Which Suicide Squad Movie Is Better?
10. Characters & Performances
The 2016 movie had some genuinely solid character work via Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and Deadshot (Will Smith), but it ultimately fails to make the audience buy the familial bond between the members of the Suicide Squad.
The bar scene ahead of the final battle could've been iconic, but the film takes such a skittish approach to most of its roster that it's tough to care much about most of them.
Performance-wise at least Robbie, Smith, and Viola Davis gave their all.
But James Gunn's new take just feels so, so much more genuine from start to finish. In two hours, Gunn makes us care for most of these characters, such that when many of them inevitably die, we actually feel something.
The ensemble cast is also stronger than in 2016, with even the more minor cast members typically getting something interesting to do. There's not a single weak link.
WINNER: 2016 had so much potential, but in execution the 2021 Suicide Squad decisively takes it.