and tails above its predecessor in terms of overall quality. Whereas Suicide Squad is often overly dark, unnecessarily nihilistic, with a formulaic plot, Birds of Prey is tonally consistent, fairly optimistic, and it takes chances. Most importantly, however, Birds of Prey is a wholly entertaining film from beginning to end. Ultimately, it’s Suicide Squad’s lack of basic entertainment value that makes Birds of Prey an objectively better film. Jared Leto’s Joker is also a non-factor, so the movie also has that going for it, too.
Overall Winner: Birds of Prey
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MMB Birds of Prey vs Suicide Squad
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Action
When it comes to action, the DCEU has had its ups and downs. Luckily, Birds of Prey provides the antidote to the rough action filmmaking of past DC movies with amazing choreography shot with wide-angle lenses and minimal editing. Suicide Squad, on the other hand, is pretty much the antithesis of this with action that literally holds no emotional weight or stakes whatsoever.
Winner: Birds of Prey
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Music/Soundtrack
One of the most prominent elements of both movies is the music choices that help to dictate the tone of each film and a given scene. While Birds of Prey features a pretty kick-ass soundtrack from an entire flock of prominent and modern female artists, Suicide Squad features a plethora of classic and contemporary songs. Although the former is probably more appropriate for the subject matter, it’s hard to deny any movie that includes "Bohemian Rhapsody" on the soundtrack – even if it is a rendition of the song by Panic! at the Disco.
Winner: Suicide Squad
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Comedy
While Suicide Squad is the type of movie that thinks it’s funnier than it actually is, the truth is that it’s deeply unfunny. Sure, there are some interesting comedic moments, but the fact remains that most of the film is a dower experience that is largely lifeless in this regard. On the flip side, the comedy in Birds of Prey is more specific, which also means that it’s far more effective and relatable than its predecessor. Birds of Prey is easily DC’s most subversive film yet, which makes it an easy win in this round.
Winner: Birds of Prey
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Direction
While Birds of Prey and Suicide Squad each feature unique and interesting directorial approaches, the end result of each film is wildly different. Contrary to popular belief, Ayer’s direction in Suicide Squad is actually commendable. There is definitely a vision for the film, but it just happens that his vision is pretty much completely destroyed by abhorrent editing that was hijacked by the studio. For those who are unaware, the film was yanked from Ayer’s control in the editing process, only to be handed to the company that cut the film’s trailers. The company also happened to be in the music video business, which is ultimately why Suicide Squad feels like a two-hour music video. For these reasons and many more, this category ends in a tie between Ayer and Birds of Prey’s Cathy Yan.
Winner: Tie
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Writing
Considering that writer-director David Ayer had a mere six weeks to write the script for Suicide Squad, it comes as no surprise that the writing is meager at best. On the contrary, Christina Hodson’s screenplay for Birds of Prey is far more successful in telling a compelling story of redemption for Harley Quinn. It’s not perfect by any means and the movie is far less successful when it focuses on the team as opposed to its leading character. Hodson’s script is bold and interesting nevertheless.
Winner: Birds of Prey
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Cast
One of the best aspects of Birds of Prey is the casting of the supporting players that surround the titular character. As the first real all-female superhero team-up movie, the presence of supporting players such as Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Rosie Perez, and Ella Jay Basco make for a formidable and entertaining combination of personalities. That said, David Ayer casting Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn is far more effective, especially when you take the eclectic ensemble cast that Ayer was able to assemble for Suicide Squad into account. That film is barely able to eke out this round.
Winner: Suicide Squad
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Cinematography
While Roman Vasyanov’s photography on Suicide Squad is commendable, it’s unfortunately also one of the ugliest and most unappealing DCEU films to date. It’s not that Vasyanov’s work is bad, it’s just that the overall visual direction of the movie doesn’t seem to fit the subject matter. In other words, there’s a difference between implementing an intentionally dirty look and having a movie that is visually unappealing. On the other hand, Birds of Prey was shot by one of the best modern cinematographers working today, Matthew Libatique – and it makes all the difference.
Winner: Birds of Prey
