Harley Quinn is a mess. Let’s be real. She’s loud, she’s violent, and she has the impulse control of a toddler in a candy store. But when Birds of Prey (or Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, if you want to be a completionist) hit theaters back in 2020, it gave us a version of the character that felt... human. Sorta.
It wasn't just another superhero flick. It was a neon-soaked breakup anthem.
Honestly, the movie had a lot working against it. A confusingly long title. An R-rating that scared off the younger demographic. A release window that slammed right into the start of a global pandemic. Yet, years later, the Birds of Prey Harley Quinn remains a massive talking point for DC fans. Why? Because it actually stood for something beyond just "blowing stuff up."
The "Emancipation" That Actually Meant Something
In 2016's Suicide Squad, Harley was basically an accessory. A shiny, dangerous, "Property of Joker" jacket-wearing accessory. She was defined by a toxic man.
Birds of Prey literally starts by blowing that up.
Director Cathy Yan didn't just want to show a girl gang; she wanted to show what happens when a woman loses her "protection" and has to face the music. Without the Joker, half of Gotham wants Harley dead. She’s broke. She’s sad. She buys a hyena named Bruce.
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The movie is structured like Harley’s brain: non-linear, frantic, and easily distracted. One minute she’s running from the cops, the next she’s narrating a three-minute sequence about the perfect egg sandwich. This wasn't just "quirky" for the sake of it. It was a rejection of the "male gaze" that dominated her first appearance.
Think about the costumes. Costume designer Erin Benach ditched the sequined hot pants for gold overalls and caution tape jackets. It looked like something a person would actually choose to wear while fighting, rather than something designed for a poster. It felt authentic to the character's internal chaos.
Why the Box Office Numbers Lied to You
If you look at the raw data, the movie grossed about $205 million against an $84 million budget. On paper? Not a disaster, but not a "mega-hit" by DC standards. People were quick to call it a flop.
But that’s a narrow way to look at it.
The "success" of this movie lives in the culture. It’s a staple of cosplay. It’s a touchstone for how to do female-led action without it feeling like a corporate checklist. The fight choreography, spearheaded by John Wick director Chad Stahelski (who came in for reshoots), is still some of the best in the genre. No "shaky cam" to hide bad stunts. Just raw, bone-crunching acrobatics.
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What People Got Wrong About the "Birds"
Most people went in expecting a team-up movie like The Avengers. Instead, they got a Harley Quinn movie where other people happened to show up.
- The Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead): She’s an socially awkward assassin who practices her "cool" lines in the mirror. She’s hilarious.
- Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett): A singer with a "cry" she’s too afraid to use because of her mother’s trauma.
- Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez): A tired detective who has seen too many 80s cop movies.
- Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco): A kid who just happened to swallow the wrong diamond.
The criticism that the movie "isn't really about the Birds of Prey" is technically true. It's about Harley learning to share the stage. By the time they’re all at the Booby Trap (that creepy, abandoned amusement park), they aren't a team because of a shared mission. They’re a team because Roman Sionis—played with incredible, flamboyant menace by Ewan McGregor—is a jerk who treats them like objects.
The Visual Identity of Gotham’s Underworld
Most Gotham movies are gray. Or dark blue. Or "it hasn't stopped raining since 1989" black.
This movie is orange, pink, and glittery. It’s the "Outer Boroughs" of Gotham. It feels like a real city where people eat cheap tacos and live in apartments with questionable plumbing. Cathy Yan used her background as a journalist to ground the "fantabulous" elements in a gritty reality.
Even the violence is different. It’s colorful. When Harley attacks the police station, she’s using bean bags filled with colored smoke and glitter. It’s a "happy" way to commit a crime, which is the most Harley Quinn thing imaginable.
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The Legacy of the Egg Sandwich
We have to talk about the sandwich.
The sequence where Harley watches her breakfast get destroyed is more tragic than most character deaths in the MCU. It’s a specific, human detail. We’ve all had a day where one small thing goes wrong and it feels like the end of the world. By focusing on these small moments, the film makes Harley relatable despite the fact that she’s a literal serial killer.
That’s the nuance that people miss. It’s a movie about trauma, recovery, and finding a new family—all wrapped in a R-rated, hyper-violent comic book package.
How to Appreciate Birds of Prey Today
If you’re revisiting the film or watching it for the first time, don't look at it as a piece of a "cinematic universe" puzzle. Look at it as a standalone indie film that somehow got a $100 million budget.
- Watch the backgrounds: The production design is full of "Easter eggs" that tell you more about Harley’s psyche than the dialogue does.
- Listen to the soundtrack: It’s almost entirely female artists, curated to match the energy of each scene.
- Pay attention to the stunts: The roller-skate chase at the end is a masterpiece of practical stunt work.
The Birds of Prey Harley Quinn isn't coming back in this exact form, especially with the DCU being rebooted. But its influence on how we portray female anti-heroes is permanent. It proved you don't need a Joker to make Harley interesting. In fact, she's much better off without him.
To really dig into this version of Harley, your best bet is to track down the "Making Of" featurettes on the physical 4K release. They go deep into how they built the "funhouse" set and why they chose specific fabrics for the costumes to make sure the colors popped under the neon lights. It’s a masterclass in stylized filmmaking that doesn't lose its soul.
Next Step: Watch the "Police Station" fight scene again, but this time, turn off the sound. Look at how the choreography uses the environment—the water, the lockers, the benches—to tell the story of Harley's desperation. It’s pure visual storytelling.