Without going too far into plot here — the
movie’s title stretched our word count, anyway
— let’s just quickly mention that things really
get going when young pickpocket Cassandra
Cain (Ella Jay Basco) steals and then swallows a
precious diamond, in which crucial secrets are
embedded. Harley offers to get the diamond;
otherwise, Roman will kill her.
The other major players, joining forces to fight
Roman, are Montoya, a tough Gotham detective
(the reliable Rosie Perez); Black Canary, or singer
Dinah Lance (a lovely Jurnee Smollett-Bell);
and the Huntress, aka Helena Bertinelli (an
understated Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a mob
daughter bent on avenging her family’s killers.
Ultimately it all rides on Robbie, who, along
with her blond, color-dipped pigtails, brings an
appealing blend of looniness and grit to the role,
and a hint of something sadder and darker. Still,
one gets the sense the filmmakers weren’t quite
sure how far to go with the feminism thing.
When she says sadly that “a harlequin’s nothing
without a master,” you don’t immediately get the
sense that this is a post #MeToo Harley Quinn.
Like we said, there’s always the sequel.
“Birds of Prey,” a Warner Bros Pictures release,
is rated R by the Motion Picture Association
of America “for strong violence and language
throughout, and some sexual and drug
material.” Running time: 109 minutes. Three
stars out of four.
MPAA definition of R: Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying
parent or adult guardian.