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Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020) is the latest in the DC Cinematic Universe. Read on to find out more...


Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is a twisted tale told by Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) herself, as only she can tell it. When Gotham's most nefariously narcissistic villain, Roman Sionis (Ewan McGregor), and his zealous right-hand, Victor Zsasz (Chris Messina), put a target on young pickpocket Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco), the city is turned upside down looking for her. While on the trail, Harley clashes with the titular Birds of Prey - Helena Bertinelli/Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Dinah Lance/Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) - but the unlikely foursome may have to team up to take Roman down.


After Margot Robbie's movie-stealing turn as Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad, it was no surprise that she would get her own film. Make no mistake about it, despite the over-long title that implies that this is a "Birds of Prey" movie with Harley Quinn in it, it's actually a Harley Quinn movie with the "Birds of Prey" in it. It's obvious that after the success of Harley in Suicide Squad, Warner Bros. wanted to make another film with her. So they shoe-horned her into a "Birds of Prey" movie, added her name to the now overly-long title, and then pushed the "Birds of Prey" characters into a secondary role.


Featuring the bright candy/dayglow colors of Suicide Squad, only taken to the extreme, Birds of Prey is an R-rated black comedy with a twisted sense of humor that doesn't take itself too seriously, like Deadpool. The script by Christina Hodson was also heavily inspired by Kill Bill, another female-empowering revenge tale that is told out of chronological order. Unlike the Tarentino flick, Birds of Prey suffers from the same problem that plaques some other female-empowering movies, such as Ghostbusters (2016): There are no positive male characters. Not... a... single... one. Even the character who is, at first, depicted as a "saint", later betrays Harley. Almost all of the fight scenes are against groups of men. Even in a police station, where you would expect some female officers, it's only the men that come after Harley. The only fight against a women is a brief spat between Harley and Montoya that is resolved fairly quickly and amicably. On a positive note, we get lots of shots of Harley's beaver.


Yes, females are the target audience, but there are guys who like movies with kick-butt women. We should not feel like our gender is being attacked when we choose to watch a film like this. At the very least, the child pickpocket could have been a little boy, so that there would be a more "inclusive" cast of characters. It wouldn't have been a stretch since the character already dresses like a "tomboy". That would actually make the interplay between the child and Harley much more interesting, too. Instead, the child pickpocket is the least interesting of all of the characters. This is one of those female-empowered movies made under the misguided belief that in order to make the women look good and raise them up, you have to make all of the male characters look bad. More female writers and directors need to watch Patty Jenkin's Wonder Woman to see how to do it right.


I really wanted to LOVE this movie, but instead I came away with just LIKING it somewhat. Although she had some fun moments, I liked Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn better in Suicide Squad, a film that I don't think is as bad as everyone says it is. The great cast was, largely, wasted. That's a shame because I like many of the actors. Jurnee Smolett has sure come a long way since playing one of Michelle's friends on Full House. Rosie Perez is still cute and awesome, as is Mary Elizabeth Winstead - whose last name I like to pronounce like that scene in Ghostbusters II with Winston in the subway tunnel. Ali Wong, one of my favorite raunchy stand-up comics, appears in a thankless role as Montoya's ex-girlfriend who works for the District Attorney. Steven Williams, best remembered as the captain in the 1980s 21 Jump Street series, appeared in much the same role, only with a misogynist twist.


I'm not familiar with the Birds of Prey comics. My only prior knowledge comes from the 2002 TV series that I barely remember right now. I do remember Barbara Gordon, in a wheelchair, being a part of the team. She's not in this movie. Also not in the movie is a clip, shown in a trailer or TV spot, where Harley mentions breaking up with the Joker because he preferred dancing on stairs and in bathrooms, in an obvious reference to The Joker. I liked that little reference. It's a shame that it's not here.


If you've watched as many movies as I have that were filmed in Los Angeles, California, you will instantly recognize it as the location for "Gotham City" here. That means that Birds of Prey presents a Gotham City that looks nothing like the New York City-like "metropolis" that it's supposed to be. That really took me out of the movie. I also recognized the sole Los Angeles filming location from Ghostbusters (2016). The "Taco Dirty" restaurant that Harley eats at with her roller derby chums early in the film, and with her gal pals later in the film, is at the corner of the parking lot adjacent to the alley used for the Ghostbusters' equipment testing.


You can find that restaurant (currently Gil's Super Burger) and parking lot at 730 South Hill Street. Here's what it looked like back in October 2017, courtesy of Google Maps.


Finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention a nice little nod to the origin of the Harley Quinn character included in the movie. At the 1:12:30 mark, Montoya gets a text message, while a television is playing in the background. That's a clip of Arleen Sorkin in Days of Our Lives, in the very scene that inspired Paul Dini to create the character of Harley Quinn (with Bruce Timm) for Batman: The Animated Series, where Sorkin voiced the role.


Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is presented in a 2.39:1 aspect ratio with a runtime of 1:48:54. Audio languages include English, English Descriptive, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. The film includes English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles. The first print run includes a beautiful shiny slipsleeve.


Here's a list of all of the bonus features that can be found on the Blu-ray disc.

• Birds Eye View Mode - A feature-length picture-in-picture track that looks at various aspects of the film.
• Birds of Prey: Birds of a Feather (8:26) - A behind-the-scenes featurette featuring Margot Robbie, director Cathy Yen, and more talking about the film.
• Romanesque (4:57) - A discussion by the cast and crew of the main bad guy, Roman Sionis, played by Ewan McGregor.
• A Love/Skate Relationship (4:29) - A look at the roller derby scenes.
• Grime and Crime (10:38) - The colorful production design of Gotham City is featured.
• Sanity is Sooo Last Season (7:39) - Costume designer Erin Benach talks about Harley Quinn's colorful clothes.
• Wild Nerds (6:03) - Filmmakers discuss the special effects.
• Gag Reel (2:02)

Also included in the Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack is a second DVD disc, which contains only the "Birds of a Feather" featurette listed above. The movie on the DVD is presented in a 2.39:1 aspect ratio with an anamorphic widescreen transfer. Audio languages include English, English Descriptive, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. The film includes English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles.


A digital copy code voucher is also included in the standard two-disc Blu-ray case.


Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is available on Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack, 4K/Blu-ray Combo Pack, and individual DVD. The preceding Suicide Squad is available on Target-Exclusive Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack, Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack, 4K/Blu-ray Combo Pack, and individual DVD.


All images were taken from the IMDB gallery of the film. This item has been provided by Warner Brothers for review on this site.