Who could forget the infamous Suicide Squad? It was the first live-action introduction of Harley Quinn, and the return of Joker, who hadn’t been in a live-action feature since Heath Ledger’s portrayal in The Dark Knight. The David Ayer feature is about a U.S. intelligence officer (Amanda Waller) who assembles a team of supervillains for a dangerous mission. In addition to Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Killer Croc, and several other criminals must work together to save the world. Now, it’s no secret that the Suicide Squad went through drastic changes following the backlash of Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, which was notably criticized for being too dark and humorless. Naturally, hiring the writer of Training Day and End of Watch is likely going to result in another grim exercise, which actually fits the world of Suicide Squad.
However, Warner Brothers seemingly panicked, and though it wasn’t exactly clear what was taken out of the feature, Jared Leto’s Joker notably suffered the worse in the revised version. The character received top billing in the original lead-up to the film, but Joker was only in the movie for less than 20-minutes. More importantly, the film trying to inject humor into a world that’s surrounded by darkness failed on all fronts. The executives were so worried about audiences hating the humor they forgot that the most important thing is whether the film is good or not. Despite the mostly negative reaction towards the David Ayer feature, Suicide Squad made an astounding $746 million worldwide. Surprisingly, Warner Brothers don’t seem to have any clear interest in releasing an Ayer cut, though given the recent performance of James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, that likely didn’t help the chances of that version seeing the light of day. David Ayer’s Suicide Squad isn’t exactly a bad film, but a highly disappointing one.
The ensemble film was rushed onto the big screen. The problem is that none of the villains in the feature were known in the mainstream media. Had the likes of Killer Croc, Diablo, Deadshot, or even Harley Quinn been introduced in a previous Batman incarnation then there wouldn’t have been a need to get audiences familiar with who these people are. The reason that The Avengers works is that we understand the core characters and their dynamic has already been established. The film was allowed to play off their dynamic and the story wasn’t bogged down by unnecessary exposition. There’s no telling on whether a David Ayer cut is better. Justice League was met with most of the same problems as Suicide Squad, though Zack Synder proved in the end that if the studio had trusted him more then he would’ve put out a quality product. An Ayer cut should’ve been released. Perhaps Warner Brothers isn’t interested in spending a ton of money like they did with the revamped version of Justice League. Sure, James Gunn’s Suicide Squad bombed at the box office, but given the fact that over $700 million people watched the original film, perhaps there’s still an interest in seeing what kind of film that Ayer made.
How much impact did the Joker really have in Suicide Squad? Leto himself says that he shot enough footage to make an entire feature, what’s the harm in releasing it? James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad works because its violent, darkly humorous, and nicely character balanced. Suicide Squad could’ve been Warner Brothers answer to Deadpool as the film and characters work perfectly in that manner. Even if that’s not the direction that Ayer took the original film, why leave potential money on the table? Peacemaker is being touted as a success, so there’s clearly interest in the world of Suicide Squad. It’s possible if the film does turn out to be as great as the Synder cut then the SS universe could be up-and-running again after the James Gunn feature mishap. The feature could give a better exploration of the supporting characters, or more development of the overall group as a whole. The 2016 feature is brimming with potential and there’s several scenes that stand out, though the generic, “villain is looking to end the world” story is lame and tiresome. Even then, maybe Enchantress has more layers added to her story that makes her more of a compelling villain?
Ayer has stated that he didn’t particularly need to do reshoots to get his original version done, so while it’ll take away some money still, there’s considerably less risk in releasing the director cut of the film. It wouldn’t be the first time that it happens, and it surely won’t be the last. The Ayer cut deserves to see the light of day, and it’s a shame that Warner Brothers seemingly has no interest in doing so.
Follow Us
