DC Extended Universe

[Triggermv]

Yeah, no kidding.

I think it's important to be able to suspend your sense of disbelief when it comes to movies, particularly and especially with comic book movies, but there's a difference between being able to do that and then feeling like you're having your intelligence as a viewer insulted. WW 1984 went way over that fine line. Did turning a jet plane (that they stole from the Smithsonian apparently in full working order) invisible also give it a couple of extra fuel tanks to get from DC all the way to Egypt and back? Just terrible, terrible writing.

My favorite term to use when describing movies is verisimilitude, which is defined as the appearance of being true, real or believable. Some movies have it, while others don't, and it is a fine line to walk. Some of the craziest movies can still have verisimilitude while some of the most grounded movies lose it. If Kevin Feige has been a master of anything, it has been toting and pushing that line so well to the point where he is suddenly able to move it. Then with every subsequent movie he makes, he is able to work with that new line.

 

[BryceC]

Suicide Squad tanked, mostly due to Delta.

It did fine. But while Delta probably hurt it the same day HBO max release probably did just as much.

 

[Aclone]

I’m probably in the minority here but I thought it was ok. I love Gunns stuff but I felt this lacked the charm of his other movies. It leaned more Slither than Guardians which is fine for the most part. I can’t say I wasn’t entertained, it’s large and vivid. I just wasnt wowed where I immediately want to watch it again. I dunno, maybe it’s one of those that’ll grow on me over time.

Agree.

I saw Black Widow Wednesday, and loved it. If anything, I thought the action actually detracted from the plot a bit—it was just a wee bit overdone in places.

But Suicide Squad? Well, I enjoyed it—but if I consider Guardians to be the standard of a good Gunn movie, it fell a ways short. It had it’s moments, but not the same magic.

I also think that the gore didn’t help. Not because of the goreyness (is that a word?), but because it just wasn’t realistic to me. I kept thinking things like, “But a body wouldn’t split in half that way”, “That’s not supposed to be gooey”, or, “He shouldn’t still be screaming”.

Maybe that’s just me.

 

[AirWalke]

Finished it, still not quite sure what to think of it. I probably will not end up watching it again... like others said, the gore was just off the charts. At some point it stops becoming shocking or funny and you become a little desensitized by the end of it. I think James Gunn was given a blank check on this one creatively and didn't have anyone in place to tell him reel it back or tell him "no". It's like the pitch meeting was "Guardians of the Galaxy plus Deadpool minus fourth-wall breaking".

The characters were otherwise great, everyone was given their due, but I felt like Bloodsport's arc felt a little incomplete. Would have liked more there.

I feel like there's a great movie lurking in there somewhere, but it got pretty tiresome by the end.

 

[SouthJerseyCy]

I've come to the conclusion, there's just no accounting for my taste. I didn't hate the first Suicide Squad like everyone else did. The biggest complaint I heard was lack of character development, and is certainly true, but if you just 'go with it', it's kind of a fun campy movie.

This one has all of the same problems with character development and is even more campy. I felt like I was stuck inside a 1960's Batman TV episode with a whole lotta gore added in. I guess you can get away with the lack of character development when you kill off 3/4 of the characters you introduce simply for shock value.

To be fair, I watched it at home on a Friday afternoon while I was sick. I'll give it another shot when I'm in a better mindset.

 

[3GenClone]

I really enjoyed The Suicide Squad - it actually reminded me a lot of Gunn's first movie as director: Slither. For those of you that thought the gore was over the top go watch (or rewatch) Slither and understand that's been Gunn's comfort zone for 15+ years. I had a lot of fun watching this movie - it's right up there with Shazam for being one of the more enjoyable DC films.

I think David Dastmalchian (Polka Dot Man) and Daniela Melchior (Ratcatcher 2) were the most enjoyable characters of the film. I thought Melchior has the makings to be a Bond-girl in a future 007 movie.

I'm really surprised with Jon Cena willing to put his brand behind a character like Peacemaker, but he really did a good job as well. I feel like his HBO Max series must have been part of the deal when he accepted the role so they can explore/develop that character further.

I think you could tell that there was a lot of fun had on set. The actors all seem comfortable and really gave great performances. I think Gunn worked some things out of his system and I'm excited to see what he brings with him to GotG 3. I'm also hoping that Gunn can return to the DC universe, maybe with a different property (Booster Gold, please!)

 

[Frak]

I thought this one was just ok. I actually really liked the original. I don’t see why everyone hated it. Compared to this new one, it was way more believable. And it made you more invested in the outcomes. Does not help that Starro is a horrible villain…a giant starfish walking around made this seem like a power ranger movie.

 

[Clark]

I’m probably in the minority here but I thought it was ok. I love Gunns stuff but I felt this lacked the charm of his other movies. It leaned more Slither than Guardians which is fine for the most part. I can’t say I wasn’t entertained, it’s large and vivid. I just wasnt wowed where I immediately want to watch it again. I dunno, maybe it’s one of those that’ll grow on me over time.

Yeah, I was underwhelmed. Definitely a one time only movie for me.

This may be blasphemous considering the director but I think I preferred the first suicide squad.

 

[Triggermv]

It did fine. But while Delta probably hurt it the same day HBO max release probably did just as much.

I agree that those were two of the biggest factors, but I think there are further issues at play with this movie as well:

-R-rated automatically eliminates a certain portion of the audience, especially one that is a fairly hard R
-To the unknowlegable, this is a sequel to an original with very mixed and falling sentiments
-To the knowledgeable and unknowlegable, what is this movie? A sequel? A reboot? A soft reboot? Something else?
- I consider the title of The Suicide Squad vs Suicide Squad for the original was a major fail and only confuses the the audience as to what this movie is further
- I don't know that anybody even knows yet what the new normal is for theater going now that COVID only accelerated people's reliance on streaming, but I seriously doubt it will probably ever reach the heights it did prior. That doesn't mean theaters will die or all movies will now fail, but I think success will heavily lean only towards certain types of movies and the legs of box office numbers past the opening weekend will only continue to fall.

 

[bos]

Felt like a sequel to me although I’m not sure that’s how they see it. What’s with the dong in the movie? Could have done without that.

 

[Triggermv]

It did fine. But while Delta probably hurt it the same day HBO max release probably did just as much.

Also with the same-day release on HBO Max for The Suicide Squad, it's hard to even fully compare it to a film like Black Widow's same day release on Disney+ because while somewhat similar, there are also a big key difference. The Suicide Squad was zero extra cost with an HBO Max subscription, whereas Black Widow was the Disney Premiere Access, which costs a whopping $29.99 more on top of your Disney+ subscription to see it. That is a big difference.

 

[Triggermv]

I will say I am a bit surprised by the number of ok to negative reactions on the movie so far on here, especially when compared to the very high both audience and critics Rotten Tomato score. I guess I thought it would be a bit more positive, but maybe I'm wrong. That isn't to knock anyone's sentiments in the slightest, but definately interesting to take in and digest. Clearly Gunn went all-out to the extreme with this one, which likely in itself was enough to turn off a certain segment of the audience, and that seems to be a bit of what I'm gathering so far in here.

 

[bos]

I’ve learned to to not read into Rotten Tomatoes too much.

 

[BryceC]

Also with the same-day release on HBO Max for The Suicide Squad, it's hard to even fully compare it to a film like Black Widow's same day release on Disney+ because while somewhat similar, there are also a big key difference. The Suicide Squad was zero extra cost with an HBO Max subscription, whereas Black Widow was the Disney Premiere Access, which costs a whopping $29.99 more on top of your Disney+ subscription to see it. That is a big difference.

For sure, that's what I mean. I mean you still have to pay for Black Widow. If you (or someone you know) has HBO Max, you just turn it on.

I almost watched it at a friend's house last weekend and to be honest I have almost zero interest in seeing this movie, but he has HBO Max so I was like whatever.

Also now that I know how gory this is, there is a 0% chance I watch it because I basically don't find that interesting at all, and I usually watch these movies with my kids.

I’ve learned to to not read into Rotten Tomatoes too much.

Utterly meaningless to me to be honest. Don't know what the rating is and don't care.

 

[bos]

I will say I am a bit surprised by the number of ok to negative reactions on the movie so far on here, especially when compared to the very high both audience and critics Rotten Tomato score. I guess I thought it would be a bit more positive, but maybe I'm wrong. That isn't to knock anyone's sentiments in the slightest, but definately interesting to take in and digest. Clearly Gunn went all-out to the extreme with this one, which likely in itself was enough to turn off a certain segment of the audience, and that seems to be a bit of what I'm gathering so far in here.

gore didn’t bother me too much, just get the movie lacked a bit of coherence and charm. The over the top gore really wasn’t necessary, but it isn’t what turned me off of the movie.

 

[HFCS]

It did fine. But while Delta probably hurt it the same day HBO max release probably did just as much.

giving it an identical name to a movie most people didn't like from five years ago didn't help either.

I kept waiting for the real name to be announced...nope, just "the".

SpaceJam would have been fine being called spacejam because it's something beloved from 30 years ago...but they still gave it a subtitle.

 

[3GenClone]

For sure, that's what I mean. I mean you still have to pay for Black Widow. If you (or someone you know) has HBO Max, you just turn it on.

Just a PSA regarding HBO Max: there are 2 levels/tiers of HBO Max subscriptions. The higher-tier (currently $14.99mo) grants access to same as theater releases and those are only for a limited time window (31 days). For example, Space Jam will be pulled from HBO Max on August 16. This tier was the only option when HBO Max launched. It is also Ad-free, supports 4K streaming and allows users to download movies for offline viewing.

The lower-tier of HBO Max (currently $9.99 mo) allows access to the HBO library, but does not grant access to the same-day theater releases. It also has ads and only supports HD-quality.

 

[HFCS]

For sure, that's what I mean. I mean you still have to pay for Black Widow. If you (or someone you know) has HBO Max, you just turn it on.

I almost watched it at a friend's house last weekend and to be honest I have almost zero interest in seeing this movie, but he has HBO Max so I was like whatever.

Also now that I know how gory this is, there is a 0% chance I watch it because I basically don't find that interesting at all, and I usually watch these movies with my kids.



Utterly meaningless to me to be honest. Don't know what the rating is and don't care.

Yeah I don't get why people compare Mulan and Black Widow to what HBO Max is doing.

Effectively a $42 movie including a month of streaming vs a $15 movie including a month of streaming.

At $42 I don't think streaming is really hurting Black Widow the way for $15 you could get SpaceJam and Suicide Squad on almost the same week.

I'm going to see Dune in the best movie theater in the country (as long as it's open) and they could probably charge double what they charge, but for the rest of the WB slate I'm HBO Max streaming at home. I've been pretty blown away by HBO Max. I've always loved HBO and I always got the old streaming version for 2-3 months a year, but the extra boost of "Max" content for others in my family and a few surprises for me has made it my #1 streaming service. This is the first time I've subscribed since the max overhaul. I thought it'd be the usual one month and done for a while but I think I'm going to keep it for a few months. If Dune is as good as I think it will be I'll get to watch it again for "free".

Guilty pleasure (and teenage crush) Lois & Clark has been a fun distraction in the background while I do stuff around the house.

You can see how their strategy might pay off. I really thought I was just going to stream for $15/one month. Likely it'll be 45 or 60 bucks they get out of me before I feel I've seen enough of them and want to check out D+ or Netflix for something instead.

 

[BryceC]

Yeah I don't get why people compare Mulan and Black Widow to what HBO Max is doing.

Effectively a $42 movie including a month of streaming vs a $15 movie including a month of streaming.

At $42 I don't think streaming is really hurting Black Widow the way for $15 you could get SpaceJam and Suicide Squad on almost the same week.

I'm going to see Dune in the best movie theater in the country (as long as it's open) and they could probably charge double what they charge, but for the rest of the WB slate I'm HBO Max streaming at home. I've been pretty blown away by HBO Max. I've always loved HBO and I always got the old streaming version for 2-3 months a year, but the extra boost of "Max" content for others in my family and a few surprises for me has made it my #1 streaming service. This is the first time I've subscribed since the max overhaul. I thought it'd be the usual one month and done for a while but I think I'm going to keep it for a few months. If Dune is as good as I think it will be I'll get to watch it again for "free".

Guilty pleasure (and teenage crush) Lois & Clark has been a fun distraction in the background while I do stuff around the house.

You can see how their strategy might pay off. I really thought I was just going to stream for $15/one month. Likely it'll be 45 or 60 bucks they get out of me before I feel I've seen enough of them and want to check out D+ or Netflix for something instead.

My problem with HBO Max is the interface kind of sucks. It's kind of like Netflix, there is so much stuff there that I don't even really know what I want to see and I end up not watching anything. I had it for a month because my son had a birthday sleepover and they wanted to watch Godzilla Vs. Kong right when it came out. I literally watched it and nothing else and cancelled it a few days later.

 

[HFCS]

My problem with HBO Max is the interface kind of sucks. It's kind of like Netflix, there is so much stuff there that I don't even really know what I want to see and I end up not watching anything. I had it for a month because my son had a birthday sleepover and they wanted to watch Godzilla Vs. Kong right when it came out. I literally watched it and nothing else and cancelled it a few days later.

This is a problem with prime too.

For people who only watch popular new releases all they need is a simple algorithm.

I need to spend an hour or two searching any of these to find all the content I'd want to watch when I'm interested in classic films and documentaries.