I had to take this off the beaten path for this cycle because our NYTimes data is driven by the Timesmachine, which doesn’t go past the early 2000’s. So when we are trying to build a chain and that chain goes through Killer Elite, you aren’t gonna be able to confirm many cases where the film of interest aired on the same day as Citizen Kane. So this one was quite an odyssey. Using a combination of LATimes and the WayBackMachine I was able to confirm that indeed Citizen Kane and Suicide Squad aired on the same day… but that’s about it. So no fun anecdote, only an evening of churning through LATimes archives… which is probably not all that much different than watching this movie. It’s a grind.
To recap, Superman is dead, so the government is looking for the next set of heroes that could defend Earth when baddie Metahuman comes along. Enter the Suicide Squad, a group formed by an evil government operator named Waller. The group consists of baddie Metahumans who were mostly caught by Batman and now are hanging in prison. They are Will Smith as Deadshot and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn…. and then a bunch of other people. The government signs on mostly because they seem like great weapons to be on our side. The baddies sign on because they kind of have to, but also to potentially have their sentences reduced. Almost immediately one of the members of the group, The Enchantress, uses her immense ability to summon her brother Incubus and they begin to destroy Midway City. Since this is bad they gotta send in the baddies to out bad them. They fly in and battle a bunch of mutants. Turns out this was all just to save Waller who ended up trapped in Midway City. As she flies away her helicopter crashes so once again the Suicide Squad has to go after her and battle Incubus. They are not enthused, particularly after they learn that this was kinda caused by the program itself, so they quit. But after having some heart-to-hearts they decide that being bad ain’t good and so they go after Incubus and The Enchantress. Enter the giant CGIfest battle where a bunch of people sacrifice themselves in order to defeat evil. In the end they all get their sentences reduced and Harley Quinn gets freed by the Joker (who was actually in a lot of the movie, but his part was lame and useless). THE END.
I don’t think it’s possible to actually like this movie, but at least it seemed to be having some fun. I liked Smith and Robbie at least and that was enough for a small voice in the back of my head to say “Sequel?” My main complaints are that it seemed like the director and studio were on totally different pages. Half the film is practical effect, the other half is a crazy CGI mess, and neither are done well. This is really unfortunate for the practical effects which I generally like, but in this case it looks like a TV show. Second, the whole thing seems pretty uninterested in what it was trying to say. The first thirty minutes of the film is just exposition because there are so many characters. There never seems to be any stakes because I don’t think anyone involved really cared about the conflict. And finally, the Joker in the room: Jared Leto. Woof. That is all I will say. Like Lex Luthor in Batman v Superman it is a choice and not one I like.
Hot Take Clam Bake! Viola Davis’ performance in this film should have been nominated for an Oscar. Ow! Too hot. The take is too hot. Let’s try that again. Viola Davis’ performance in this film should have been nominated for a Golden Globe. That’s better. She is like the argument for Mike Trout winning MVP a thousand times for being on the perennially mediocre LA Angels team. It’s like, but doesn’t the team have to win games? But then everyone looked at Trout’s numbers and were like “numbers don’t lie.” Viola Davis basically is reading exposition voiceover half the time but there are moments where I was legit like “wow” as she said something dumb about metahumans causing World War 3 or something. She is hitting multiple grand slams while her team walks in 12 runs and forfeits in the 6th inning. Hot Take Temperature: Wild Things.
Patrick?
Patrick
‘Ello everyone! What are we, some kind of BMT Squad? Let’s go!
This movie feels oddly fun at times. Like you can see that kernel of a fun film floating inside of it, and you just wish that it wasn’t just a complete mess.
Also, well. So some of this is a bit hard to tell, because I saw some Extended Cut or something? So all of the reviews and a few podcasts which discussed this film don’t seem to mention Leto much. Indeed, they talk like he’s only in one scene and it is fine. In whatever cut I watched though he’s in like half the film. He is constantly popping up and it is terrible. I’ve never seen a character so thoroughly ruin a film before in my life. He’s taking us away from the two charismatic leads in Harley and Deadshot, and he is an actual charisma black hole which ruins any scene he is in and makes it gross. Never before have I seen a worse performance in a BMT film. And that is saying something. It ruins the film!
With that out of the way I do think Margot Robbie and Will Smith were pretty solid. He curses too much, and whatever they have her wearing is out of control. I’m glad they seemed to have fixed that in the sequel and remake. Because she is basically given what I would describe as a “cheeky bikini bottom” as a costume. That is unacceptably gross. I don’t like it one bit.
The bad guy June Moone is a CGI disaster. It is Cara Delevingne’s inexpressive face on a gyrating CGI belly dancer body and it is real weird shit. Unlike most people (seemingly) I actually kind of like her as an actress. Here though she is asked to do less than nothing and ends up as a kind of one shot bad guy which doesn’t work.
The whole thing just comes across as a mess. And they only really kill one of the Suicide Squad guys, Slipknot, and in one of the weirdest dumbest ways possible. It’s a mistake. They seemingly correct it in the next one where they get a bunch of weird side characters so you can kill a bunch and no one really cares. I imagine that’s the idea of Suicide Squad. Their reason to be.
I think I liked this one more than Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in general. But that film was much much more well made. It is just a boring downer. So I suppose that is fun … they both were bad in fundamentally different and interesting ways.
I do like Scott Eastwood as a Faceless Assistant (Who?) playing GQ Edwards, Flag’s assistant and very confusing character in general. A Wait This is a Place (Where?) for Midway City, a DC comics location I’ve never heard of. And yeah, this film is probably closest to BMT for Leto’s Joker performance alone, bizarre choices abound.
Read about my sequel DC’s GQ Origin in the Quiz. Cheerios,
It’s nuts that Zac Snyder was given control of the DC Universe and planted his flag squarely in the Superman franchise. It just doesn’t seem like a property that is well suited to the Snyder aesthetic. So unsurprisingly I found Man of Steel not very good. In fact I thought it was quite bad and mostly because it was a version of Superman that seemed to not know anything about Superman. Despite this, it is less surprising that Snyder hopped on Batman v Superman for another go around. Put Superman second and get down and dirty with Batman. That certainly seems within his wheelhouse. Get giant Ben Affleck to lift some tires with his giant torso. This makes much more sense… but apparently that didn’t make for a better movie cause this one ended up qualifying for BMT. Let’s go!
As we saw in Man of Steel, Superman fucked up Metropolis and now everyone is sad. Batman most notably, but also Lex Luther, now being played as a smarmy techbro. Meanwhile Superman is loving life as Clark Kent straight smooching Lois Lane. So when Lois gets in trouble tracking down a warlord in a war torn country, Superman swoops in to save the day. Or did he? Looks like someone is trying to make him look like an asshole cause they are saying he killed a bunch of people. That someone is Lex Luthor who is also trying to create weapons to battle Superman. Batman is a bit suspicious so he steals all the info from Lex’s harddrive. Eventually he finds out that Lex has been researching all kinds of metahumans, including Wonder Woman, and he starts to get an idea… maybe to kill Superman. Superman agrees to meet with Congress to try to clear his name, but Lex smuggles in a bomb and sets it off. This makes Superman look like an even bigger asshole. Superman is sad, so he leaves, but has to come back when Lex kidnaps his mom. Lex lays out his plan: he must battle Batman or else his mom will die. He’s like “OK” like an idiot and they battle for a while until they realize that both their moms were named Martha. Coooool. So now they fight together. They free Martha, but Lex got a backup plan: a big ol’ monster made from Kryptonian technology. Wonder Woman joins for a giant CGIfest battle which ends with the death of the monster, but also the death of Superman. Everyone is pretty sad about that and decide they have to get a team together to help save the world without Superman. THE END.
I think… I think I liked this more than Man of Steel. It seems impossible because there are several giant mistakes made. The version of Lex Luthor they present? One giant, extended mistake that may very well be the prime reason this film qualified for BMT… that and the fact that nothing makes sense and the whole thing is extremely confusing (even though we watched the Extended Cut which is apparently less confusing than the theatrical version). At one point we do a double dream sequence where Batman dreams he’s in an apocalyptic future and like seven different things happen that only someone heavily invested in the DC comics could possibly understand. Oh and the film opens on a scene that is purposefully evocative of 9/11… which was interesting, but also made me a little uncomfortable. Oh and it ends on a Morbius style CGI battle sequence that made my eyes bleed. So yeah, it seems impossible that I could like this more than Man of Steel but I did… because Snyder should just do Batman and not Superman because he clearly doesn’t even like Superman.
Hot Take Clam Bake! They really need to stop making Superman movies. The real problem is that DC is real “coooool.” I’m kind of making fun of them, but it’s true. It’s the disease you get from spawning a rebirth of superhero movies not just once, but twice at the hands of auteurs. But guess what those auteurs were producing: Batman movies. So why does Snyder decide to focus on Superman? It’s hubris. Everyone wants to do Superman because he’s the OG. So what is James Gunn doing now that he’s taken over? Superman. But why, Jame Gunn? It could be good, but it doesn’t feel right. Do you know what would feel right? Steven Spielberg. And who does Batman? Scorcese. And who does Batman v Superman? Both of them. Hot Take Temperature: The Crush.
Patrick?
Patrick
‘Ello everyone! Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice? You think you can just have a v floating there without a period and everyone will be cool with it. Not on our watch Zach Snyder. Let’s go!
How do I put this … this film was a downer? Like an ultra downer. Right? I’m not wrong about this. The film has the color palette of “brown” and both Superman and Batman are kind of trash people. To be clear: I’m talking about the two heroes of the film. Not the villain. And boy howdy will we be talking about the various villains of the film.
They kind of play right into the idea that Superman is this alien disconnected from humanity who can’t seem to get across to people that he’s a literal God who can save us from super villains and ourselves. Instead he likes to get himself into situations where people ambiguously think he killed a bunch of people and make out with Amy Adams in a bath. Boom roasted. Next!
Oh good, Batman, you’re always chill right? … WRONG. You are branding people and getting them killed in prison. Because what every Batman loves is the loophole of “well I didn’t technically kill that guy … I just marked him for death and sent him to his death. Cleaning up the streetz!” He’s a bad guy and a bad detective and he almost killed Superman because he’s also a dummy. Boom roasted. Next!
Lex Luthor? What a weird character. The mannerisms of what I can only forever assume Mark Zuckerberg has, and yet people meet him and are like “hmmmm, you seem totally normal. Although I do wish you would stop talking about angels and demons and Nazis and muttering about how smart people should have absolute power … but outside of that you seem normal and I think you should write our anti-Superman legislation and have unfettered access to an alien spaceship”. Boom roasted. Next!
Wonder Woman? Actually … she wasn’t bad. The only odd bit was that they were very obviously trying to get you to think she could be Selena Kyle (aka Catwoman) but that headfake makes no sense since she’s in the trailer and also they had already announced the Wonder Woman film at this point. Makes the film seem weird. Condition: not roasted.
I think I’ll finish with Zach Snyder. I don’t begrudge his fans their taste in cinema. His color palette is grays and browns and there’s a tonally confusing ultra-violence to everything he does. But he doesn’t make action films. He makes Zach Snyder films. And they are somehow different and I don’t like them and that is that. They are unpleasant to watch. Half-hearted boom roasted. I’m getting tired, guys.
The movie is weird. It is all over the place. It has a garbage pile of CGI as the ultimate villain in … Destructo? I literally can’t remember what he’s called. Like … Dementor? Did it have a name?
And then they just have like four teaser trailers for the upcoming standalone films (two of which didn’t even happen!).
And then everyone cries a bunch even though Superman is obviously not dead. How dumb.
Product Placement (What?) exists, although the only one that obviously springs to mind is a shot of Olay body wash in the tub scene at the beginning. Funny Setting as a Character (Where?) for both Metropolis and Gotham, one of which apparently is in Delaware, although that is hardly canonical. This movie is closest to Bad, it is weird and unpleasant and then too long to even be rewatchable, I didn’t like it.
Read about my sequel DC’s Wonder in the Quiz. Cheerios,
Oh boy. What am I some sort of concussed man? I suppose, because the last thing I remember was hanging in the Midway City subway when a big splosion happened. Do you remember what happened in Suicide Squad (2016)?
Pop Quiz Hot Shot!
1) Name all of the (evil) members of the Suicide Squad and their powers. Exact name not required, just like … vaguely allude to their powers.
2) There are also two (main) good members of Suicide Squad. Who are they and why are they there?
3) Throughout we are treated to the very unpleasant portrayal of The Joker by Jared Leto. What is his plan to free Harley Quinn?
4) What is the main mission the Suicide Squad goes on? And what is the ultimate mission they end up on?
Bonus Question: Who is the first Suicide Squad member to get a spin off movie?
Oh, so bad news alert. I was in Metropolis the day Superman and Zod fought. Yeah. I got bopped right on the head with a falling rock! I lived, but I got a pretty big concussion and now can’t remember a thing. Do you remember what happened in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice?
Pop Quiz Hot Shot!
1) What is the initial trap that Lex Luthor sets for Superman which gets him in a boatload of trouble?
2) And then what is the second trap he sets in order to try and make him doubt his powers even more? Hint it was the plot which ultimately killed the senator at the capitol.
3) Meanwhile in Gotham, Batman is fighting villains in a slightly non-traditional way. What does he do to the bad guys?
4) Oh and Batman also wants to get some other information from Luthor. What does he ultimately find on the secret harddrive?
5) And in the end, what is Lex Luthor’s plan? And what is his backup plan?
Bonus Question: Superman is gone. But just then a signal comes from outer space … who is it?
“We’re sorry, Mr. Dudikoff,” Patrick wails. He promises they’ll watch Citizen Kane. They won’t mention anything about possible sequels or squeakuels. They won’t drop scorching hot hot takes, or determine specific dates and times of the film. “Themes!” Patrick yells, “Themes and motifs! Just let us stay! Please!” Jamie leans against a nearby bust of Benjamin Franklin. He pops a Coors Light and the buttons on his tearaway sweatpants. His rocky mountains are blue, that’s how cool he is. Ever since he bumped into Gutes something has changed in Jamie. Rulez are Coolz, that’s for sure, but like… who’s rules? BMT rules are cool. GMT rules are cool. Gutes’ rules? Definitely cool. The rules at this school? Not cool. Drake looks back and forth at Patrick and Jamie. One begging to watch Citizen Kane every day for a year, the other now eight Coors Lights deep dressed only in a pair of jorts practicing what appeared to be capoeira. “Wonderful,” Drake says and both Patrick and Jamie stop. “You two are perfect. You remind me of myself. Well me and Charlie to be more accurate. So much the same and yet so different. Gripping onto rules with white knuckles and yet bucking against them at the same time.” He rings a bell and out from a side door walks a man… an identical man. “Hello, I’m Charlie Dudikoff, welcome to my school,” he says, “We need your help. We need the help of the only squad that can get down and dirty with the baddest of the bad and also have a really cool name. We hope that’s you. Are you ready?” Patrick and Jamie look at each other and nod. “Great,” Drake says, “Congratulations, you are now part of the Ultra-Hard Party.” Patrick and Jamie grimace a little. That’s right! We are doubling up on some DC delectables with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad. It’s tough sledding, but we’ve mustered all our strength. Let’s go!
StreetCreditReport.com –BMeTric: top 17.6%; Notability: top 0.4%; Rotten Tomatoes: top 21.2%; Higher BMeT: Fifty Shades of Black, Zoolander 2, Cell, The Forest, Exposed, Yoga Hosers, Meet the Blacks, Cabin Fever, Norm of the North, Max Steel, The Darkness, Dark Crimes, God’s Not Dead 2, Blair Witch, The 5th Wave, Urge, Gods of Egypt, Get a Job, The Assignment, The Boss, and 24 more; Higher Notability: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Lower RT: Max Steel, Urge, Cabin Fever, Dark Crimes, Amateur Night, True Memoirs of an International Assassin, Wild Oats, The Darkness, Fifty Shades of Black, Norm of the North, Misconduct, Mother’s Day, Exposed, The Last Face, The Do-Over, Get a Job, I.T., God’s Not Dead 2, The Forest, Dirty Grandpa, and 32 more; Notes: My God, I forgot both these movies came out in the same year. The top two Notability films of 2016 knocked out in one go.
RogerEbert.com – 1.5 stars – At one point in the slog that is “Suicide Squad,” Will Smith’s character laments that he and his team of reluctant do-gooders must battle “the swirling ring of trash in the sky.” That’s a pretty apt description of the movie as a whole, too: It’s massive, messy and noisy. And it stinks.
(Yeeeeeeeeeeeah. That sounds right. Kind of absurd I’ve never seen these movies until now. But you know why I haven’t? Because they seem like huuuuuuuge wastes of time.)
(Wow that was a long trailer. Decent though. Not that surprising since Suicide Squad managed to have one of the best trailers ever for a bad movie. The Queen one. I can’t find it online which is too bad, it was real good.)
Directors – David Ayer – ( Known For: Fury; End of Watch; Bright; The Tax Collector; Harsh Times; Future BMT: Street Kings; BMT: Suicide Squad; Sabotage; Razzie Notes: Nominee for Worst Screenplay for Suicide Squad in 2017; Notes: Was something of a street kid in L.A. growing up and then joined the Navy as a submariner.)
Writers – David Ayer – ( Known For: Fury; Training Day; S.W.A.T.; End of Watch; The Tax Collector; U-571; Harsh Times; Dark Blue; BMT: Suicide Squad; The Fast and the Furious; Sabotage; Razzie Notes: Nominee for Worst Screenplay for Suicide Squad in 2017; Notes: I find it interesting that for all of the accolades of Training Day got, the screenplay really didn’t get much in terms of recognition.)
John Ostrander – (Notes: He’s uncredited as the writer of some of the comics seemingly. And while IMDb has him as a writer, TMDb insists that he merely got a “thanks” on the film. Which is why his section here is empty. A little behind the curtain details on some of the algorithmic quirks of the template.)
Actors – Will Smith – ( Known For: Independence Day; Emancipation; Men in Black; Aladdin; I, Robot; The Pursuit of Happyness; Men in Black 3; Jersey Girl; Enemy of the State; I Am Legend; Bad Boys; Bad Boys for Life; King Richard; Focus; Hancock; Bright; Hitch; Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues; Ali; Spies in Disguise; Future BMT: Shark Tale; Bad Boys II; Seven Pounds; Gemini Man; Collateral Beauty; Made in America; BMT: Suicide Squad; Men in Black II; After Earth; Wild Wild West; Winter’s Tale; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Supporting Actor, and Worst Screen Combo for After Earth in 2014; Winner for Worst Screen Couple, and Worst Original Song for Wild Wild West in 2000; and Nominee for Worst Screenplay for After Earth in 2014; Notes: Remember when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock and then won a Best Actor Oscar for King Richard? He was nominated two other times as well.)
Jared Leto – ( Known For: Fight Club; Blade Runner 2049; American Psycho; Requiem for a Dream; Zack Snyder’s Justice League; House of Gucci; The Little Things; Girl, Interrupted; Dallas Buyers Club; Mr. Nobody; The Thin Red Line; Lord of War; Panic Room; Phone Booth; The Outsider; How to Make an American Quilt; Lonely Hearts; Prefontaine; Chapter 27; Highway; Future BMT: Alexander; Switchback; Black & White; BMT: Suicide Squad; Morbius; Urban Legend; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Actor for Morbius in 2023; Winner for Worst Supporting Actor for House of Gucci in 2022; Nominee for Worst Supporting Actor for Suicide Squad in 2017; and Nominee for Worst Screen Couple for House of Gucci in 2022; Notes: Notable for being a method acting weirdo. He was/is in a band with his brother called Thirty Seconds to Mars. Won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Dallas Buyers Club.)
Margot Robbie – ( Known For: Babylon; Once Upon a Time in Hollywood; The Wolf of Wall Street; The Suicide Squad; The Big Short; Bombshell; About Time; I, Tonya; Birds of Prey; Focus; Mary Queen of Scots; Peter Rabbit; Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway; Terminal; Dreamland; Whiskey Tango Foxtrot; Goodbye Christopher Robin; Suite Française; Slaughterhouse Rulez; Z for Zachariah; Future BMT: The Legend of Tarzan; BMT: Amsterdam; Suicide Squad; Notes: Nominated for an Oscar twice for I, Tonya and Bombshell. Very excited for the upcoming Barbie film where she stars as (one of many, seemingly) Barbie.)
(That is a huge film. That is plenty of money to say this was a reasonable success even prior to considering things like streaming rights and stuff.)
Rotten Tomatoes – 26% (102/391): Suicide Squad boasts a talented cast and a little more humor than previous DCEU efforts, but they aren’t enough to save the disappointing end result from a muddled plot, thinly written characters, and choppy directing.
(Jesus, nearly 400 reviews on that guy. A little more humor sounds a little backhanded if I’m being honest. Like … just a little. Compared to the completely humorless Batman v Superman that probably points to it not being enough.)
Reviewer Highlight: For all its cast and crew’s inglorious chest-thumping, Suicide Squad is a failed, forced exercise in - of all things! you had one job! - ensemble chemistry. – K. Austin Collins, The Ringer
(Definitely a trend in posters. Everything Everywhere All At Once had one that was similar. I don’t like it cause it’s breaking my rulez… my rulez that I made up and so are hard and fast. Although great font. Very solid font. And clever. B-.)
Tagline(s) – Worst. Heroes. Ever. (C+)
(I could make a snarky comment here, but I won’t because it’s not. It’s not great, but it’s eyecatching I guess and gets the point across. It actually makes a lot more sense as a Harley Quinn movie tagline and not Suicide Squad.)
Keyword(s) – Citizen Kane
Top 10: The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Goodfellas (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983), The Terminator (1984), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Aliens (1986), Groundhog Day (1993)
Future BMT: 75.0 Look Who’s Talking Now (1993), 71.9 Teen Wolf Too (1987), 61.0 Pet Sematary II (1992), 59.6 Suburban Commando (1991), 58.5 Rocky V (1990), 56.4 The Karate Kid Part III (1989), 55.6 Ringmaster (1998), 54.2 Who’s That Girl (1987), 53.2 Made in America (1993), 52.4 Blank Check (1994), 51.5 The Pest (1997), 50.5 Getting Even with Dad (1994), 50.0 Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), 49.9 3 Ninjas (1992), 49.1 My Girl 2 (1994), 48.3 My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988), 47.9 Three Men and a Little Lady (1990), 46.7 House Party 3 (1994), 46.4 Zapped! (1982), 45.8 Sidekicks (1992)
BMT: Batman & Robin (1997), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), Troll 2 (1990), Super Mario Bros. (1993), RoboCop 3 (1993), Grease 2 (1982), Caddyshack II (1988), Bio-Dome (1996), Mac and Me (1988), Anaconda (1997), Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996), Double Team (1997), Fair Game (1995), Leprechaun (1993), Body of Evidence (1992), A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child (1989), Cool World (1992), Poltergeist III (1988), Wild Orchid (1989), Sliver (1993), Chairman of the Board (1997), Red Sonja (1985), Nothing But Trouble (1991), Ishtar (1987), Toys (1992), Weekend at Bernie’s II (1993), Shanghai Surprise (1986), Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988), Exit to Eden (1994), Fire Down Below (1997), Color of Night (1994), Graveyard Shift (1990), No Holds Barred (1989), The Lawnmower Man (1992), Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988), Maximum Overdrive (1986), Fire Birds (1990), Cocoon: The Return (1988), Jingle All the Way (1996), Raw Deal (1986), Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986), Crocodile Dundee II (1988), Hudson Hawk (1991), Navy Seals (1990), Critters 2: The Main Course (1988), Hot to Trot (1988), Rambo III (1988), Terminal Velocity (1994), Meatballs Part II (1984), Cobra (1986), Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), Man Trouble (1992), Hard to Kill (1990), Conan the Destroyer (1984), The Golden Child (1986), Another 48 Hrs. (1990), Hard Rain (1998), Under the Cherry Moon (1986), Mannequin (1987), K-9 (1989), Days of Thunder (1990), Blame It on Rio (1984), No Mercy (1986), Senseless (1998), The Wizard (1989), The Marrying Man (1991), Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), The Cannonball Run (1981), Stone Cold (1991), Tango & Cash (1989), Lock Up (1989), The Good Son (1993), 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), Dangerous Minds (1995), Young Guns II (1990), Event Horizon (1997), Dutch (1991), Police Academy (1984), Road House (1989)
Best Options (Killer-Elite): 43.0 Young Einstein (1988), 35.1 The Fan (1996)
(Yeah so this wasn’t in the main dataset. And the options were either no fun (Young Einstein) or involved the actor we just used to get to Killer Elite (The Fan). So, Jamie went above and beyond and found some 2010s era newspaper info to deduce that Suicide Squad played on the same day at Citizen Kane at least once.)
Welcome to Earf (HoE Number 11) – The shortest path through The Movie Database cast lists using only BMT films is: Jared Leto is No. 2 billed in Suicide Squad and No. 2 billed in Urban Legend, which also stars Alicia Witt (No. 1 billed) who is in 88 Minutes (No. 2 billed) which also stars Leelee Sobieski (No. 3 billed) who is in Here on Earth (No. 1 billed) => (2 + 2) + (1 + 2) + (3 + 1) = 11. There is no shorter path at the moment.
Notes – Margot Robbie began training six months prior to shooting the film. Her training routine included gymnastics, boxing, weapons training, aerial silk training, and learning to hold her breath underwater for extended periods of time.
Margot Robbie revealed at San Diego Comic-Con International 2016 that although the cast members of the squad had extensive rehearsals together, she and Jared Leto did not rehearse prior to filming their scenes. She and director David Ayer felt it added to the unpredictability and madness of Harley Quinn and the Joker.
To prepare for his role as Deadshot, Will Smith shaved his head, and spent time training with Navy SEALs and Army Rangers, practicing firing a Glock 9mm handgun and an AR-15 rifle.
Tom Hardy was originally cast as Rick Flag, but dropped out to do The Revenant (2015). Hardy had previously played Bane in The Dark Knight Rises (2012), who was a former member of the Suicide Squad in the comic books. Hardy later expressed his regret at leaving the role, given that he did not want to lose the work.
Margot Robbie did the majority of her own stunts.
Margot Robbie kept the live rat that Jared Leto sent her and she even gave it a name; “Rat-Rat”, she added “If Harley got something from Joker, she’d probably cherish it”, she told E! Magazine.
It took the make-up team five hours for the prosthetic make-up to be applied to Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, with the make-up applied to his head and shoulders, while the rest was body paint.
Ryan Gosling was sought out first for the role of the Joker. He reportedly turned down the role because he did not want to sign on for a multi-picture deal that the studio was requiring.
Jared Leto got so immersed in playing the Joker that he wouldn’t break out of character on set even when he wasn’t filming. He even sent his fellow cast members “Joker-like” presents: a live rat to Margot Robbie, and bullets to Will Smith, a soiled Playboy magazine to Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, and a dead hog, anal beads, and used condoms for the whole crew. Scott Eastwood commented that Leto frightened him at times with his behavior, and Smith mentioned that he actually never met the real Leto.
Early cuts of the film included more interaction with Captain Boomerang and Harley Quinn, with Harley severely disliking him despite growing affectionate to all the other members of the squad.
The Joker’s car, the Jokermobile, is a customized based on a Infiniti G35 Vaydor [V35].
Jared Leto chose not to re-watch the performance given by Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight (2008) because he felt he needed to form his own version of the character. He did not want to copy or lift material from any previous film version. Instead, he focused more on the comic book versions of the iconic villain.
After renowned writer and director Kevin Smith received Harley Quinn’s bat he gave it to his daughter, Harley Quinn Smith.
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje did extensive research for Killer Croc, reading decades worth of material from the comics with the character. He also observed actual crocodiles and researched cannibalism.
When Harley smashes a storefront window to steal a purse, the shirts on display in the window read “SI VIS PACEM PARA BELLUM” which in Latin reads “If you want peace, prepare for war.”
The Ace Chemicals scene where Joker finishes Harley’s transformation was initially longer in the original cut, with Harley jumping into the chemicals and with more bits of dialogue from Joker.
The baseball bat used by Harley Quinn was given to Kevin Smith as a “thank you” for hosting Dawn of the Justice League (2016).
Awards – Winner for the Oscar for Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling (Alessandro Bertolazzi, Giorgio Gregorini, Christopher Allen Nelson, 2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor (Jared Leto, 2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Screenplay (David Ayer, 2017)
“We’re sorry, Mr. Dudikoff,” Patrick wails. He promises they’ll watch Citizen Kane. They won’t mention anything about possible sequels or squeakuels. They won’t drop scorching hot hot takes, or determine specific dates and times of the film. “Themes!” Patrick yells, “Themes and motifs! Just let us stay! Please!” Jamie leans against a nearby bust of Benjamin Franklin. He pops a Coors Light and the buttons on his tearaway sweatpants. His rocky mountains are blue, that’s how cool he is. Ever since he bumped into Gutes something has changed in Jamie. Rulez are Coolz, that’s for sure, but like… who’s rules? BMT rules are cool. GMT rules are cool. Gutes’ rules? Definitely cool. The rules at this school? Not cool. Drake looks back and forth at Patrick and Jamie. One begging to watch Citizen Kane every day for a year, the other now eight Coors Lights deep dressed only in a pair of jorts practicing what appeared to be capoeira. “Wonderful,” Drake says and both Patrick and Jamie stop. “You two are perfect. You remind me of myself. Well me and Charlie to be more accurate. So much the same and yet so different. Gripping onto rules with white knuckles and yet bucking against them at the same time.” He rings a bell and out from a side door walks a man… an identical man. “Hello, I’m Charlie Dudikoff, welcome to my school,” he says, “We need your help. We need the help of the only squad that can get down and dirty with the baddest of the bad and also have a really cool name. We hope that’s you. Are you ready?” Patrick and Jamie look at each other and nod. “Great,” Drake says, “Congratulations, you are now part of the Ultra-Hard Party.” Patrick and Jamie grimace a little. That’s right! We are doubling up on some DC delectables with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad. It’s tough sledding, but we’ve mustered all our strength. Let’s go!
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) – BMeTric: 22.2; Notability: 148
StreetCreditReport.com –BMeTric: top 28.8%; Notability: top 0.0%; Rotten Tomatoes: top 23.7%; Higher BMeT: Fifty Shades of Black, Zoolander 2, Cell, The Forest, Exposed, Yoga Hosers, Meet the Blacks, Cabin Fever, Norm of the North, Max Steel, The Darkness, Dark Crimes, God’s Not Dead 2, Blair Witch, Independence Day: Resurgence, The 5th Wave, Urge, Gods of Egypt, Get a Job, The Assignment, and 52 more; Lower RT: Max Steel, Urge, Cabin Fever, Dark Crimes, Amateur Night, True Memoirs of an International Assassin, Wild Oats, The Darkness, Fifty Shades of Black, Norm of the North, Misconduct, Mother’s Day, Exposed, The Last Face, The Do-Over, Get a Job, I.T., God’s Not Dead 2, The Forest, Dirty Grandpa, and 38 more; Notes: The highest Notability of the year! The BMeTric is surprising low, but I’ve said it elsewhere: Snyder has a weird fanbase who likes his very specific sub-genre of action films.
RogerEbert.com – 2.5 stars – “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” is state of the art epic superhero filmmaking. That’s a compliment if you prefer these movies to be ponderous, disorganized and glum, but a warning if you prefer tonal variation from film to film and scene to scene, and have a soft spot for storytelling that actually tells, you know, a story, as opposed to doing an occasionally inspired but mostly just competent job of setting up the next chapter in a Marvel-styled franchise.
There are a few brilliantly realized moments, the acting is mostly strong despite the weak script (Affleck and Cavill are both superb—Affleck unexpectedly so), and there’s enough mythic raw material sunk deep in every scene that you can piece together a classic in your mind if you’re feeling charitable; but if you aren’t, “Batman v Superman” will seem like a missed opportunity. At times it might make you long for Christopher Nolan’s delicate touch. Those last four words have never appeared side-by-side before. Life’s funny that way.
(I’m leaving the whole thing. “Ponderous, disorganized and glum” is my band name. Affleck being surprisingly good, and the slam on Christopher Nolan at the end are both great stuff.)
(I mean … if you like evil Superman and like … apocalypse Batman this looks cool. If you don’t this looks ultra lame. And spoiler alert. I do not like this. Not one bit.)
Directors – Zack Snyder – ( Known For: Zack Snyder’s Justice League; 300; Watchmen; Man of Steel; Army of the Dead; Dawn of the Dead; Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole; Future BMT: Justice League; BMT: Sucker Punch; Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Razzie Notes: Nominee for Worst Director for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; Notes: He (allegedly) got an army of bots (intentionally or unwittingly, I honestly just don’t care which it was) to convince HBO to give him a bunch of money to produce the 4 hour long version of Justice League which still wasn’t very good. Army of the Dead was a modest streaming success by all accounts, so his career is by no means over because of his disastrous DCEU run.)
Writers – Chris Terrio – ( Known For: Zack Snyder’s Justice League; Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker; Argo; Future BMT: Justice League; BMT: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Screenplay for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; Notes: )
David S. Goyer – ( Known For: The Dark Knight; The Dark Knight Rises; Batman Begins; Dark City; Man of Steel; Hellraiser; Terminator: Dark Fate; Blade; Blade II; Kickboxer 2: The Road Back; Zig Zag; Future BMT: Blade: Trinity; The Unborn; The Crow: City of Angels; Death Warrant; The Puppet Masters; BMT: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Jumper; Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Screenplay for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; Notes: His career is kind of nuts. He legit started out making cheapo films like Arcade. And now he’s just considered to be an ominous sign that your comic book movie might be garbage. He writes like … everything, so it isn’t totally accurate though.)
Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, and William Moulton Marston – ( Known For: The Batman; The Dark Knight; Joker; Zack Snyder’s Justice League; The Dark Knight Rises; Batman Begins; Batman; Batman Returns; The Lego Batman Movie; The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part; Batman; Batman: Mask of the Phantasm; Batman Ninja; Batman: Soul of the Dragon; Batman; Scooby-Doo & Batman: The Brave and the Bold; Batman and Robin; Future BMT: Justice League; Batman: The Killing Joke; BMT: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Batman Forever; Batman & Robin; Catwoman; Notes: I’m putting all these guys together and the credits are a bit jumbled. They are the comic book writers for the various characters that appear in Justice League. If I didn’t know that this is all decided by a screenwriting tribunal I would say that crediting all of these people was a stunt to be like “look at all the shit we have in this film!!” In reality, presumably, the cast is such an equal ensemble of characters that indeed, five different comic book writers had to be credited, even though this is a Goyer film through and through.)
Actors – Ben Affleck – ( Known For: Air; Good Will Hunting; Dazed and Confused; Zack Snyder’s Justice League; Gone Girl; Triple Frontier; The Last Duel; The Town; Shakespeare in Love; Clerks III; Argo; Deep Water; School Ties; Jersey Girl; Dogma; The Accountant; He’s Just Not That Into You; Daredevil; Field of Dreams; The Tender Bar; Future BMT: Justice League; Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Live by Night; Smokin’ Aces; Surviving Christmas; 200 Cigarettes; BMT: Suicide Squad; Armageddon; Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Pearl Harbor; Gigli; Paycheck; Phantoms; Reindeer Games; Runner Runner; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Actor in 2004 for Daredevil, Gigli, and Paycheck; Winner for Worst Screen Combo for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; Winner for Worst Screen Couple for Gigli in 2004; Nominee for Worst Actor in 2002 for Pearl Harbor; in 2005 for Jersey Girl, and Surviving Christmas; and in 2017 for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Nominee for Worst Supporting Actor for The Last Duel in 2022; Nominee for Worst Actor of the Decade in 2010 for Daredevil, Gigli, Jersey Girl, Paycheck, Pearl Harbor, and Surviving Christmas; and Nominee for Worst Screen Couple in 1999 for Armageddon; in 2002 for Pearl Harbor; and in 2005 for Jersey Girl; Notes: Batffleck! He’s back baby! Air just came out, and I’m holding out hope he’ll get a directing nomination because, why not? They kept on giving Clint Eastwood nominations for making perfectly fine looking good movies, right?)
Henry Cavill – ( Known For: Zack Snyder’s Justice League; The Count of Monte Cristo; Mission: Impossible – Fallout; Stardust; Man of Steel; Enola Holmes; The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; Enola Holmes 2; Immortals; Night Hunter; Sand Castle; Whatever Works; Blood Creek; I Capture the Castle; Red Riding Hood; Future BMT: Black Adam; Justice League; Tristan + Isolde; The Cold Light of Day; BMT: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Razzie Notes: Winner for Worst Screen Combo for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; and Nominee for Worst Actor for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2017; Notes: There was a brief moment where Cavill announced he was coming back as Superman and people got jazzed, but then two days later DC was like “Wait, what’s this now?” and now he isn’t. It was weird.)
Amy Adams – ( Known For: Zack Snyder’s Justice League; Catch Me If You Can; Arrival; Her; American Hustle; Man of Steel; Nocturnal Animals; Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby; Hillbilly Elegy; Disenchanted; The Fighter; Enchanted; The Master; Vice; The Woman in the Window; Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian; Julie & Julia; Doubt; Drop Dead Gorgeous; Big Eyes; Future BMT: Justice League; Leap Year; Dear Evan Hansen; The Wedding Date; Underdog; Serving Sara; The Ex; BMT: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Razzie Notes: Nominee for Worst Actress for The Woman in the Window in 2022; and Nominee for Worst Supporting Actress for Dear Evan Hansen in 2022; Notes: Nominated for an insane 6 Oscars and never won. We’ll see. Her choices recently have been questionable, but she’s getting to an age where I think she will find that perfect Meryl Streep role from the 00s to finally snag a trophy. I just feel it.)
(That isn’t quite as good. With a $250 million budget you are kind of looking for $1 billion as crazy as it sounds. For this I’m certain that is what they were aiming for. The MCU was smashing that easily on their big tent poles, and this was the moment where you knew the DCEU was kind of toast.)
Rotten Tomatoes – 29% (126/437): Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice smothers a potentially powerful story — and some of America’s most iconic superheroes — in a grim whirlwind of effects-driven action.
(GRIM. That is what these films are. They are grim and all the characters are unfortunately sad and depressing. People talk about the MCU like “why can’t the DCEU be bright” but the visual palette isn’t even close to being the problem. The issue is that in the MCU at least the people seem like pleasant people you’d want to hang out with sometimes. All these people are so dour all the time.)
Reviewer Highlight: When was it decided superhero movies shouldn’t be any fun? – Leonard Maltin
(Guys… we all know they aren’t actually fighting. They are “fighting.” That is fighting until it’s time not to fight and then they fight… other people.)
Keyword(s) – Citizen Kane
Top 10: The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Goodfellas (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983), The Terminator (1984), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Aliens (1986), Groundhog Day (1993)
Future BMT: 75.0 Look Who’s Talking Now (1993), 71.9 Teen Wolf Too (1987), 61.0 Pet Sematary II (1992), 59.6 Suburban Commando (1991), 58.5 Rocky V (1990), 56.4 The Karate Kid Part III (1989), 55.6 Ringmaster (1998), 54.2 Who’s That Girl (1987), 53.2 Made in America (1993), 52.4 Blank Check (1994), 51.5 The Pest (1997), 50.5 Getting Even with Dad (1994), 50.0 Smokey and the Bandit II (1980), 49.9 3 Ninjas (1992), 49.1 My Girl 2 (1994), 48.3 My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988), 47.9 Three Men and a Little Lady (1990), 46.7 House Party 3 (1994), 46.4 Zapped! (1982), 45.8 Sidekicks (1992)
BMT: Batman & Robin (1997), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), Troll 2 (1990), Super Mario Bros. (1993), RoboCop 3 (1993), Grease 2 (1982), Caddyshack II (1988), Bio-Dome (1996), Mac and Me (1988), Anaconda (1997), Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996), Double Team (1997), Fair Game (1995), Leprechaun (1993), Body of Evidence (1992), A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child (1989), Cool World (1992), Poltergeist III (1988), Wild Orchid (1989), Sliver (1993), Chairman of the Board (1997), Red Sonja (1985), Nothing But Trouble (1991), Ishtar (1987), Toys (1992), Weekend at Bernie’s II (1993), Shanghai Surprise (1986), Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988), Exit to Eden (1994), Fire Down Below (1997), Color of Night (1994), Graveyard Shift (1990), No Holds Barred (1989), The Lawnmower Man (1992), Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988), Maximum Overdrive (1986), Fire Birds (1990), Cocoon: The Return (1988), Jingle All the Way (1996), Raw Deal (1986), Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986), Crocodile Dundee II (1988), Hudson Hawk (1991), Navy Seals (1990), Critters 2: The Main Course (1988), Hot to Trot (1988), Rambo III (1988), Terminal Velocity (1994), Meatballs Part II (1984), Cobra (1986), Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), Man Trouble (1992), Hard to Kill (1990), Conan the Destroyer (1984), The Golden Child (1986), Another 48 Hrs. (1990), Hard Rain (1998), Under the Cherry Moon (1986), Mannequin (1987), K-9 (1989), Days of Thunder (1990), Blame It on Rio (1984), No Mercy (1986), Senseless (1998), The Wizard (1989), The Marrying Man (1991), Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), The Cannonball Run (1981), Stone Cold (1991), Tango & Cash (1989), Lock Up (1989), The Good Son (1993), 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), Dangerous Minds (1995), Young Guns II (1990), Event Horizon (1997), Dutch (1991), Police Academy (1984), Road House (1989)
Best Options (Killer-Elite): 43.0 Young Einstein (1988), 35.1 The Fan (1996)
(This tags along as a bonus film with Suicide Squad, although I’m sure sometime in the late 2010s it played on the same date as Citizen Kane. Seems impossible that it didn’t/)
Welcome to Earf (HoE Number 8) – The shortest path through The Movie Database cast lists using only BMT films is: Ben Affleck is No. 1 billed in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and No. 1 billed in Pearl Harbor, which also stars Josh Hartnett (No. 3 billed) who is in Here on Earth (No. 3 billed) => (1 + 1) + (3 + 3) = 8. There is no shorter path at the moment.
Notes – In an interview on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (2009), Ben Affleck said he was warned by Warner Bros. about the possible negative reaction to his casting, and was advised to remain off the Internet after the casting announcement. He also said, to assuage his concerns, the studio showed him negative comments that fans had initially made to previous superhero castings. Affleck said in spite of the studio warnings, he still checked out an online message board. The first comment he read was, “Affleck as Batman? NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!” After seeing that, he immediately went offline.
In this film, Batman wears a voice modulator in his suit to electronically alter his voice. After the casting of Ben Affleck in the role, this was an idea that had been suggested by his friend, director Kevin Smith, as he felt Affleck’s natural speaking voice was too high-pitched for Batman. He also felt it wouldn’t sound like Christian Bale’s voice in the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight trilogy.
Ben Affleck gained an additional twenty pounds of muscle and reached eight percent body fat for his role as Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman.
According to Ben Affleck, he was surprised when he was offered the Batman role, and was at first hesitant to commit to it. He was won over after a meeting with Zack Snyder, who pitched Affleck his vision of Batman, and showed him concept art for the film.
The Waynes are seen walking out of a movie theater, a poster of The Mark of Zorro (1940) is seen on the theater wall. Though not exclusive to all origin stories, most canon Batman origin stories since 1986 have the Waynes leaving a screening of the film. This trend was originally set in reference to the fact that Batman was largely based on the character of Zorro.
A “Batman and Superman” film was originally pitched in August 2001 by Andrew Kevin Walker, with Wolfgang Petersen to direct, and Akiva Goldsman to script. Goldsman’s script had Bruce Wayne’s fiancée slain by the Joker, which sends him on a revenge rampage and brings him into conflict with Superman, who tries to stop him. The film was shelved, but in Goldsman’s I Am Legend (2007), a teaser poster for the film (the Superman shield inside a bat) was seen in the opening scene. It was rumored at the time, that George Clooney would be reprising his Batman role from Batman & Robin (1997), and John Travolta would be playing Superman.
Ben Affleck stated in an interview that he had asked if he could have the batsuit when filming was complete. The producers said yes, but that he would have to pay $100,000 in order to keep it. Affleck quickly changed his mind, and asked if he could just take a picture with it instead.
The armor that Ben Affleck wears is based on Batman’s armor in the comic book “The Dark Knight Returns,” written by Frank Miller, and published in 1986. His regular costume is entirely different than the graphic novel. In the novel the suit was made of traditional blue and gray fabric, and with a bullet-proof plate behind the traditional yellow oval bat logo.
When discussing the film, Henry Cavill said that it would address a major issue that fans and critics had with Man of Steel (2013), involving the huge amount of collateral damage caused in the film’s climax during Superman’s battle with General Zod in Metropolis. Cavill said that future battle scenes in movies featuring Superman would involve him making sure to not harm civilians himself and to protect them from evil villains.
Superman only had 42 lines of dialogue throughout the entire movie.
In response to the negative and mixed reviews, Ben Affleck (Batman) said “We made this movie for the fans, not the critics.” His co-star Henry Cavill (Superman) said similar things in other interviews.
A rough cut of the film was shown for Warner Bros. executives. They were reportedly so impressed that they not only gave the film a standing ovation, but also began negotiating a deal with Ben Affleck to have him make three solo Batman movies, rather than the original plan to make only one.
When Wallace Vernon Keefe, has been gathering newspaper clips about Superman, a picture is seen where Superman is lifting a car, about to smash it against a rock. The picture is a photo version of the cover of Action Comics #1 from 1938, Superman’s debut.
There is a Riddler style question mark graffitied in one of the pillars of Wayne manor.
Michael Shannon never actually shot any scenes for this film and the production used a rubber dummy for Zod’s corpse, he stated, “In the movie there’s a large rubber version of my naked body that Lex Luthor is playing with. I was not, the only thing I did for that is I did some ADR of some lines that Zack [Snyder] thought he might use in the movie of my disembodied spirit talking to Lex Luthor.”
The day after he was cast as Batman, Ben Affleck began working out two hours a day and “hated every minute of it”, by his own admission.
Jimmy Fallon once asked Ben Affleck what his daughters thought of him being Batman and he said, “They don’t care. All they want to watch is Frozen (2013).”
Awards – Winner for the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor (Jesse Eisenberg, 2017)
Winner for the Razzie Award for Worst Screen Combo (Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, 2017)
Winner for the Razzie Award for Worst Screenplay (Chris Terrio, David S. Goyer, 2017)
Winner for the Razzie Award for Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel (2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Picture (2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Actor (Ben Affleck, 2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Actor (Henry Cavill, 2017)
Nominee for the Razzie Award for Worst Director (Zack Snyder, 2017)
After waking up from my Killer Elite induced slumber, I was trying to remember why we wanted to watch this in the first place. In some part it was because we needed to connect through Amsterdam and Robert De Niro was sitting right there for us. Hard to pass up a screen legend when you have a chance to get him in the Chain. But really we can all admit it’s really because this film had not one, but two different slang terms for “good” in the title. It was both killer and elite… in reality it was neither, but we just simply had to watch it for the Good Movie Cycle. So to sum it up, we are on quite the streak of films that were picked entirely based on their title. Fresh Horses was all about dem horses… Killer Elite was all about words that make the film sound “good” when in fact the film is not good. Great.
To recap, Jason Statham is an elite killer. After a job goes wrong and he kills a target in front of their daughter, he decides to call it quits. Fast forward a year and he’s living his best life in Australia spending QT with his GF. But uh oh! Looks like he’s getting pulled back into the game. That’s because his best friend/elderly person Robert De Niro got caught up in a big money job to kill some elite British killers. Seeing that they were just too elite for his blood, he tried to pull out, but the uber wealthy Omani isn’t having any of that. Statham is like “fine, I’ll do it” and assembles a team. They go about creating elaborate situations in which their targets are killed, but it looks like an accident, and also they admit on camera that they indeed killed the people they are accused of killing. It’s so elaborate and nonsensical you would think we were watching Mechanic: Resurrection… but we aren’t. It’s not that elaborate. Anyway, in the course of getting information they begin to be tracked by the Feather Men, a group that influences British policy with a light touch. Clive Owen is tasked with tracking them. By the time they get to the last target Statham is under constant surveillance. This will be their most elaborate scheme yet! Turns out it’s a bit too elaborate because pretty much everyone dies. Although Statham is able to get the target and fake a confession. He gets Boddy D out and he heads home. THE END… psych! We got one last super elaborate killing left! The writer of the books that the film is based on also needs a good killing. Statham gets his scheme on, but ends up faking the final death. Why? Cause he’s just like… done, man. Done with elite killing. Clive Owen is like “fuck that,” and goes and tattles on him, kills the Omani, and takes the money. Statham catched up with him just to tell him “I’m done with elite killing, so don’t mess with me again,” and he goes back to Australia for more QT with the GF. THE END.
I just couldn’t deal with this movie. It’s a “very serious” version of Mechanic: Resurrection that runs far too long and has Dominic Purcell as the fourth lead… fourth! Not interested. That’s a hard pass from me. That’s even giving the film some credit for having some pretty good action scenes. I can definitely believe that there are fans of this movie and it has a surprisingly high IMDb rating to prove it. I’m just not one of them. I do have to shout out Robert De Niro for taking a role where he’s barely on screen and the premise of his character is “I really wanted a big paycheck so I agreed to something, but when I realized what it was I tried to back out, but they won’t let me, so now I’m being held captive until all this is over.” That’s some meta shit, Bobby.
Hot Take Clam Bake! Imagine a world where Statham is like “I’m good,” and leaves De Niro. He gives into the scheme far too easily and for what? Old man rivers who at like 70 years old couldn’t help but get wrapped up in this bullshit? Nope. No. Stay in Australia and have a great time with your GF. Don’t need the money, don’t need the headache. As a result a dozen people aren’t dead as a bonus… except for De Niro. He is definitely killed. But that’s his problem. Hot Take Temperature: Carolina Reaper.
Patrick?
Patrick
‘Ello everyone! Killer Elite? More like Barely Complete, amirite? A true murders row of British people who you remember used to be quite famous in the early 2010s (and Robert De Niro somehow). Let’s go!
Is Jason Statham still a movie star? Let’s investigate. He has a movie coming out this very week, that’s a check in the movie-star box. That movie is something I’ve never heard of, so let’s put that in the not-movie-star box. But then again, it has already made $30 million internationally … so maybe he’s an international movie star still? He made The Meg in 2018, and was still hanging around the Fast & Furious franchise as well … I think he’s still a movie star.
Just peeked at his upcoming slate though. The Meg 2, Fast X, Spy 2, and The Expendables 4?! Yeah definitely still a movie star. Jesus.
Clive Owen isn’t though, he’s kind of slowly ended up being a prestige television star.
And at age 79 Robert De Niro is … somehow. I mean, when he’s not playing a grandpa in bad comedies.
I guess the point is this: once upon a time this was an eye popping cast. Like: Statham, De Niro, and Clive Owen! Wowza. That level. Now? It feels like an odd relic of a time long ago.
Oh it should be pointed out that the most amusing bit of this entire movie is that it is based on a book, and that 100% of people involved in the real incidents being discussed basically call it a load of crap and hate the guy who wrote it. The guy who wrote it is a character in the film, and … I don’t know, it is really bizarre. Go read his biography. He’s Ralph Fiennes’s distant cousin or something and was at one point dismissed from the army for trying to blow up the set of the Doctor Doolittle musical from the 60s. It is insane and the only thing interesting about this film.
A few of the action scenes are fun. Like running through the tunnels of bees and stuff. That is probably the bread and butter of the film.
But the acting is terrible, the writing is terrible, and I feel like the direction (outside of action) is also sub-par. It is a sub-par movie, and pretty boring to boot.
I did vaguely like the story of Statham’s childhood friend turned lover in Australia. If only because it gave me the phrase “girl in the red gumboots” which I can use places like the Quiz. That’ll be a gift that will keep on giving … for a month, then I’ll forget about this movie forever.
I have to give a Setting as a Character (Where?) to Yemen, I’m surprised it has never come up before. Wait, should I add it to the map … I guess I should. For a film about revenge and conspiracies and secret societies there is shockingly little in the way of a MacGuffin. Closest to Bad, just boring nonsense.
Check out the continuing adventures of Brundlefly Jr. in Killer Elite 2: The Boy in the Red Gumboots. I told you I was going to get some mileage out of that. Cheerios,
Oh man. So get this. I’m killer. I’m elite. I’m an elite killer. But all of a sudden this eliter army guy popped out and smashed me in the head with a chair! The chair I tied him to! Anyways, now I have a massive concussion (natch) and can’t remember a thing (double natch). Do you remember what happened in Killer Elite?
Pop Quiz Hot Shot!
1) We are treated to a bit of a flashback scene at the beginning of the day that Jason Statham called it quits on being an elite killer. What happened to make him quit?
2) We then also get to see a little bit of his life on the outside. Where does he live and why?
3) Every time he tries to get out, they pull him back in! As the old saying goes. Who is hiring him, why, and how have they convinced him to do it?
4) The Elite Killer squad has four targets then. In a very very Mechanic-style plot they have to kill them in a way that seems accidental, and get confessions from them. How do they do it?
5) In the finale it is Statham v. Owens, the battle we’ve all been waiting for (I assume). Who is Clive Owens, and why does he want to kill Statham?
Bonus Question: Living happily ever after our hero suddenly gets a knock at the door in the mid-credits scene. Who is it?
Jamie and Patrick sit and watch Citizen Kane. Tears pour down their faces. It’s beautiful. “It’s Citizen Kane by a length!” The announcer calls as the horse crosses the finish line. The mayor pounds them on the shoulder, “She’s a real classic. These horses are so fresh. We’re doing boffo business!” Patrick wipes the tears from his face. Indeed, what they have accomplished is boffo, but even he can admit that they really should stop fooling around. While it seemed important to establish themselves in their new town, this whole racetrack business is really more of a Bad Movie Twins thing. He turns to Jamie to tell him to get the DVD player warmed up for some CK action, but he’s annoyed to find him talking once again with Jamie, the cowgirl they have been using to corral the horses that are a little too fresh. “Hey Patrick,” Jamie (the cowgirl) says, “me and Jamie were talking about catching a movie. I think it’s called Big Ass Crane. About a sentient crane that threatens Houston.” Patrick scowls, skeptical about how good BAC could possibly be. “I really want you to come, too,” Jamie (the cowgirl) says, placing her hand on Patrick’s. Patrick is startled (he’s a happily married man with 6 children!) and looks down at his Good Movie Rulez. Rule #5 – Love Triangle. “Uhhhh, no,” Patrick says quickly, “Why don’t you go back to the house and watch Citizen Kane together?” He adds helpfully. The Jamie’s nod, warming to the idea. “More like Citizen Crane, right?” Jamie (not the cowgirl) says, playfully. Patrick breathes a sigh of a relief and changes Rule #5 to Love Story. “Yeah that’s elite,” the mayor says looking over his shoulder. “It’s not elite,” Patrick says mockingly before putting on his sunglasses. “It’s killer.” That’s right! Not the best segue into a movie about ye olde assassins, but it’ll have to do. I feel like in my head I conflated this film with Righteous Kill. I was fully expecting this to be about police officers or something. But it’s not… it’s about something totally different. Let’s go!
StreetCreditReport.com –BMeTric: top 32.4%; Notability: top 14.8%; Rotten Tomatoes: top 25.0%; Higher BMeT: Jack and Jill, The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence), Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Spy Kids 4: All the Time in the World, Shark Night, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1, The Roommate, The Darkest Hour, Hellraiser: Revelations, Conan the Barbarian, Abduction, I Don’t Know How She Does It, Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil, Zookeeper, Apollo 18, Twixt, The Dilemma, and 61 more; Higher Notability: Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Green Lantern, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1, Hop, Cars 2, The Smurfs, Your Highness, New Year’s Eve, Red Riding Hood, Jack and Jill, Battle Los Angeles, Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil, Sucker Punch, I Am Number Four, The Hangover Part II, In Time, Johnny English Reborn, Larry Crowne, Priest, and 17 more; Lower RT: You May Not Kiss the Bride, Hellraiser: Revelations, Jack and Jill, Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star, The Roommate, A Little Bit of Heaven, Hick, Abduction, Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, Dream House, New Year’s Eve, Trespass, Honey 2, Red Riding Hood, Creature, Season of the Witch, Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil, Atlas Shrugged: Part I, The Darkest Hour, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, and 40 more; Notes: That is a shockingly low Notability now that I look at it. A film like this just feels like it should have 70 well known people in it.
RogerEbert.com – 3.0 stars – “Killer Elite” is inspired by a story that ingeniously finds a way to explain why two teams of ex-SAS men would want to kill each other. That doubles the possibilities for casting, and here Jason Statham and Clive Owen, who in fact have no reason to dislike each other, are engaged in a deadly game of international murder. Robert De Niro plays a hostage taken by a sheik of Oman, who uses him to settle a score neither team has any reason to care about, so basically what’s at stake is their professionalism.
(Wow. What a zag by Roger. Although this would have been prime time “good for what it is” Ebert, so actually it makes a lot of sense.)
(I remember this trailer so distinctly. Specifically the flip with the chair onto Clive Owen. Incredible use of Rock you like a Hurricane as well.)
Directors – Gary McKendry – ( BMT: Killer Elite; Notes: How bizarre. He directed an Oscar nominated short, then this, then one more short and then … literally nothing else? That seems insane. He one effort was a Statham, Owen, De Niro picture?)
Writers – Matt Sherring – ( BMT: Killer Elite; Notes: And this guy just has a single other thing in development maybe? How did this thing get made?)
Ranulph Fiennes – (BMT: Killer Elite; Notes: He wrote the book … this movie is based on a book. And this guy is nuts. He was a famous adventurer, and tried to blow up the Dr. Doolittle set as some sort of protest.)
Actors – Jason Statham – ( Known For: Operation Fortune: Ruse de guerre; F9: The Fast Saga; Wrath of Man; Snatch; Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels; Furious 7; The Italian Job; The Meg; Collateral; The Fate of the Furious; Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw; Furious 6; The Expendables; Spy; The Bank Job; The Expendables 2; The Transporter; Death Race; Homefront; Wild Card; Future BMT: The Pink Panther; War; The One; Turn It Up; BMT: The Expendables 3; Crank; Killer Elite; Crank: High Voltage; Mechanic: Resurrection; In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale; Ghosts of Mars; Notes: Was on the National British Diving Team. One funny story I remember from a podcast I listened to in like 2011 was that a comedian’s ex-girlfriend was dating Statham and he wanted so badly to hate him, but it turned out Statham is hilarious, really nice, and extraordinarily handsome, so he actually just ended up really enjoying the few times he’s met him.)
Clive Owen – ( Known For: Sin City; Closer; Inside Man; Children of Men; The Bourne Identity; The Informer; Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets; Gosford Park; Trust; Anon; Shoot ‘Em Up; Croupier; Last Knights; Ophelia; Close My Eyes; The International; Duplicity; Blood Ties; The Song of Names; Bent; Future BMT: King Arthur; Gemini Man; The Pink Panther; Derailed; Elizabeth: The Golden Age; Beyond Borders; The Rich Man’s Wife; BMT: Killer Elite; Notes: Nominated for an Oscar for Closer (remember that guy?). He ended up almost being as famous for starring in The Knick than anything else. Was Bill Clinton in American Crime Story?)
Robert De Niro – ( Known For: Joker; Goodfellas; Heat; Taxi Driver; The Godfather Part II; American Hustle; The Irishman; Cape Fear; Once Upon a Time in America; Casino; Sleepers; Silver Linings Playbook; Stardust; The Deer Hunter; A Bronx Tale; Limitless; The Untouchables; Raging Bull; Jackie Brown; Ronin; Future BMT: The Family; Great Expectations; Shark Tale; Meet the Fockers; The War with Grandpa; Little Fockers; Arthur and the Invisibles; Hide and Seek; Showtime; Analyze That; The Fan; 15 Minutes; The Comedian; Stanley & Iris; BMT: Amsterdam; Dirty Grandpa; Killer Elite; Righteous Kill; The Big Wedding; New Year’s Eve; Grudge Match; Godsend; Razzie Notes: Nominee for Worst Actor for Dirty Grandpa in 2017; and Nominee for Worst Screen Couple in 2003 for I Spy, Showtime, and The Adventures of Pluto Nash; Notes: Y’all know De Niro. Six time nominated for Best Actor (won twice for Raging Bull and Godfather Part II). And he’s still working. Mostly it is in comedies as a mea grandpa or something, but he still will show up in things like The Irishman and Amsterdam.)
(Oooooof there it is. Why would you give $70 million to an unproven director and writer. Wait … what year was this made? See 2011 it feels like they were already not funding dumb stuff, so how did this slip through?)
Rotten Tomatoes – 28% (35/127): A rote, utterly disposable Jason Statham vehicle that just happens to have Clive Owen and Robert De Niro in it.
(I mean … slammed? Now it makes a bit more sense. So they thought they could elevate it, but it just ended up wallowing in the mud with Statham. No offense to him, they said it not me.)
Reviewer Highlight: Clumsily directed by Gary McKendry and poorly written by Matt Sherring, rookies both, the convoluted movie collapses under the weight of its own cliches. – Peter Howell, Toronto Star
(I like the orange, but that’s about it. Old school framing and the scene itself is just a bunch of people standing around in black and white. Very middle of the road. C.)
Tagline(s) – May the Best Man Live (A, but sarcastic. Like a cheeky A.)
(Wooooow. That is a punch in the gut right there. May the best man live. It’s so close to a self parody that maybe it’s perfect. Maybe it’s the best tagline of all time and you will never know it.)
Keyword(s) – good
Top 10: Good Will Hunting (1997), The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), The Great Gatsby (2013), Hot Fuzz (2007), Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), The Wizard of Oz (1939), Man on Fire (2004), The Nice Guys (2016)
Future BMT: 67.1 Phat Girlz (2006), 63.2 Hot Tub Time Machine 2 (2015), 60.6 Like a Boss (2020), 51.8 Playing with Fire (2019), 51.6 The Boss (2016), 51.1 Johnny Be Good (1988), 50.7 The Hot Chick (2002), 50.0 Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988), 48.4 Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), 47.2 Barney’s Great Adventure (1998), 45.1 Fly Me to the Moon 3D (2007), 44.9 Fantastic Four (2005), 40.4 No Good Deed (2014), 39.5 Good Burger (1997), 37.2 The Great Wall (2016), 37.0 Stroker Ace (1983), 36.3 Milk Money (1994), 34.7 Mad Money (2008), 34.3 Mo’ Money (1992), 32.1 Good Deeds (2012)
BMT: Epic Movie (2007), Fantastic Four (2015), The Ridiculous 6 (2015), Cool as Ice (1991), Cool World (1992), A Good Day to Die Hard (2013), Hot Pursuit (2015), The Fly II (1989), One for the Money (2012), Fire Down Below (1997), Air Bud: Golden Receiver (1998), Fire Birds (1990), Good Luck Chuck (2007), Be Cool (2005), Chill Factor (1999), Money Train (1995), Hot to Trot (1988), The Golden Child (1986), Righteous Kill (2008), Sweet Home Alabama (2002), The Wizard (1989), Fresh Horses (1988), Killer Elite (2011), Hunter Killer (2018)
Best Options (Amsterdam): 45.1 Fly Me to the Moon 3D (2007), 21.7 Killer Elite (2011), 12.0 Great Expectations (1998)
(Yup, there weren’t much options. Great Expectations had a slightly better showing maybe to continue the streak, but we couldn’t pass up Killer Elite.)
Welcome to Earf (HoE Number 6) – The shortest path through The Movie Database cast lists using only BMT films is: Jason Statham is No. 1 billed in Killer Elite and No. 1 billed in In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, which also stars Leelee Sobieski (No. 3 billed) who is in Here on Earth (No. 1 billed) => (1 + 1) + (3 + 1) = 6. There is no shorter path at the moment.
Notes – Sir Ranulph Fiennes, an English adventurer, polar explorer and former S.A.S. man is the author of The Feather Men, the novel on which this film is adapted. Although he has often claimed the novel was a true story, the families of the real dead S.A.S. men named in the novel who died on S.A.S. exercises, and the S.A.S. themselves publicly attacked it as sick exploitation and complete fiction. The S.A.S. even went on the record to disown both Fiennes and the book, with Lieutenant Colonel Ian Smith telling the Daily Mail “It was utter bullshit”, the figment of a fertile imagination. What was really upsetting, was that it was making a story out of a tragedy.” Maggie Denaro, the widow of one of the dead S.A.S. men said of Fiennes, “It’s time he grew up. He’s made his money out of the book. He should come clean. When the book came out saying Mike had been murdered, we knew it wasn’t true. But that didn’t stop our children from being upset when other people believed it.” Although Fiennes claims he sent a manuscript of the book to the S.A.S. and the families of the dead men, who gave their approval, they have all unequivocally denied his claim.
The controversy over whether the story is true or not has as many twists as the plot itself. As mentioned above, all the families and the S.A.S. denied they had been consulted or involved in any way with the book. However, an article the Daily Mail Online was forced to include an amendment when the widow of Major Mike Kealy admitted she had read and approved of every page that related to her husband.
Robert De Niro is the only American born actor in this film.
In the scene where the SAS are going on training in the Brecon Beacons, they are seen wearing the incorrect uniform for the period. In 1981 the British Army wore 1968 pattern Smock, Combat but here they are seen wearing P84 smocks which did not start being rolled out until circa 1985.
One big perk of the past year is that Patrick and I have been able to go to the movies together a number of times (usually to partake in some artistic achievement like Tár or Prey for the Devil) and each trailer that plays gets a silent look between us. Usually these looks are balanced, like yin and yang. Equal and opposite looks. Like Banshees of Inisherin and Plane. It’s like “Boy, I can’t wait for that one,” but for opposite reasons. Then there is the look like “That seems like a bit much.” Like seeing the trailer for M3GAN and it’s kind of a good thing. Like wow… that seems like a lot… and it could be fun. The equal and opposite is a film like Amsterdam where we tiredly look over at each other and it’s just like… “that just feels like… a lot.” Amsterdam just felt like a lot. It’s just a lot.
To recap, there’s just a lot. Like… it’s a lot. Bale is a wounded veteran doctor in NYC who is called on by his black lawyer veteran friend, Harold, to help determine whether Taylor Swift’s father (a celebrated general) has been murdered. [Big breath.] He determines that he probably was, but when they go to tell TSwift she is unceremoniously shoved in the street and killed. The murderer tries to pin the murder on them and so they go on the run. In order to inform the rest of the film we are treated to a lengthy flashback where we meet Margot Robbie, a free-spirited artist/spy who helped treat them during the war. They become BFF’s Forever and live a great life in Amsterdam until Bale is like “I gotta go back to NYC to see my wife.” There he gets into hot water as he tries to help veterans with their pain and so Harold joins him to help, thus officially breaking up the trio. [Even bigger breath.] Back in the present Bale uses his connections amongst the veterans to stall the police and heads to Tom Voze’s house, a notable citizen of NYC, to try to get him to vouch for their character and they are surprised to find that Robbie is there. Turns out she’s a Voze. [Medium breath.] Tom Voze suggests they go talk to General Dillenbeck and try to get him on their side. In the meantime all kinds of shady stuff is happening with a group called the Committee of the Five and so they stop off to see Robbie’s spy friends. They say, indeed, the Committee of the Five are trying to establish a fascist state in America using Dillenbeck, so they should try to stop them. Dillenbeck agrees and sets up the climax of the film where he will lure the Committee to a veteran’s gala where they will reveal them to the authorities. [Final breath.] All of this occurs, but wait! Tim Voze is part of the Committee (what a twist!) and they use their power and influence to avoid jail. As a result Robbie and Harold have to go on the run, but it’s OK because they have love. Bale stays and I guess is fine. I don’t know. THE END.
There is too much going on to grasp what the purpose of all this was. There were aspects of the film I liked. For example, I thought the fact that Bale’s character was physically debilitated by his war injuries was an interesting idea to explore alongside Harold (struggling with the racism of the era) and Margot Robbie’s character (who’s art makes her family think she’s mentally ill). For a moment I thought the idea was that the broken and beaten down of the world were who really prevented the fall… but it’s just one of a million ideas that are ultimately explored in the film. So I can’t tell if that was even there. Maybe the idea is that Robert De Niro is what prevents the fall… could that be it? Anyway, the film looked good and the acting was generally pretty good I thought, but there’s nothing there to grab onto and by the end I wasn’t sure it amounted to much. It’s funny because I would say if you wanted something like this then you should just watch Don’t Look Up, which is just as big and (I thought) much more successful… but a lot of people also thought that was bad… so it kinda tells you everything you need to know about where this one ends up.
Hot Take Clam Bake! Maybe Robert De Niro should have just become the dictator of America… might have saved us from eventually starting BMT and now watching Amsterdam. Or maybe it’s the opposite, maybe under the fascist state art would have shrivel to a hard tiny prune and we’d be forced to eat our Amsterdam prunes every day extolling our dear leader, Robert De Niro. So now I’m not sure. Maybe Robert De Niro shouldn’t have become dictator of America. We’ll (probably) never know. Hot Take Temperature: Started as Carolina Reaper but shriveled to a Banana Pepper by the end.
Patrick?
Patrick
‘Ello everyone! Amsterdam? More like Amster-daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang, amirite? Thank you David O. Russell, the only way we were getting the chain reaction to work this year was with a crazy huge ensemble disaster. Let’s go!
It must be the fact that we avoid giant ensemble cast films like this for BMT because I can’t really remember the last one we watched. Maybe they just tend not to be that bad? Maybe I’m misremembering. Funny enough the one we chained from was Pearl Harbor, which is also a giant ensemble cast disaster. This feels different because it is a straight drama (with comedic elements).
Christian Bale is good.
The rest … I would entertain arguments that anyone in this film is good. They are all acting very weird. They are all being acted off the screen by Christian Bale who is amazing as usual. It is a cyclone of quirks that kind of never works.
Well, except Robert De Niro who acts like De Niro. It is weird he is supposed to be a real person (kind of) but in the end he’s just De Niro.
Russell films are weird. He likes to take a real life event, then he fills it chockablock with weirdos with quirks, and in the end the not-very-interesting real life event is overwhelmed by the quirky acting. But most of the time it works to varying degrees. This time?
Yeah, it is just really dull. Every time Christian Bale is on screen the film comes alive. His character is so real and quirky and fun and funny and works really well. But then every time anyone else is on screen the film falls apart. I wonder how hard Russell pushed to get Jennifer Lawrence in the Margo Robbie role. Probably so hard.
The real life event is the Business Plot by the way, and don’t bother reading about it, it seems like a genuinely uninteresting non-conspiracy of questionable authenticity. It is very weird that a movie has been made about it. The Bonus Army would have been a more interesting setting.
Gosh how do I even keep on talking about this film. It feels like it was barely written, the acting is mostly average at best, and it is beautiful and a cool period piece. I guess that is what it has going for it, it is a fun period piece at best.
I guess I’ll call it an A+ Setting (Where?) for Amsterdam, you can’t deny it does take place in Amsterdam to some degree. The film is closest to Bad because there just is nothing to it besides Bale, and you’ve seen better performances by him anyways.
Read about the unlikely science fiction sequel, Amsterdam 2: Half Past Time, in the Quiz. Cheerios,
Bad Movie Twins 