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THE SUICIDE SQUAD directed by James Gunn (2021)
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Started by Bosco685,

803 posts in this topic

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On 8/10/2021 at 10:16 AM, @therealsilvermane said:

After watching Suicidal Squadron 2.0 twice now, I’d say the movie is okay and counts as a plus for Universe of DC (or whatever they call it) along with Wonder Woman, Joker, etc. 

It really does help if I think of this whole thing as one big convoluted multiverse. Thanks, Loki. 

Besides seeing these really obscure DC characters brought to life, I appreciated seeing James Gunn’s twisted cleverness on display. I’m not familiar with Gunn’s stuff outside Guardians, but it was (a lot) like Guardians on Earth and without the Disney filter.

For me, that’s not necessarily a good thing. 

The movie’s overt ugliness leading to the over sentimental resolutions ( a James Gunn thing apparently) got gratuitous at times. For instance, I’m not sure what was the point of Peacemaker and Bloodsport having a freedom fighter mistaken identity body count shoot-off other than being an ultra violent joke. Or what was the point of Harley’s whirlwind romance montage with Luna only to have her just shoot him five minutes later other than to show how depraved(or honorable)  she is? Killing Luna served the plot no real purpose. I just didn’t see a point to a lot of the ugly other than this is what you get when you give Gunn relatively free reign. 

 

 

I thought that opening scene killing an entire village of friendlies was a funny travesty. Not laugh out loud funny, but “seriously, what the hell?” kind of funny. The over-the-top violence was great and a welcome addition over the run-of-the-mill Disney formula which I have grown tired of. But that formula works for them and for the masses so it won’t be changed. Shiny object wins over dark object.  I agree that the whirlwind romance scene could have been omitted as it didn’t really add much except started that chain reaction of battlefield promotions. I think three people became president for a moment before dying. If that was showcased better, it could have been funny. I don’t agree with the high critical response but the movie was good, better than Black Widow which I thought was ok. I love the fact Will Smith was not in it as I think Elba is a better and more charismatic actor. He definitely was more badass in that role than Smith was previously.  I think they should have waited for Bautista to be free though as he would have been a far superior Peacemaker. Cena does succeed in making you despise him though.

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fastballspecial

fastballspecial

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I thought it was an improvement overall. Harley's love scene was unneeded completely. 
I enjoyed the main villain as a tip to the old Justice League. 

Its not Gunn that made GoG the success by himself it was Marvel. DC needs to rethink their universe or they are just wasting Gunn. 

Again Marvel proves they are the dominate studio even when DC has a talented director.

 

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On 8/10/2021 at 11:51 AM, fastballspecial said:

I thought it was an improvement overall. Harley's love scene was unneeded completely. 
I enjoyed the main villain as a tip to the old Justice League. 

Its not Gunn that made GoG the success by himself it was Marvel. DC needs to rethink their universe or they are just wasting Gunn. 

Again Marvel proves they are the dominate studio even when DC has a talented director.

 

I disagree, I think Marvel is the Fast and Furious of superhero movies appealing to the masses. No risky moves. At least they put out Winter Soldier which is the only memorable one for me.

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HighVoltage

HighVoltage

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On 8/10/2021 at 9:56 AM, Scam Likely said:

I disagree, I think Marvel is the Fast and Furious of superhero movies appealing to the masses. No risky moves. At least they put out Winter Soldier which is the only memorable one for me.

 

Screen Shot 2021-08-10 at 10.13.15 AM.png

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Jaydogrules

Jaydogrules

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On 8/6/2021 at 5:30 PM, Jaydogrules said:

Harley Quinn is popular as a cosplay and I hear the cartoon is good enough.  

But as much as it would seem Robbie would have owned the role, it has just never clicked on the big screen.  I started thinking this after Birds of Prey and I definitely think this now. WB needs to bench the character for a few years and recast, hopefully this time make her more like the comic book/cartoon and less like whatever the hell Margot Robbie is supposed to be doing.

-J.

Maybe WB execs are on these boards lol.

https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/margot-robbie-harley-quinn-recast.html

-J.

Edited by Jaydogrules
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On 8/10/2021 at 12:16 PM, Jaydogrules said:

Maybe WB execs may be on these boards lol.

https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/margot-robbie-harley-quinn-recast.html

-J.

Never been a Harley fan but I also think Robbie didn’t have a lot to work with as far as good lines or scenarios in previous outings. She was fine here though as I wasn’t annoyed with her.

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Jaydogrules

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On 8/9/2021 at 10:18 AM, Gatsby77 said:

?

So...you're calling the highest grossing theatrical release in 1.5 years a "bomb?" I think our definition's of that word differ.

And did I state 3.0x? 

Doubtful, although I may have done so in one of JayDog's rants that a film had to do 4.5x theatrical in order to recoup stated budgets plus all marketing expenses. Which was hogwash, of course, because it failed to account for all post-theatrical revenue.

10 years ago, the standard for profitability was just 2.0x. And the shorthand was - if it made its budget back in domestic theatrical alone, it was profitable - as foreign sales and post-theatrical would make up the difference.

Now it's definitely more like 2.5x or better - but that shift is due both to China's increased prominence (and only 25% theatrical take) and increased marketing spend.

But - and you know this better than anyone - the true answer is "it depends."

So - as @paperheartdid in the other thread, let's break this down for Black Widow, shall we?

Domestic so far: $174.4 million (x 60%) = $104.4 million to the studio

Foreign so far: $185.4 million (x 40%) = $74.1 million to the studio

China so far: $0 (x 25%) = $0 to the studio

Streaming (known): $60 million (x 85%) = $51 million to the studio

Total: $229.5 million directly to Disney vs. a stated $200 million production budget.

Conclusion: It's easily going to break even and/or turn a slight profit for the studio.

Compare it to some recent *actual* bombs:

  • Snake Eyes (will lose Paramount $60-$80M)
  • Jungle Cruise (will lose Disney $50-$75M)
  • The Suicide Squad (will lose Warner Bros. $90-$110M)
  • Space Jam 2 (will lose Warner Bros. $100M+)

Normally I'm not one to engage in "whataboutism" but in a summer where we've seen many high-profile films *actually* bomb, using that term to describe Black Widow's mere underperformance when it's on track to make a profit, is just...odd.

1)  Studios actually only average about 50% of North American.  

2)  Disney+ should be counted as an ancillary, not primary source of revenue.

3) Disney likely spent AT LEAST another $200MM on worldwide prints and multiple marketing campaigns putting the real cost of the film closer to $400MM. 🙄

Which means...

That film, while not the bomb the suicide squad is, will certainly lose Disney a nice chunk of money, in the $50MM-$100MM range.  

-J.

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@therealsilvermane

@therealsilvermane

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On 8/10/2021 at 11:47 AM, Scam Likely said:

I thought that opening scene killing an entire village of friendlies was a funny travesty. Not laugh out loud funny, but “seriously, what the hell?” kind of funny. The over-the-top violence was great and a welcome addition over the run-of-the-mill Disney formula which I have grown tired of. But that formula works for them and for the masses so it won’t be changed. Shiny object wins over dark object.  I agree that the whirlwind romance scene could have been omitted as it didn’t really add much except started that chain reaction of battlefield promotions. I think three people became president for a moment before dying. If that was showcased better, it could have been funny. I don’t agree with the high critical response but the movie was good, better than Black Widow which I thought was ok. I love the fact Will Smith was not in it as I think Elba is a better and more charismatic actor. He definitely was more badass in that role than Smith was previously.  I think they should have waited for Bautista to be free though as he would have been a far superior Peacemaker. Cena does succeed in making you despise him though.

As a film, SS 2.0 was a plus for DC  whereas SS 1.0 was a minus, so a definite upgrade including Bloodsport as a better Deadshot. Shark was a better Croc, Harley was a better Harley. Just a better cast of characters overall. Also, SS 2.0 was legitimately weird whereas SS 1.0 was more “we’re weird cause we shop at Hot Topic”. 

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Gatsby77

Gatsby77

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On 8/10/2021 at 12:22 PM, Jaydogrules said:

1)  Studios actually only average about 50% of North American.  

2)  Disney+ should be counted as an ancillary, not primary source of revenue.

3) Disney likely spent AT LEAST another $200MM on worldwide prints and multiple marketing campaigns putting the real cost of the film closer to $400MM. 🙄

Which means...

That film, while not the bomb the suicide squad is, will certainly lose Disney a nice chunk of money, in the $50MM-$100MM range.  

-J.

1) No. We've been through this before. Studio take is roughly 50% *overall* - but that's because it's a rough average of 60% domestic, 40% international (non-China) and 25% (China).

Because...the bulk of a film's theatrical take is in the first 10 days (first two weekends) and domestic contracts are structured so studios get the bulk (60-70%) of the first 14 days take, then it reverses, with studios getting just 30-40% of days 15-on.

Even if studios only got 50% of the the first 2 weeks, it'd account for 60%+ of the total domestic revenue for most films.

2) Why? Disney literally netted more money from Disney+ purchases during Black Widow's opening weekend than it did from the entire domestic North American box office take.

Here's the math: 85% of $60 million (Disney+ Premiere) is more than 60% of $84.4 million (domestic box office).

Even if Bosco's theory is true - that for Black Widow Disney somehow demanded 70% of the first 14 days' theatrical revenue for Black Widow, then streaming still booked 86% of the Disney's first weekend domestic theatrical take.

That's hardly *ancillary* - particularly because Box Office Mojo is now tracking Disney+ Premiere revenue alongside domestic and international box office for the film.

And the film *still* set a pandemic era theatrical record.

3) Citation for this? With the multiple delays you could be right, but I'd like to see a legitimate source for this.

Deadline, for example, this week cited P+A for The Suicide Squad at $100M (on top of its stated $185M budget).

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Bosco685

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On 8/10/2021 at 12:16 PM, Jaydogrules said:

Maybe WB execs are on these boards lol.

https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/margot-robbie-harley-quinn-recast.html

-J.

This must be true. I was catching up on latest news and saw this on Spoiled Oranges. So it has to be legit. Right?

feige_harley.PNG.1a3608cc5ddd69ad8a7bb5949d4d6100.PNG

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ADAMANTIUM

ADAMANTIUM

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On 8/10/2021 at 3:35 PM, The Brain said:

Just got back from seeing this movie.

I give it a 7 out of 10.

I thought it was, fun, funny, and had heart.

Lol that's what I gave it, I gave black widow the same, even maybe most of us gave that consensus if they gave it a 3 out of 5....

Black widow in comparison was depressing, but decent.

I'd rather laugh than cry, but like the widow brand better. SS2 was fun, but didnt have as much substance towards a "next movie". Still, I avoided everything even the trailer lol it was just decent but fun :)

 

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