Suicide Squad review: It's all about loving your villains

Dir: David Ayer
Cast: Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Joel Kinnaman, Jai Courtney, Cara Delevingne
Rating: ***

What's it about:

In the wake of Superman's death, a squad of expendable criminals is assembled by the mysterious Amanda Waller (Davis) to take on monsters or an assortment of super-powered metahumans or die trying. We see her pitching her idea to the government and eventually getting approval. There's an introduction to the Suicide Squad, early on, with a few additions later on. 
Thrown in the mix are Batman and the Joker (though not fighting off each other, though we'd pay good money to see Batfleck go at it with Mr J). 

In case you're wondering who makes up the Squad, here's the roster -- never-misses Deadshot (Smith), loudmouth Aussie and boomerang-flinger Captain Boomerang (Courtney), crazy clown princess Harley Quinn (Robbie), pyro-wizard and DC's Human Flame El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), the human reptile  Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), sword-whisperer Katana (Karen Fukuhara) and expert climber Slipknot (Adam Beach). 
The villain they go up against? An ancient sorceress called the Enchantress. And her brother Incubus. Of course, there's also Amanda Waller, but who's keeping count.
How they stay bad and still save the day, is why the makers want you to watch the film.

What's hot:
 

Margot Robbie owns Harleen Quinzel/Harley Quinn. She seems to believe she was born to play the part. Viola Davis as the understated Waller is the other standout. Ayer keeps a firm leash on things, never quite getting indulgent about the product he's putting out. We're glad to see Will Smith return, but it's almost too easy for him to play a role like this. The soundtrack is beautiful, the score understated. Don't ignore either. It's a spectacle of colour, and a riot of kaleidoscopic images all blending into a mad mess, but really... were you expecting anything else?

PS: Don't miss the mid-credits.

What's not:

Adam Beach and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje's characters have precious little to do in the film, leading one to believe the Native Canadian and English (of Nigerian origin) actors were cast as tokens. Cara may be a superb supermodel, but there's nothing to suggest that she deserved as much screen-time as she did.

As a clotheshorse, she looks the part, but as an actress, the lengthy role doesn't seem justified. Kinnaman as Flag is not as authoritative as he comes across in the comics. Also, with that tagline 'bad vs evil', it made no sense to try and humanise the characters to suggest their circumstances led them to that point. In fact, Deadshot and Diablo are the only ones with something that resembles a backstory. And Harley, of course. We see too little of what drives Boomerang, Killer Croc and Slipknot. And if you weren't keeping up, what makes Waller what she is. For new audiences, those are big question marks. Also, too much was shown in preceding TV spots and promos and trailers. 

What to do:
Go for it... at least once. It has its flaws, but nothing you can't ignore. And it has Will, Margot and Viola. And it's all about loving your villains, after all.