DC comic book movies look to continue their recent streak of goodness, including Shazam ⚡️ and Joker 🤡, with the February release of Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn).

It looks good so far.

Reason #1

Margot Robbie seems to be in every movie these days. The fact that I don’t have “Robbie fatigue” is a testament to her acting prowess. She was one of the lone bright spots in the otherwise largely dreadful Suicide Squad movie, so I’m looking for more of her zaniness in this installation which centers around her and her homicidal homies.

Reason #2

Ewan McGregor has something in common with the aforementioned Robbie when it comes to the fantasy genre. He too, is one of the lone bright spots in an otherwise tepid fantasy movie. In his case it’s movies (plural) — the Star Wars prequels. Like Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad, his Obi-Wan Kenobi stood out in those films. Here’s hoping that these “bright spots from previous dull fantasy movies” combine to spark fireworks here. Enter the Black Mask.

Reason #3

It’s been awhile since we’ve seen Rosie Perez in a major studio release like this. Her off-camera persona (especially her voice) is so distinctive and interesting, that she seems made for this type of role. Here she plays Renee Montoya, a Gotham detective who has a very interesting character arc in the comics as you can see here.

Reason #4

Although her filmography is pretty shallow — it’s been short films primarily, I’m pretty excited to see what neophyte director Cathy Yan pulls off here. We’ve seen the incredible success that Marvel Studios has had with largely unknown filmmakers –most notably the Russo Brothers with the Captain America and Infinity War sagas, helming big studio films for the first time. So I’m hopeful that Yan can pull off a similar showing here.

Reason #5

The last reason is really quite simple. I’m starving, like a bird of prey, for the first comic book movie of the year. Feed me. Feed me. 😋