Suicide Squad Extended Cut released this week adding an extra 11 minutes to the theatrical cut. Unlike the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Extended Cut which filled many confusing plot holes and fixed pacing issues, Suicide Squad didn’t get the same treatment.
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The added scenes did add depth of character and more interactions between the Squad, but they still didn’t answer the big question as to why Amanda Waller had the ancient, evil brother statue of Enchantress just sitting unprotected in her bedroom closet.
However, the extended cut told a more comic book accurate love story between the Joker and Harley Quinn, instead of romanticizing their abusive relationship like the theatrical version did.
After Suicide Squad hit theaters, most criticized Jared Leto’s underused version of the Joker, especially considering he was only portrayed as a love-sick puppy dog desperately trying to get his girlfriend back whom he loved so very much.
Director David Ayer’s interpretation of their tumultuous relationship was far from their comic book roots. Harley was painted as a weak and vulnerable woman who was happy to be under the thumb of the Joker.
We all know that their relationship is one of the most volatile and rather disgusting in comic book history and this on-screen adaptation didn’t seem quite right. In the comics Harley eventually left the Joker after years of being beaten, pulled together the pieces of her life, and showed everyone just how strong she is.
The theatrical cut severely downplayed the abusive aspect of their love story and turned Joker into a man capable of real love while making Harley a mindless puppet – instead of the headstrong badass that she truly is.
Suicide Squad Extended Cut added two very important scenes that completely changed the dynamic of their relationship compared to the theatrical version. Although the Joker still acts as a love sick puppy dog, he is also shown abusing Harley – and Harley is shown standing up to him by pointing a gun to his head.
The first added scene actually shows Harley struggling to get free before the Joker electrocutes her brain instead of just lying there taking it like a champ. This showed that Joker used her to help him escape and she was just another one of his play things.
In the second added scene, a flashback shows Harley riding on a motorcycle and chasing after the Joker, who is desperately trying to ignore her. She spins out and stands directly in front of his car, angry and screaming.
“You’re not leaving me, you’re not leaving me! I have done everything you’ve said, every test, every trial, every initiation, I have proved I love you just accept it!”
“What a little pain in the ass! I am not someone who is loved. I executed my will according to plan and you are no longer part of that plan.”
In that moment Harley kills an innocent bystander in cold blood and turns her gun directly at the Joker’s head with a look of conviction we haven’t seen before. She stood up for herself and showed him and the audience that she isn’t just an injured little bird.
Joker dares her to DO IT until takes the gun away from her and tells her to go away, proving he was never into her in the first place.
This scene also clarifies that Joker is abusive and downright mean to Harley, which is far from the love-sick, overly desperate boyfriend we first met in the theatrical cut.
Moments are having the flashback, Harley is back on the street with the rest of the squad and angrily takes out her hurt feelings on Killer Croc by being a big bully.
They still left out the deleted scene where he slapped her around, and the push into the vat of chemicals is still portrayed as being Harley’s choice, when in the comics he pushed her right in without question.
At least Suicide Squad Extended Cut clarifies their real dynamic a bit more by using added scenes to portray their toxic love story, instead of pretending these two crazy clowns have this desirable, loving relationship.
However, we still don’t know why Amanda Waller had the super dangerous ancient brother of Enchantress casually hanging out in her bedroom closet.
If she had just had that little statue on lockdown somewhere, none of this would have ever happened!
It feels good to be bad…Assemble a team of the world’s most dangerous, incarcerated Super Villains, provide them with the most powerful arsenal at the government’s disposal, and send them off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic, insuperable entity. U.S. intelligence officer Amanda Waller has determined only a secretly convened group of disparate, despicable individuals with next to nothing to lose will do. However, once they realize they weren’t picked to succeed but chosen for their patent culpability when they inevitably fail, will the Suicide Squad resolve to die trying, or decide it’s every man for himself?
Suicide Squad is direct by David Ayer and stars Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood and Cara Delevingne.
Suicide Squad hits Digital HD today and will land on Blu-ray December 13.
