DCEU Film & Culture Analysis - Part 3 (of 4) | Renegade Cut

if you've never seen Suicide Squad let's get the synopsis out of the way Amanda Waller a higher-up government agent sets up Task Force X a group of criminals assembled to fight metahumans one member of Task Force X enchantress goes rogue and joins her villainous brother and the rest of the task force must stop them suicide squads development is a far more fascinating and engaging story than Suicide Squad itself though one day I hope there's a heart of darkness style documentary with the actual cast and crew that recounts how everything went wrong from their own perspectives presently such a project is not forthcoming because people who work on doomed productions generally need to preserve their jobs in Hollywood going forward I'll get into this more later in the video but the cast when doing press junkets is almost certainly either instructed what they can and cannot say or at least have the common sense to get a general idea about what they can and cannot say David Ayer the writer and director of the film who famously had the edit snatched away from him told the press that the finished theatrical version really is his cut even though we all know that not to be true even the home video version with a few added scenes is apparently not what he envisioned as the editing duties for Suicide Squad were taken over by another company at the 11th hour but I'm getting ahead of myself David Ayer wrote the screenplay to Suicide Squad in about six weeks in approximately the time it takes for your eggs to go bad air pumped out Suicide Squad now a long scripting and rewriting process does not always create a good story see the book of Henry which went through multiple drafts over the course of nearly 20 years and it's god-awful and not because the director botched the screenwriters vision or something there is a lot of blame to go around but the story is not salvageable not even in the hands of a more emotionally aware director but six weeks to create a story involving a multitude of established DC Comics characters some more famous than others and pushed out the door into production is a dangerously short amount of time it's a challenge and maybe David Ayer considered the challenge part of the thrill at all but that doesn't change the fact that this needed rewrites and the notes taking process from producers and script doctors accomplished writers themselves openly mock this process if you've ever seen that episode of The Simpsons about producers giving the writers notes about Poochie the dog that's their dig at this Patton Oswalt does a whole routine about how maddening he finds the producer notetaking malarkey but the truth is that it's probably for the best in some cases especially with so much on the line a movie is not the handiwork of one person it's a massive undertaking with hundreds of moving parts and a ridiculous amount of money involved and David Ayer should not have been trusted to have this screenplay ready to go in a month and a half this lack of planning shows up again and again in the production of DC EU movies and one would think by the third one Suicide Squad they would know not to rush into things and take their time and make it polished as possible before day one of shooting it's not David Ayers fault that this was all rushed though according to The Hollywood Reporter one source involved in the film said that once the studio dated the movie pushing back the release was just not an option it's not just that you've been told the public the movie is coming you've made huge deals around the world with huge branding partners with merchandise partners it's a really big deal to move a tentpole date it's not that aired double-dog dared himself to write a movie in six weeks it's that the timetable was mandated by those with more power than himself air was said to have shot over 200 hours worth of footage on the set and hoped to find the movie in editing again air isn't talking he needs to protect his career to make bright - but many have speculated that the frenetic pace is more an issue of editing there is probably a lot more shot in the prison for example that tells us about the characters and possibly would have allowed us to empathize with them more but what we got instead was a series of brief music videos of course if we spent even more time in the prison that would increase the runtime and drag the film and we already spend nearly half of the movie there before the action begins so it's not just the editing because air vision on the page would not work well either but maybe some speculate it would have at least worked better than what we got in the theaters and how did we get that theatrical cut well the first trailer for Suicide Squad was made by trailer park a production house that does exactly what the name implies later a different trailer made by a company named aspect debuted to rave reviews yes reviews of a trailer this is the famous Bohemian Rhapsody trailer that got everyone's hopes up about this movie it's hard not to be enthusiastic about a movie set to queen trailer park the company that did the earlier trailer was contacted by Warner Brothers and tasked with creating a cut of the film that resembled the trailer made by aspect I hope that answers some questions but it also raises some more why wasn't aspect hired to do an aspect style movie also why was a chair company hired to cut the film in the first place and finally why was Warner Brothers insistent that the film needed to be fixed anyway what was so wrong about the cut that we have never actually seen often is the case that efforts to fix movies ratchets up costs and that drives up expectations at the box office it's possible that trailer park was hired because they are a trailer house and might have been willing to save the movie for a lower price than someone else or even another trailer house like aspect that's speculation though we simply do not know when it comes to saving the movie in some cases such as Fantastic Four this swooping in at the last minute clouds what the public knows about the directors involvement Studios are careful to claim that the credited director is on the scene and totally in charge but this is lip-service to avoid Directors Guild of America issues directors are usually smart enough to play along with this charade else they cause career problems for themselves again like in the case with fantastic four josh trank did not play along to the studio's satisfaction to say the least he went public about his feelings that had messed up his career for years David Ayer did what he was told this director who had never before created a special effects heavy big-budget blockbuster juggernaut this was hired out of necessity a lot of directors will not make deals with studios to create movies like this due to the stifling oversight and incredible pressure another thing out of airs hands was the reaction to Batman V Superman the film was lambasted by critics and Warner Brothers got nervous possibly deciding that Suicide Squad needed to be more fun to escape the shadow of the dour Zack Snyder vision of the DC EU Batman V Superman though initially successful was seen as damaging to the brand people will only go to bad DC EU movies so many times before deciding to stay home which is what they did for Justice League but we will get into that later water brothers wanted to rebrand at the DCE you as more lighthearted which explains the shoehorned comedy bits and kinetic pacing of Suicide Squad by the time Suicide Squad was ready to premiere multiple editors had been brought in to salvage it in the eyes of Warner Brothers although John Gilroy is the only one who is credited I want to be clear about something what David Ayer wrote and shot all on his own was not good Suicide Squad is not the victim of a brilliant film lost in post-production we've seen a lot of what air did on the screen all on his own and it's still not the best but at least it would have been more cohesive well probably we'll never know for sure it also probably would have been bad in a different way slower less exciting but still ugly and full of bad decisions it might have even been better but it probably would not have been a stellar film based on what we all know about David Ayer if you look at his filmography it's mostly men Warner Brothers was put in a situation in which the film Ayer wanted was too grim and unpleasant to be the blockbuster they needed based on some leaked information Ayres cut may have been around three hours long which is unacceptable due to the casual film goers attention span but also due to multiplex marketing Studios want their films to be of a certain length so that theaters can cram in as many showings as possible a very long movie equals fewer show times and this is a superhero blockbuster not Ben Hur the studio's decision was to create a version that was so unfocused and frenetic that it would have been laughable had it not been so headache-inducing damned if you do damned if you don't but when money is on the line the studio will take the reins so to recap the order of events the studio announces Suicide Squad the studio hires David Ayer he writes the film in six weeks it goes into production the studio is unhappy for various reasons there are re-edits two weeks before two versions were tested airs next project bright is turned down by Warner Brothers it's eventually bought by Netflix one version of Suicide Squad was only mildly well received by test audiences due to this there were reshoots to create a lighter tone a Frankenstein monster of the trailer park cut the studio mandated reshoots and air trying to have his way with his own ideas was tested for audiences and something similar but probably still a bit different from what the test audiences saw is what we got in the theaters and what we got was a mess [Music] in the beginning of the film Amanda Waller convinces top officials of the United States government to form Task Force X our titular Suicide Squad a group of criminals who can be sent into the field to deal with a Superman level threat see by this point in the DC EU Superman is currently dead and without Superman the world is in danger also Waller says if the next Superman level being shows up on earth and he's a super villain the world is toast and that makes sense right they just witnessed doomsday and without Superman maybe the world wouldn't have been able to stop him so what are you gonna do Amanda Waller contact Batman Aquaman Wonder Woman and the flash the most powerful superheroes on earth to form the Justice League I mean we know that you know who they are and how to find them because you have the files on them that you gave to Batman at the end of the film nope not at all the premise of the film is that in the face of a global threat that could endanger the entire world she enlists Captain Boomerang remember Superman level threat the premise of this movie is built on the shakiest of ground a foundation that cannot stand almost nobody Waller enlists for her Suicide Squad is up to the task of facing someone even remotely like Superman Deadshot can shoot real good so can a thousand trained snipers that are already in your employ via the United States military Deadshot is not a supernaturally good shot or has a superpower that makes it impossible for him to make mistakes in the field now now he's just a really good sniper his inclusion in the face of better alternatives is both una' seneschal and dangerous to the mission due to his demeanor Harley Quinn she has a baseball bat that's it Killer Croc has regressive atavism not powers he's strong but not super strong Slipknot is the man who can climb anything okay so he has a grappling hook that anyone in the army could be trained to use alright Amanda Waller tries to convince the officials but really the audience that these people are essential she remarks that Captain Boomerang fought a metahuman the flash and lived to tell about it no that is not what happened the flash pushed him over and does not kill the only people Waller enlists for Task Force X who are worth a good goddamn are enchantress and El Diablo the former is a monster who she cannot control and the latter has fire powers that he doesn't want to use flag a soldier working for Waller tells her that this recruitment makes no sense and Waller says he's on a need-to-know basis okay so maybe Waller is foreshadowing the real reason her plan makes no sense superficially but there is some secret that strengthens the premise nope she has no secret plan that does any of this it's a hand wave maybe it was err himself or someone else got involved in the script but someone realized that this movie is built on a faulty premise and added this line to tell the audience not to worry about it because it's all part of a greater scheme one that is not addressed later in the film there is no twist that subverts the audience's expectations and delivers a big reveal as to why Captain Boomerang was absolutely necessary for this team it's a garbage line most nitpicks about films aren't particularly interesting to me because so long as it doesn't ruin the movie or make the events of the film impossible who cares but suicide squads very premise is faulty see if something doesn't make a whole lot of sense somewhere in the middle of the film like an uncharacteristic action taken in service to furthering the plot but making the character look a little stupid then okay that's a shame that happened but it's forgivable sometimes a writer is backed into a corner and instead of rearranging and rewriting the entire screenplay something's just got to give any contrivance happens it's awkward but only for a second it does not excuse it but it does explain it however the creation of Task Force X and why it must exist is the premise of the entire movie and if the premise has no structural foundation then everything that happens in every scene every line doesn't make sense generally speaking audiences are intelligent enough to know something is up and it affects their engagement with the narrative again the movie goes out of its way to let you know Waller knows everything about the team that will eventually become the Justice League a group of people who could face a Superman level threat and literally do in Justice League she ups not to because she thinks I guess that she could control Task Force X better but they are crazy and dangerous and she absolutely cannot control them especially the most powerful one everyone on this team is a liability to the goal they are meant to achieve this is where we come in to the problem of things happening in such a way that it takes us out of the film Amanda Waller doesn't form Task Force X because she thinks it will save the world she does it because Warner Brothers wanted a Suicide Squad movie there is no immune of Earth explanation it makes us think of the decisions by the studio not the narrative it takes us out of the movie Amanda Waller doesn't pass informing the Justice League because she thinks Task Force X has more her style she does it because Warner Brothers wanted their own Justice League movie if the only explanation for something happening within the narrative is an answer that exists well outside the narrative and in the real world you're doing it wrong now I'm always hesitant to say well here's what I would do instead because it's generally better to dissect the problems of film has with what is on screen rather than create scenarios surrounding what could have been on screen instead you critique the movie you got but in this case with the premise itself in tatters and with the DCE you tribalists undoubtedly thinking that we needed a Suicide Squad movie and a Justice League movie so they had to do that I feel like getting into some possible alternatives that could have maintained these films but had them make more sense first skip the Waller and Batman meeting make it seem like Waller does not have intelligence on the Justice League only Batman does or maybe make it clear that Waller has heard of them but has no idea how to reach out to them because unlike Task Force X they're not in prison cells don't reveal that she knows Bruce Wayne is Batman V sin Aereo's solved the question of why she doesn't actually form a group of genuinely incredible beings by removing the question altogether she doesn't know Aquaman from a ham sandwich and that's that or maybe just include a line that says Waller reached out to Aquaman and the rest but they all said no next make Task Force X less about stopping the next Superman and more about running black ops in public if the government is caught doing something unseemly they have the public to answer to if Task Force X does it the government can just disavow that is more or less the premise of the comic books the premise was right there either write a movie in which nearly all the group is made up of super-powered beings or keep the characters intact and make the movie about stopping a threat that even Captain Boomerang can handle the Joker in an interview David Ayer has admitted that he should have made the Joker the central antagonist and not the extended cameo that we got the Joker being the antagonist would make for a more compelling story for one thing and for another it explains why Amanda Waller would risk Harley Quinn who is psychotic being part of the team she knows the Joker she can get close to him that lets us have Harley who the studio clearly wanted to be the standout character based on the fact that she's getting her own spin-off movie and it lets Suicide Squad and Justice League happened with no gaping plot holes or contrivances and related to the very premise of the story sure there are a lot of other things in the movie that don't make a lick of sense like when Griggs gives Harley Quinn the phone to contact the Joker he does it in plain view of everyone including the soldiers who are tasked with making sure things like this don't happen on the mission it's right there he does it in front of everyone when the Joker shows up to rescue Harley Waller enlists Deadshot to kill her because the explosion app is on the fritz but if they're safe right now why doesn't everyone in Task Force X take that opportunity to kill Flagg and Waller and destroy the phone they're free only moments ago they tried to escape but Waller showed them the phone thing and that was the only reason they backed off with the threat no longer there why are they still cooperating I'm certain that upon hearing this the film's tribalists and just those who love playing devil's advocate will come up with some reason for these things to have happened the way they did maybe all the soldiers are on Joker's payroll too maybe all the soldiers are distracted by a pigeon at that exact moment maybe the reason Waller made the Suicide Squad will be revealed and Suicide Squad - maybe Waller asked Aquaman but he turned her down look if the film doesn't address why these things happened any explanation of how the soldiers didn't to see Griggs working with Harley and all the other odd points in the plot sound like fan fiction rather than engaging with the text of the film the movie is the movie it is the text an explanation that exists far outside the realm of the text is more headcanon than it is legitimate and about the whole just wait until Suicide Squad - argument Phunk yes a cinematic universe sometimes leave some unanswered questions because that is the nature of the beast I know Batman V Superman did not explain with the flash meant during the dream sequence it also did not give us many details about who Aquaman is but these are teasers for upcoming films not the premise for this film this film all on its own needed to fit together and it just doesn't i do not fit the traditional definition of a film critic generally speaking a film critic is someone who reviews recent releases whereas i am a video essayist who does something completely different if you have never watched my show I mostly discuss films as they relate to philosophy and politics or philosophy and politics as they relate to film so I do film criticism from time to time but I am NOT a film critic confusing yes true probably yet I am still witness to a lot of these arguments film criticism has existed since early on in the medium of film as an extension of art criticism a film critic has two major functions the first is obvious to guide potential theatre goers about whether or not to spend their time and money on a movie this weekend nobody should have to see collateral beauty without a warning but that is more like the immediate effect of film criticism really a film critic guides readers not about what to see but about how to interpret what they are seeing traditional critics generally have a deep knowledge of cinema and its history a prerequisite to doing that second form of criticism briefly explaining whether something is good or bad is simple enough but educating readers about why it's good or bad creates a deeper understanding of the media there is this mistaken belief that critics and movie fans are at odds with one another which is actually a misunderstanding of film criticism as a profession film critics think about your point of view as an audience when a film critic trashes a movie you love it's not because the critic wanted it to be terrible or wanted you to feel terrible about liking it it's because the film critic is professor generally obligated to consider aspects that you have dismissed or never considered in the first place dismissing a film critics opinion usually expert opinion based purely on the basis because it does not coincide with your own does both film criticism and yourself a to service those who dismiss popular consensus among film critics usually have a few tactics film critics don't really know movies the first is some variant on attacking the critics themselves rather than examining what they said in any detail it's an ad hominem argument or logical fallacy which is itself disqualifying from reasonable arguments but let's go over it anyway film critics generally have either a degree in film a degree in something related to writing or literature or at the very least if they are well-known enough for you to be reading their reviews they probably have the experience of doing this a long time they do in fact know what they are talking about that's not to say that we must always agree with the film critics in fact because film critics are individuals and not a Borg hive mind one film critic can adamantly disagree with another but dismissing film criticism in general comes from a place of not understanding that academic film studies and subsequent film criticism comes from the groundwork of university education what makes a good film critic well that's debatable of course but I would say the best film critics have little interest in writing plot synopses and instead dissecting the movies cultural relevance as much as its structural framework film critics are all failed filmmakers it's reminiscent of the old and demonstrably false adage about teachers those who can't do teach defensive fans who wish to dismiss legitimate criticism of something they like use a similar adage for film critics suggesting they all wanted to be directors but somehow washed out of Hollywood while there might be a handful who wanted to break into Hollywood but settled for something else film critics usually give their jobs through educating themselves in the subject getting a degree or a low-level experience and then applying for a major position it's like any other job really there's this kind of mistaken perception about critics that they must be bitter old fogies which oddly enough has been propagated through film itself filmmakers have a love/hate relationship with film critics and because of this they are often portrayed badly or even satirically in popular media this media mistakenly informs people of what film critics are and what they are like in real life it's nonsense the old those who can't do line doesn't even remotely work here a lot of filmmakers would have made terrible critics because a lot of filmmakers are also not good writers about the love part of that love-hate relationship director Francis Ford Coppola gets it once sang for me the role of the critic is to teach me how I can make the next one better another argument is film critics just try to look smart I get this one from time to time even though I'm not really a film critic basically this is the idea that if you read a review of a movie you liked and the critic told you something about it you didn't notice or had not even considered then they must have over analysed the movie there are a lot of movie fans out there for whom it's just a movie is their foundational argument rather than confront the possibility that media informs culture and that itself is informed by culture some fans prefer to think of a movie existing purely in a vacuum and having no ability to touch anything else in society that way they will not have to be critical of the media they love or consider anything significant or challenging another argument is film critics just love to hate movies film critics are generally film lovers partly due to their film school education or if they did not attend film school the evidence that they are film lovers is that they have chosen a job in which they watch movies all the time it's so obvious that film critics love films they are largely passionate about the medium its structure its mechanics and its history they want every film they see to be good as much as you do they don't go into a theater hoping to not have a good time especially when their job entails watching so many movies nobody walks into their job hoping to have a bad day film critics due to the nature of their job need to have certain standards and because the average film goer might not have those standards there is a habit of misunderstanding standards as being overly critical if how you gauge a film's worth is different that's fine but bear in mind that a film critic by the necessity of the job can't just write well that wasn't too bad and call it a day for some fans a movie need only be as entertaining or as emotionally resonant as one requires to distract oneself for 90 minutes on a Saturday it doesn't have to be good might be the worst critical argument ever would you say that about anything else a car doesn't need to function well food doesn't need to taste good or be healthy now how do these myths about film critics help create a defensive atmosphere among the DCE you tribalist well these myths and bad arguments are trotted out whenever someone wants to dismiss the popular critical consensus that DCE you movies are really really bad you can insert any of these broad arguments into the specific fandom remember the one about film critics not really knowing movies well the tribalists point to the noticeable difference between the critic score and audience score on Rotten Tomatoes of some DC EU films although keep in mind that while the actual film critics who are part of the algorithm are known the audience score comes from what in statistics is called an unscientific sample we don't know who upvoted suicide squad to a comparatively healthy 60 percent but it's probably the people who love suicide squad and not a generous broad sample of movie fans it's become a popular mantra among Hollywood directors and producers to say that a bad movie was never meant to succeed with film critics from their perspective it makes sense to say this in interviews I mean a big-budget studio film can cost upward of two hundred million dollars and that's not even counting the marketing budget getting ahead of the narrative is probably just good public relations it's bogus nonsense sure but it's also good business actors get in on this - Dwayne Johnson said of the critically panned Baywatch oh boy critics had their venom and knives ready fans loved the movie huge positive scores big disconnect with critics and people first of all critics aren't people that is a lot to unpack but second general audiences did not embrace Baywatch either it flopped when director Alex Kurtzman defended the mummy by saying that critics didn't understand it but the fans loved it not only was it disingenuous but the monster belief Falls because it also bombed at the box office and those who saw it thought it was garbage but this is about DC EU so I'll leave the failed dark universe alone r.i.p amy adams the actress who plays Lois Lane in the DC EU movies embraced the for the fans narrative as well I know that Zack doesn't make the movies and none of us are making the movies for the critics so to speak so you can't go into it from that perspective so I know we really hope the fans like it and so far the reaction has been really positive on that front by claiming that superhero movies do not have to be embraced by professionals who can tell the difference between bad and good she comes close to suggesting that these movies and quality movies are opposites this does a disservice to actual good superhero movies and limits the sub-genre as something that need never bother escaping its alleged low art designation I'm not upset with Adams for saying this though for reasons I'll get into shortly the we did it for the fans narrative is a massive I role the narrative of giving the fans what they want is not respect for the fans its flattery real storytellers don't go of their way to give the audience exactly what they expected real storytellers give people what they never knew they needed until they had it give the fans what they want is not a creative strategy it's a marketing strategy and we all need to learn the difference but more important than that it's a lie when a studio executive lies it's like when a politician lies we know they're full of it but we understand they are only trying to protect their job or their investment if it ended there it would barely register but this narrative has begun to infect movie fans and therefore the discourse around movies and movie criticism the hope is that fans will parrot this phrase amongst themselves broadcasted on social media and have it become their mantra that way they can feel good about the movie they liked continue to see further sequels and feel as if they are rebels against the elitist powerhouse of the critics and you know what a lot of fans fell for it this has been the rallying cry of studios for a while but it really came to a head with Suicide Squad when the director and the cast all in lockstep with one another said the same thing in interviews David Ayer said of the backlash I made the movie for real people who live in the real world I made the movie for people who actually love movies and go and see movies the movies a lot of fun and the fans are really going to enjoy it the implication here is that critics who have devoted their lives to movies don't love movies this is an actual talking point in the discourse and for reasons previously indicated it's hogwash in this case it's also a smokescreen to hide a flawed movie from criticism now when Studios retroactively lease say that they made the movie for the fans they're not referring to their intention to make the film as generic and broad as possible to appeal to the masses that would be an admission of guilt that they would not make in public especially as a defense of their bad movie or as a means of placating their audience more on this later know when Studios say that they made the movie for the fans they are referring to the diehards who bought tickets weeks in advance the tribalists their unshakable audience that will always show up to the theater every who buys the t-shirts the action figures the merch the hyper consumers when Suicide Squad was absolutely savaged by critics the cast and crew knew what they had to say Jay Hernandez the actor who played el Diablo said obviously we worked hard and tried to give the fans what they wanted Joel Kinnaman the actor who played rick flagg said what matters is what the fans think cara delevingne the actress who played in chantry's set of critics you know I just don't think they like superhero movies okay that is provably false even a cursory glance at the Rotten Tomatoes scores of most MCU movies most x-men movies DC's The Dark Knight trilogy and Wonder Woman and so many more disprove that outright it's not the critics fault that your movie is bad Margot Robbie the actress who played Harley Quinn said critical acclaim is really nice but we made it for the fans if the fans liked it then we did our job now this might be genuinely what the actors think but in all likelihood based on how coached press appearances are and how uniformed everyone was in their reference to the fans this is almost certainly what they were told to say so let's be clear Studios directors and actors on a critically panned film claiming that this movie is for the fans is what in politics or public relations they would call spin it's a form of mild propaganda achieved through offering a biased and often false interpretation of an event or reaction to something in this case critical reaction to a film it relies on altering the presentation of the facts when Studios respond to a negative reaction to their movie they spin this by claiming that they didn't make this movie for the critics or even the casual movie goer who might turn their nose up at this flock they made this for the fans so let's be clear about something here by fans they and I do not refer to the casual movie goer who contributed to the box office of Suicide Squad because it was a big tentpole event but after seeing it thought the movie was garbage by fans they and I mean the tribalists even if they won't use that word the narrative the studio is delivering is if the hardcore fan of the intellectual property liked it then the movie did its job the spin the alteration of the facts is that the studio pretends that this was the plan all along it's the equivalent of someone tripping on the sidewalk landing face-first then getting up and saying meant to do it the most significant problem with this defense is that it is so obviously untrue but the tribalists eat it up it furthers the cause of tribalism because it creates a false narrative that the studio has a personal connection with its fans that it is some kind of mother figure that loves his children its fans its defenders the studio is telling the truth about one thing they didn't make suicide squad for the critics but they also didn't make it for the DCE use biggest fans who bought the Harley Quinn t-shirt at Hot Topic before the movie even debuted know any movie with a studio sized budget is made for mass appeal every decision is made as an answer to this question will this make people come see this movie the idea that movies are made primarily for the people who are already planning to see the movie is deeply naive hardcore fans the tribalists are going to buy their tickets no matter what Studios aren't making the movie to appeal to them because they've already got them producers are constantly interjecting themselves into the creative end of the process telling filmmakers to do this and not to do that due to the possibility of alienating a demographic or the possibility of upsetting parents who might otherwise bring their multiple children and therefore multiple tickets or the possibility of not targeting a key demographic and market etc big-budget movies like those seen in the DC EU are not built by fans for fans they are built by massive corporations who want to use the intellectual property they have purchased to make more money on the investment of purchasing or licensing said property the director and others might be enthusiastic about the project but they are still under the thumb of people who make the final decisions and after production is seemingly completed a rough version of the film is sent into test screenings a test screening is a preview screening of a movie before its release in order to gauge audience reaction and determine what anything needs to be changed the preview audiences are not chosen among hardcore fans of the property they are selected from a cross-section of the population giving the studio's representatives of a particular class of people during or after the screening this cross-section of people are asked to complete a questionnaire or provide feedback often the test screenings have the studio conclude that expensive reshoots are needed or at least certain scenes need to go back into editing all your favorite movies went through test screenings and many of your favorite movies were different during said screening than they were when they hit theaters if there's one thing a test screening audience hates its downer endings 28 days later The Descent I am Legend et the extra-terrestrial first blood and many more previously had the main or titular characters die sometimes completely new endings that botched the movie are shot because a handful of people said so and this handful of people represents the studio's best guess at mass appeal that's their goal not catering to people who are going to see it no matter what not the tribalists they manipulate tribalists sure but the test screenings are not about tribalists production test screenings and marketing of the film is all about trying to convince people who are not big movie fans to go see the movie and that sounds counterproductive but it's true seriously the average person only goes to the theater about five times a year that's not an exaggeration either this was from a study from a couple years back if anything it's even less now because Netflix gets bigger with every passing day the average person is rarely coaxed into leaving the comfort of their own home to venture to the local multiplex but the studio needs those non movie fans to see their movie in order to make a bigger profit you may find that absurd because if you're watching this huge mini-series on YouTube about the DC EU you probably watch lots of movies but you apparently are not the average moviegoer movies on the other hand are catered to that unattainable average person if they are only going to visit a theater about five times each year this movie the studio demands must be one of those five and so the studio does everything in their power to make sure this has the most mass appeal as humanly possible every decision is geared towards this one end goal superhero movies are not made to please everyone who reads the comic books and hangs Batman posters on their walls they are made for everyone and this isn't some egalitarian comment I mean they are made to be as broad as possible this is even more true nowadays than in decades past big-budget movies must be so accessible and so simple that they can be understood and beloved across cultural divides because the foreign market of a $200,000,000 Hollywood movie is now even more important than the domestic market whether or not a movie hits in China is everything China has four times the population of the United States big-budget movies are now commonly Chinese American co-productions so that Hollywood can get its foot in the door with their next big-budget movie and make a ridiculous amount of money overseas it's why transformers 4 had a lot of its story take place there it's why independence day 2 talked up China so much it's not just as simple as mentioning the country's name and a positive light though Studios try to make these movies as action-heavy and effects-heavy as possible because explosions and fight scenes are Universal and translate perfectly across borders dialogue does not movies like Justice League contain a bunch of action set-pieces which is probably why that movie was the highest-grossing DC EU movie in China movies are made for mass appeal not only among Americans but for audiences worldwide every decision is only reached after someone determines that it translates well and will play well in foreign markets comedy is something that does not translate well and because of this comedies don't make it big internationally comedy is dialogue heavy and some things are lost in translation the idea that DC EU movies are made primarily for people who collect comic books or people who will get all the Easter eggs they put in for the heck of it for even people who are just really enthusiastic about the franchise is patently false so TL DR movies are not made with a narrow target audience in mind they are made for international mass appeal and the decisions are made by studio producers and random test screeners who represent entire demographics and who have no emotional stakes in what they are seeing because that makes them good test screeners Suicide Squad was not made for the fans it was made for China a lot of the success of a film comes down to its shape how the screenplay in the finished product after post-production bills to each plot point holds tension releases it and surprises the audience even while delivering the familiar structure and that structure is generally divided into X and nearly all blockbuster movies that hope to hold the attention and money of the audience is divided into three it was good enough for Aristotle and it should be good enough for Suicide Squad this film does have a structure and you can use 3x structure as theory to see where everything fits but suicide squads 3x structure doesn't do what sense structure is meant to do the aforementioned detentions and releases proper rising action etc the setup confrontation and resolution are awkwardly placed and because of this Suicide Squad is unpleasant to watch even if you don't know anything about the three-act structure you have probably seen enough movies to understand it to subconsciously you knew something was off about this film's pacing even if you didn't go to film school there's been a recent think piece article backlash against the three-act structure in recent years but this mostly amounts to misunderstanding what it is most movies having 3x does not make most movies the same it's only the latus upon which to hang at the narrative the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark is said to have a near-perfect three-act structure but so does 12 Angry Men these movies are nothing alike except in their ability to have good rising action releases of tension and other hallmarks of the structure Raiders of the Lost Ark is an action-adventure movie that takes place all over the world 12 Angry Men is a stage adaptation that has no action only dialogue and it takes place in one room to explain the details of the three-act structure how it works on other movies and is poorly used in Suicide Squad I'll use a famous example die hard act 1 is the setup John McClane a new york city cop arrives in Los Angeles to meet with his estranged wife we learn a lot about McClane quickly and without much dialogue his signs of disgust and disinterest in LA and his brief interactions with an annoying passenger and a comparatively talkative limousine driver reveal a lot about his character the movie also reveals smaller details and foreshadowing through implication McClane mentions how he hates flying suggesting a fear of heights the passenger tells him to take off his shoes to relieve stress later in the movie McClane will be forced to the top of a building and his lack of shoes will actually be something that increases his stress the reveal that McClane is a police officer happens because the passenger notice his gun not much is made out of it at the time when McClane mentions in passing that he has never been in a limo before we learned he's a working-class kind of guy all this character and foreshadowing is revealed without a big exposition dump in the beginning diehard shows more than it tells which is what you want in a visual medium the inciting incident of the film is the events of the Christmas party McClane arrives and argues with his wife while Hans Gruber and his men show up now let's compare this to act 1 of suicide squad for the first three minutes of the film we are introduced to the two characters on Task Force X who get the most screen time and backstory Deadshot and Harley Quinn we see them in what the film shows us to be their natural habitat a prison now you would think that after that the plot would begin to unspool but you would be wrong because then we spend another 17 minutes introducing supporting characters through a series of comical dossiers including Deadshot and Harley Quinn again two characters who we already met we get a bunch of music videos from Rick James and Kanye West but no meatloaf unfortunately then nearly 20 minutes into the film after a scene with Amanda Waller trying to sell her colleagues and the audience on who Task Force X will be and why it exists she introduces said characters and mission again to the Pentagon finally she introduces enchantress to the military officers even though we the audience already know who she is her conflict her relationship with Colonel Flagg and her role in the team but it's still not over right after this Waller flagon enchantress visit the prison where we are introduced to these characters again each of these sections of the first act the initial three minutes the overly long pace destroying dossier montage scenes than the Pentagon scene and then the following prison scene all convey the same thing over and over again rather than providing new information in a good movie each moment pushes the story forward everything that happens has consequences related to the next scene or a couple scenes later this causality allows us to engage with what is happening because it gives everything wait a scene is meant to convey information to the audience who are these people what can they do but we already know that exposition should be over by now but it will not stop if this poor structure were used in die hard John McClane would fly to LA get in the limo fly to LA again get in the limo again and then fly to LA yet again before showing up to the Nakatomi Plaza welcome to the party pal indeed act 2 of die hard has McClane fighting Gruber's men each time he defeats one of the criminals and hinders Gruber's plan it pushes the plot forward Gruber becomes more and more frustrated with Maclean's interference and while this happens the danger simultaneously ramps up with each encounter all the actions have consequences McClane is winning seemingly but he is more and more banged up bloody and worn down as the film progresses will McClane die hard or will Gruber die hard who will die the hardest the tension allows for character engagement and empathy and the movie also shows the cut sequences of each action in Suicide Squad the inciting incident is Incubus possessing the subway passengers and enchantress escaping the former is a tense enough scene but the latter happens off screen we learn about it via walkie talkie say it again bad inciting incident it gets worse though after the inciting incident we still haven't been introduced to the entire team we meet Slipknot the man who can climb anything and Kitana some of the action scenes that follow have consequences either in terms of the plot progressing or the characters progressing the encounter with the deformed creature tells us that Deadshot will not in fact cut and ran on his teammates as flag incorrectly predicted this is a good scene and a good character moment unfortunately most of act 2 is not like this there are a lot of flashbacks and cuts to what the Joker is doing which is almost completely meaningless to the central plot some encounters and moments do not have consequences they are moments that do not push the action forward well in to die hard we get more features of the three act structure and a solid screenplay here's an example setup and payoff remember the no shoes on the airplane thing hans gruber orders his men to shoot all the glass MacLaine's feet are completely messed up when flag questions the sanity of Wohlers plan there is this moment between them that makes the audience think there will be a payoff an explanation about why Waller chose Task Force X as opposed to recruiting the Justice League or using Flags highly effective team but this foreshadowing is never resolved it foreshadows something that does not exist it sets up something that is never paid off diehard ends with John McClane reconnecting with his wife and sergeant Powell getting over his fear of drawing a firearm Suicide Squad ends with the task force right back where they started but with a cappuccino machine Deadshot goes through a proper character arc due to his willingness to save Harley Quinn and become a better person but the ending feels flat because there weren't many gains for these characters also because the ending sets up an their movie giving the audience the impression that all those Joker scenes really were meaningless as they relate to this movie Suicide Squad was edited in a blender and came from a screenplay that was probably too rushed to begin with there are a few good ideas in the movie and some scenes really do work but the script needed a few more drafts and the Edit needed to be tighter or at least less chaotic critics pretty much savaged Suicide Squad but they didn't have to wait too long for the first good DC EU film you

Channel: Renegade Cut

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Keywords: renegade cut, suicide squad, suicide squad review, suicide squad analysis, suicide squad scene, suicide squad clip, suicide squad explained, suicide squad soundtrack, suicide squad ending, suicide squad david ayer, suicide squad joker, suicide squad harley quinn, dceu, dc extended universe, bright, bright 2, batman v superman, wonder woman, harley quinn, the joker, dc comics, suicide squad cast, suicide squad editing, suicide squad movie, die hard, david ayer

Id: Z2Eu26Ulu1g

Length: 50min 54sec (3054 seconds)

Published: Thu Jan 03 2019

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[u/henners99]

THIS IS ANTI DC PROPAGANDA