This past weekend, the latest summer blockbuster Suicide Squad premiered. Full of DC Comics villains and some of the world’s greatest heroes, it took to the big screen to tell a story common for most films of the superhero movie genre, with a slight twist. In Suicide Squad, the villains are the protagonists of the film.
Now before anything else is said, there are a multitude of reviews currently coming out about this film, many of which are hyper critical of the movie. However, while this post is not a movie review about Suicide Squad, I will say the movie is not a drama that will leave you contemplating life, and it isn’t the greatest action movie I’ve ever seen. What this film is though, is exactly what it should be taken as: a relaxing and fun summer flick.
After watching the film for myself however I noticed something about the protagonists: they were bad and broken individuals, trying to do something good. Without spoiling the film, there is a scene in which the squad is altogether in a room sharing with one another the things of their past that led them to be where they are now. Then one of the members makes this comment, “You may be beautiful on the outside honey, but on the inside? You’re ugly.” “Yeah well you don’t get it do ya? We’re all ugly on the inside.” It was the response that stopped me.
In life, more often than not you will meet people who will see themselves in one of two ways: The first is the larger than life hero. This is the person who is the Superman of their own story. They are the ones to reign in the spotlight, to be the center of attention and be praised by people. They wish to appear as if they can do no wrong (even though we know that even the Supermans of life have their own flaws). Then there is the second group, which is the broken villain that believe they can never be restored. These people have at one point or another failed. For some their failures haunt them in their dreams, a constant reminder that they aren’t good enough. For others they had their failures placed before the public for all to see. Sometimes they have been mocked, or isolated for it. Due to their flaws they’ve lost friends, families, and sometimes even jobs.
The problem with both these groups? That’s not how life is meant to be lived. Society is broken, yes. One only has to turn on the television to see that to be true. And while everyone is ugly on the inside remember, don’t think it is impossible for you to recover from the past mistakes. We should always be on the lookout to give broken people a chance at redemption, because somewhere along the way, someone gave you that same chance.
Sloan Stephenson 