Do the critics just hate DC Comics? That's the question a number of DC and comic book movie fans are asking with the recent release of DC's 'Suicide Squad'. One of the most anticipated movies of the summer, 'Suicide Squad' is the newest addition to DC's struggling Expanded Universe.
The Expanded Universe is "struggling" because DC and film studio Warners Bros have been chasing the Marvel Cinematic Universe since the release of 'Man of Steel' in 2013. Followed by 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' in 2016, and now 'Suicide Squad', DC is trying to build their expanded cinematic universe with far fewer films than Marvel. As a result, their movies have become far more dense in terms of story and characters, much to the chagrin of mainstream movie critics.
As one of the most anticipated movies of the summer, comic book movie fans across the world were looking forward to the release of 'Suicide Squad'. With the first film portrayal of fan-favorite character Harley Quinn, a stellar cast including Will Smith, Margot Robbie and Viola Davis, and an incredibly strong marketing campaign, 'Suicide Squad' was set up to be on of the biggest movies of the summer.
Fans were excited to see Jared Leto's interpretation of The Joker, a small cameo by Ben Affleck's Batman, plus the first appearance of a number of DC villains including Killer Croc and Deadshot. The teasers and trailers showed off the film's tone and humor- a welcome change from the dark and gritty tone much maligned in 'Man of Steel' and 'Batman v Superman'.
DC needed this movie to be successful to set the tone for the future of the DC Expanded Universe. But according to DC movie fans, critics were not going to let that happen.
Suicide Squad opened up with a record-breaking weekend at the box office, with $135.1 million domestically and another $132 million overseas. Movie goers gave the film a B+ CinemaScore rating and 73% "liked it" according to Rotten Tomatoes.
Critics however have blasted the super villain film, aggregating a 27% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 41/100 from Metascore. The Critic Consensus from Rotten Tomatoes said,
"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."
While the film clearly isn't perfect (which modern blockbuster is?), comic movie fans don't believe the negative reviews are well-deserved. Especially since the movie has been so popular with fans as well as the average movie-goer.
Some argue that the critics, especially those on the review site Rotten Tomatoes, are biased against DC in favor of competing comic book company and movie studio, Marvel. Fans point to the number of Marvel movies receiving consistently positive reviews on movie review platforms. Not a single MCU movie has received a rotten score, even those considered muddled disappointments by fans, like 'Iron Man 2'.
Fans felt the negative reviews were so unwarranted that a petition was started on Change.org to shut down Rotten Tomatoes. (The petition was later updated to urge audiences to ignore the critics, rather than shut down the review site itself.)
If reviews are any indicator, yes, the critics hate DC. Or rather, critics hate movies in the DCEU, at least so far. However, whether the critics are working to prop up the Marvel films as a ploy to destroy is likely unprovable, and something a bit more akin to a super villain in another comic book universe.
Just as the petition urges, it's up to movie goers to decide whether they like the 'Suicide Squad', and whether or not they would like to see the DC Expanded Universe to continue.
