Birds Of Prey Review

No one is doing it like DC.

Their lineup is so incredibly diverse and unique to each character’s world.

Birds of Prey has easily become one of my favourite team up films. EVER. Margot Robbie is undeniably Harley Quinn. No matter what other character she plays, (and we know how talented she is) this is her best. You can tell that she loves playing in Harley’s world and this film proves that she has understands her completely. From the very beginning it felt like we were inside Harley’s mind and the way Cathy Yan executed the story made it seem like we were apart of her thought process. It pretty much felt like Harley’s mind exploded on screen and we just happened to be in the room.

Are there Tarantino-esque elements? Yes and the one movie it reminded me of was Reservoir Dogs. Yan was able to structure the film that intertwined each character and their backstories, while moving through time at Harley’s pace. Everything just suited Gotham City and each character brought something different to the table. Renee Montoya, Dinah Lance, Helena Bertinelli and Cassandra Cain all had their own motives and working together made the most sense.

I loved everything about this, especially the fact that it focused on the many ways women can be mistreated by men. It definitely has a different girl power energy and maybe it’s because I’m older but this badass, anarchist, violent, r rated energy just gives off a higher level of empowerment. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced something like that. Seeing all those women on screen, harnessing their powers and setting aside their differences in order to take a villain out. It’s just refreshing to see women beating the bad guys up for a change, I know that sounds incredibly basic but it’s true.

I loved seeing these women kick ass so much that I almost started crying, actually I did cry. I’m not afraid to say it. I cried because I saw my favourite character on screen for the first time and she embodied her in every way possible, I could only dream of this Dinah Lance and Jurnee Smollett-Bell nailed it. THAT WAS MY BLACK CANARY. Everything about her was perfect; her fighting style, her attitude and most importantly her heart made me love her so much more. I’ve been waiting so long for a live action Canary and I truly hope we get a stand-alone and some sequels!

Rosie Perez, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Ella Jay Basco were all perfectly cast as well. Winstead’s ‘Huntress’ wasn’t as developed as I would have liked her to be BUT the good thing is, is that they left me wanting more of her. The mafia side of her story is really interesting and I would love to see my Italian Princess of Crime at the forefront eventually. Perez brought so much sass to Renee Montoya and she looked so done with everyone’s shit for majority of the film, so that was great! Ella Jay Basco as Cassandra Cain was so adorable and really brought everyone together.

Last but not least, our villains for Birds of Prey... Roman Sionis and Victor Zsasz were fantastic in this. Ewan McGregor has truly never been better. He brought such high level energy to Sionis and it was different from his other roles, so I was pleasantly surprised. Sionis was sadistic, eccentric and managed to throw the best hissy fits. McGregor was so good, I would laugh while he was yelling, only to be silenced shortly after because of how dark he became. Chris Messina as Victor Zsasz was creepy and very twisted. Messina’s chemistry with McGregor was interesting, there’s so much more to unpack with their characters because of all the tension they had. They fed off of each other so well!

Birds of Prey is a lot of fun. I can see myself watching this time and time again. Cathy Yan and Christina Hodson did a great job bringing these character’s to life. The fighting styles for each of them were choreographed perfectly and the final fight scene was so well done! It’s also very brutal because Margot Robbie did not want to hold back one bit and she definitely kept her promise.