Does the Suicide Squad get redeemed by an extended version or is it just more of the same?
Released by: Warner Brothers
Release Date: August 5th, 2016 (Theatrical)
December 13th, 2016 (Blu-ray)
Region Code: REGION FREE
Run Time: 2h 2m (Theatrical)
2h 16m (Extended)
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos
English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (Audio Descriptive) (Theatrical)
Video: 1080p (2.35:1 Aspect Ratio)
Disc #1: Extended Cut
Task Force X: One
Team, One Mission (23m 8s, HD)
We get a brief history of the Suicide Squad, from their
origins as Task Force X, to their current incarnation in the New 52. Comic book
writers and artists that have and are currently working on the comic book are
interviewed, as are David Ayer, the writer and director of the film. We do get
a lot of concept art and behind the scenes footage as well as a brief history of
most of the characters (except for Slipknot and the Joker)
Chasing the Real (9m
37s, HD)
Director David Ayer wanted the film to be in as much reality
as he could. The tattoos (which the main characters got from Margot Robbie),
the military training (boot camp style), and the environments are all
discussed.
Joker and Harley: “It”
Couple of the Underworld (14m 29s, HD)
Jared Leto discusses the process that he went through to
find his version of the Joker and the cast and crew’s reaction to it. The look
and the wardrobe are explored. We also get more info of Harley Quinn. Lots of
behind the scenes of Leto as Joker.
Squad Strength and
Skills (9m, HD)
Richard Norton, an Australian martial arts expert and actor,
talks about his role as the fight choreographer. Norton is best known for his
roles in 80’s and 90’s Hong Kong action films like City
Hunter (1993) and
Mr.
Nice Guy (1997). We also learn about the training that the actors had
to go through in order for them to be able to do most of the fighting and stunt
work themselves.
This Is Gonna Get
Loud: The Epic Battles of Suicide Squad (10m 45s, HD)
All different types of techniques (wire work, stunt work)
were used to stage the fight scenes and shoot outs. Most of this was done
practically, which is a nice change of pace from all the other action films
made today. In fact, they used blanks which results in muzzle flashes coming
from the guns. This is really nice to see as most action films use CGI for the
muzzle flash. There is also talk about the CGI used in the climax of the film,
but it is barely touched on.
The Squad
Declassified (4m 19s, HD)
This is a rundown of the shootout between the Squad and the
eyeball things. It is broken down into small chunks. I felt that this was aimed
more at kids than anything else just by the way it is presented.
Gag Reel (2m 4s, HD)
Line flubbing, tripping over things, and sneezing are all in
a day’s work on the Suicide Squad set.
Disc #2: Theatrical Version
We get a 4K promo, the Batman v Superman trailer that we
have all seen a thousand times, and the first Wonder Woman trailer.
All of the special features from the Extended Cut disc are
replicated on this disc.
Disc #3: DVD version of the theatrical version.
Also included is a code for a digital copy of the film.
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THE PACKAGING [3 out of 4] |
Warner Brothers has given each of the major chains their own
package. Walmart has a two film set with this film and the animated Assault
on Arkham. Best Buy has a steelbook that contains the 4K blu-ray, and
regular blu-ray. Target got a digibook. That is the version I am talking about
here.
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The front of the digibook has the neon lights symbols for each of the characters instead of the actors looking up at us. The cover is also lenticular which means that it gives a 3D effect when you move it from side to side. |
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The discs are housed on the inside of the front and back
cover. The front holds one disc while the back holds two discs.
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The two blu-rays have the exact same disc art and are only differentiated
by what cut is on the disc, Extended for one, theatrical for the other. The dvd
has the title of the film as it’s disc art. The disc art for all the discs is
the usual Warner Bros black and disc coloring.
All three of the discs are REGION FREE.
THE PICTURE [4 out of 4]
Warner Brothers has given Suicide Squad a great
transfer. Of course, this is new film so the transfer should be great, but
there have been newer films where the transfer is messed up somehow. The film
mostly takes place at night and/ in the darkness and the transfer handles the
blacks very nicely. This also allows the colors to stand out more. The yellow
and orange of Diablo’s flames pops out from the background as do most of the
other bright colors. Warner Brothers has knocked it out of the park with this
one.
Note: Given that both
cuts get their own disc, the encodes are allowed to breathe more than if they
were both placed on the same disc.
THE SOUND [4 out of 4]
As I don’t have a Dolby Atmos decoder, I am reviewing the
Dolby TrueHD 7.1 track and I was happy with what I heard. The gunfire,
explosions, and effects give each channel a workout and the music (both the
score and the pop music) are clear precise. The only problem that I encountered
was some of the dialogue fell off a bit during the action scenes. This is not a
big gripe, but it is something that I noticed. Other than that, this is a great
track that can be used to demo your surround sound.
THE FILM [3 out of 4]
HERE is my original review for the film. As for the Extended Cut, I thought that the additions were nothing special. Sure, we get some extra added character beats, but nothing really stands out as needing to be added back in. This is not a Batman v Superman type extension where there were things taken out that were needed to make the film cohesive. This Extended Edition is just that: extended. Now if they had gone back and recut the film to make it better, then I would have been all over this version, but they didn't. They made the film longer, nothing more.
OVERALL [2.5 out of 4]
Suicide Squad is a mixed bag. It is really nice to see these
characters on the big screen, but the story is a mess. I wish that Warner
Brothers and DC would have given David Ayer more than six weeks to write the
script as this could have been a really unique film. Leto Joker is a joke (pun
not intended) If you watch the behind the scenes footage of him as the Joker,
it is clear that he didn’t really know what he was doing. The film is a mess,
but there are some positives to take away from it.
The blu-ray that Warner Brothers has released is nice, but I
wish that they had done more. It is clear that all they want to do is make
money and you can tell from this release. They do give us great picture and
sound, but the features are almost as much of a joke as Leto’s Joker. Most of
these features come off as glorified EPKs and there isn’t much to be learned
about this film. I learned a few things, Richard Norton working on the film and
that most of the action is filmed practically, but that is about it. I wanted
more in the features department and they failed me. The digibook is nice, but I
can’t really say that it is worth the extra money. If you can find it cheap
then buy it, otherwise just get the regular edition when the price drops.
 Blu-ray Review + Screenshots){kind=link}
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