Anticipation can be a double-edged sword, especially when it comes to the movies. Sometimes, the months of hype and waiting can enhance the enjoyment of a film. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of having a movie totally live up to your expectations and become one of your new favorites. Other times, however, a film just crashes and burns, failing to please you in all the ways it promised to during the build up. There is probably no better example of a movie embodying both extremes of anticipation than Suicide Squad.

David Ayer’s (Fury) entry into the DCEU divided fans and was hit hard by critics. While there are those who enjoyed the film for what it was, for many it was the latest in a long line of WB DC films that failed to live up to the source material. Though most agreed that Margot Robbie (The Legend of Tarzan) was good as Harley Quinn, the rest of the film often proved divisive. There’s no shortage of excuses to go around; from Ayer having just weeks to write the film to studio executive shake ups to studio anxiety in the wake the poor reception to Batman V Superman, it’s anyone’s choice as to why the movie failed. Thankfully, now that a little time has passed, we can now start to laugh at it.

Suicide Squad is the latest film to land in the crosshairs of Honest Trailers. At six minutes long, the guys at Screen Junkies proved there’s, well, a lot to dissect in regard to the film, and in typical Honest Trailers fashion, no punches are pulled. From the script’s overreliance on expository dialogue to a troubled production, no stone is left unturned in the lampooning of Suicide Squad.

Jared Leto as The Joker in Purple Lamborghini

Of course, no stone is as big as Joker. Jared Leto’s take on the Clown Prince of Crime was also a source of contention before the movie was even released. Leto himself didn’t help the situation with his full immersion into the character, and his onset antics became notorious in the weeks leading up to the premiere. Even with the backlash, the marketing for Suicide Squad relied heavily on Joker only for fans to find he had about ten minutes of screen time.

Honest Trailers lands more than a few square hits against Leto for his performance, describing it as “combining James Franco in Springbreakers and Ace Ventura,” and later calling him “Heath Lesser.” They go on to point out the general uselessness of the character to the overall plot, which was perhaps the biggest let down of the film. But it’s not just the Joker that did Suicide Squad in. The film had ample problems that aren’t easily fixed, and Honest Trailers takes them all on. Even the marketing campaign and the “worst heroes ever” tagline isn’t safe from the crossfire.

Even if you enjoyed Suicide Squad for what it is, it’s hard not to laugh at the way Honest Trailers tackles the film. Enjoyment of a movie doesn’t mean you can’t appreciate solid criticism served with a well-honed zinger.

Source: Screen Junkies