By JASON GUYER
Do you know what a harlequin is? Well, in the new “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” Harley Quinn asks this very question.
A harlequin is characterized by one’s chequered costume. Their role is that of a light-hearted, nimble and astute servant, often acting to thwart the plans of their master.
This scenario is also where the character of Harley Quinn is at her best.
Harley Quinn herself says in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” “A harlequin’s role is to serve. It’s nothing without a master. And no one gives two s***s who we are beyond that.”
In the 2016 “Suicide Squad,” it was proved that the master/apprentice relationship dynamic is not the most interesting aspect of Harley Quinn, but instead Harley Quinn herself. This is undeniable with the affable Margot Robbie playing her on screen.
Harley Quinn deserves more. The film also deserved more easter eggs and references to DCEU but all we get are Bruce the Hyena, the wonderful Bernie and only a couple others.
The real question, though, is did Harley Quinn get the film she deserves in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.”
To the delight of some fans, the answer is yes. However, to the bewilderment of other fans, the answer is also no.
In “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” it is open season on Harley Quinn when her breakup with the Joker leaves her unprotected and vulnerable and everyone who ever had a problem with Harley Quinn seeks to exploit that. As such, Quinn faces the wrath of narcissistic crime boss Black Mask and number two, Victor Zsasz. In order to survive, Harley allies herself with three powerful and deadly women: The Huntress, Black Canary and Renee Montoya.
In 2016, I said: “Harley may have kept that engine revving during “Suicide Squad” but nothing could keep it from running out of gas.” The unfortunate truth is the same applies for “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.”
Harley Quinn is still the show. She dominates the screen in the same way she did in “Suicide Squad.” Probably even more so in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” as Quinn is clearly the lead in this film.
This was one of the downsides of “Suicide Squad,” that the best character gave up screen time for worse characters. We needed more of Harley Quinn. The problem is that even in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” we still need more. Robbie’s Harley Quinn steals the show with lines like, “I’m the one they should be scared of. Boo! Not you! Not Mister J! Because I’m Harley freaking Quinn!”
She is right, she is Harley freaking Quinn, so why do they keep handcuffing the best DC character behind undeveloped stories and undeveloped characters? This was more prevelant in “Suicide Squad” but is still in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.” In “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,’’ there is a scene where Harley breaks into a police station. The scene starts off fast in a John Wick-style action sequence and Quin is at her best when it just stops.
Yes, it stops, for a reason — another character. But it does the Harley Quinn character a disservice to abruptly stop the moment she is gaining momentum in her story. This is done not only once but multiple times. The director, Cathy Yan, just made bad choices here.
These are common storytelling or filming techniques but techniques have to be use in the right places and times of a story, otherwise it can ruin the story.
Leading to the biggest downside of “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn”. How it is messy and choppy.
The entire film just kind of hangs there. There are multiple moments where the audience starts to get behind Quinn and starts having fun with the character, especially in or during the great action scenes, and takes the audience away from that to a place that is less fun.
How many times can one make the same mistake? If you are DC then it seems you never learn and make the same mistakes over and over again. Well, I shouldn’t say never learn, as their films are getting better each time they make one. They are just so far behind Marvel when it comes to comic book films. Marvel films, even the bad ones, have a generally nice and coherent feel to them. The only DC films to date that are that way are “Wonder Woman,” and “Joker.”
“Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn” does Harley Quinn better off than “Suicide Squad,” but the film also hinders Quinn in many similar ways. I just want to see Harley Quinn go off, in a John Wick-style comedy/action flick unencumbered by directors and other characters. The best Harley Quinn film just needs that Harley Quinn quirky crazy sass and action where she lays the smackdown.
Why over complicate it, unless you are actually going to dive into the character of Harley Quinn and if you are not going to just keep it simple?
This is not to say some of the new characters are not good, some are but those characters are also under developed.
Mary Elizabeth-Winstead’s Helena Bertinelli, otherwise known as The Huntress, is the best good character introduced in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.” Winstead plays this socially awkward yet confident vigilante who is more intriguing than any other character. Nevertheless, Winstead only gets the last ten minutes of the film to really show off her character and stretch that character’s legs. This again does a disservice to a character and the film overall.
Do not sleep on Ewan McGreggor’s Black Mask either.
All the characters are great and the characters compliment Harley Quinn very well together. It is just the way their stories are told that hinder Quinn’s story. They really do feel like a group of women who would end up being together.
“Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” feels like a Harley Quinn film, but one that doesn’t concentrate enough on her character.
Again, Harley Quinn herself says in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” “A harlequin’s role is to serve. It’s nothing without a master. And no one gives two s***s who we are beyond that.” The audience does, though, and we wanted to get to know Harley Quinn in “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” but we don’t. All we get is Harley Quinn frosting, no cake, all frill and extra sweet frosting.
Depth and really building on the character of Harley Quinn would have been nice but one thing is clear, “Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn,” is a fun ride even if you are left just wanting more Harley Quinn.
She also describes her own film experience the best when she says, “Isn’t this fun? It’s just like a sleepover. We should order pizza, make cosmos.”
IRATE SCORE: 2.5/5
Jason Guyer is an avid moviegoer and works in the graphics department at the Eagle Times. For questions or comments he can be emailed at [email protected].
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.