On February 7, DC Comics released a new film titled Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey. This is a follow-up film to DC’s Suicide Squad, an anti-heroic film featuring villains who temporarily become heroes to save the city. Main character Harley Quinn, the Joker’s now ex-girlfriend, is finding her way in the world on her own. 

In an interview with Picturehouse, Director Cathy Yan explains, “[Harley Quinn] first appeared as the Joker’s girlfriend, but eventually took on a life of her own. She then became a fan favorite because she is both very vulnerable, but also extremely powerful.” Becoming favored by many is what inspired Yan to direct Harley’s own movie. She also wanted to emphasize how powerful Harley is, even though she is thought to be defenseless on her own. “[We] wanted to create a different, tougher aesthetic and energy to it, so that it does not feel like a chick flick and everyone (meaning males) could enjoy it,” Yan continues. Attracting a greater audience is a goal for directors, but with a primarily female cast, Yan needed to find other elements to catch the male eye. 

The film eventually captured the attention of Battlefield senior, Matthew Humston. “I feel like the trailer made it seem like a bad movie, but I went and saw it anyway,” Humston shares. Yan’s “tougher” aesthetic worked in the way of appealing to males and how they still saw it, regardless of what they thought of the trailer. “All in all, I thought it was a good movie. I even saw it twice!” Humston finishes. Appealing to the younger generation of males is also an achievement for Yan because it brings in more viewers and profit.

Though when it comes to the professional movie watchers, Birds of Prey got quite a few praises, compared to its former film, Suicide Squad. In a review by Rolling Stone’s  Peter Travers, he claims that,“It is time for Harley to emancipate herself from men, form a girl gang, and show that the sisters really can do it for themselves.” His idea continues from Yan’s theme of “girl power” and showing that women are able to be independent from a man. Forming a group of only women emphasizes the modern topic of women empowering, supporting, and protecting each other.

The movie itself seemed like more of a build up for a sequel, until the ending. Harley had figured herself out and can now make it on her own. Whether or not a sequel will be made is still to be decided.