Is The Suicide Squad the Queerest Superhero Film Yet?
John Cena, homoeroticism, and the "male" gaze, oh my!
The answer is no, not while all 10 X-Men films still exist. However, the newest addition to the DCEU comes close!
When the first trailer was released, I admit that I had no desire to see The Suicide Squad. As a (shamed) fan of the 2016 adaptation, I was apprehensive about the newest rendition of the team and the director behind the film. But, I’m happy to say James Gunn surprised me, and not just because the film is good; the film is also… surprisingly queer? Now, I - a queer - may be twisting this, and that’s fine! But I cannot be the only one that noticed the dick measuring contest happening between Peacemaker and Bloodsport, or the way the camera constantly focused on the bodies of the men in the film.
The focus on these bodies is done in a way that you would never see in a Marvel film. Those films, even if there’s a shot of a shirtless Hollywood Chris, are so sanitized that it’s hard to picture these characters doing anything other than fighting crime. I mean, when the sexiest thing your franchise has to offer is Bucky Barnes sauntering away from a demolished car, you’ve got some work to do. Each time the camera lingers on the men of the Suicide Squad, it’s done with a purpose, like James Gunn wants our eyes to linger on the sweat, muscles and blood in front of us.
Alongside this warped male gaze, we need to talk about the dynamic between Peacemaker (John Cena) and Bloodsport (Idris Elba). From the beginning, these two are at odds with each other. Even their names are completely opposite, with Elba’s character name symbolizing a rogue mercenary, and Cena’s character name signaling a beacon of hope. The two quip like an old married couple, with each of them straining to be the leader of this new interpretation of the Suicide Squad. When they first meet thanks to Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), the first words they exchange are about who’s the best shot, with Peacemaker saying his bullets are smaller and can “go right through” Bloodsport’s.
The first night of their mission, the team is woken by Nanaue (King Shark) attempting to eat Cleo (Ratcatcher 2). As the other crusaders attempt to stop him, the camera pans to show Peacemaker in nothing but what Bloodsport later calls “tighty whities.” It’s a glorious shot, and it’s not just one of Cena’s bare chest. In superhero films, men are often seen shirtless, but it’s done in a way that deprives these characters of their sex appeal, and usually, the camera does not go below the belt. Here, the camera lingers on Cena’s body, like James Gunn wants you to look at Cena’s junk - which, by the way, is hard to miss. Not only is the camera focusing on it, but every character seems to be focusing on it too.
The next scene featuring both Bloodsport and Peacemaker sees them showing off for each other in the most homoerotic way possible: killing people. As they enter what the Suicide Squad thinks is an army base, the two men take turns killing people in increasingly impressive ways to impress the other. Their relationship is one that pushes and pulls, with neither man being able to fully succumb to their “desires” for one another before the film ends. When their fates finally collide during the film's climax, the two stand-off against each other: guns drawn, bruised and bloody, staring into each other’s eyes across the way. It’s a good old fashioned gunslinging showdown, as Peacemaker and Bloodsport cock their guns at the same time. What follows is a slow motion sequence showing each man’s bullet singing through the air, until, finally, they collide. Bloodsport’s bullet is smaller and easily buries itself within Peacemaker’s, exploding the other man's bullet from within. See what I’m saying?
If I went on and analyzed each moment filled with queer subtext in The Suicide Squad, I would be committed to a mental institution and you, dear reader, would have long ago fallen asleep. What I’m trying to get at - and what this whole newsletter is about - is that there is intentional and unintentional queer subtext in everything. Did James Gunn mean to make Peacemaker and Bloodsport a case of enemies to homoeroticism to enemies? Probably not! But these instances of homoerotic tension between Cena and Elba’s characters sure made the film more enjoyable than it already was.
Sanitization in regard to cinema is something often talked about on Twitter.com, and that topic is even more prevalent in regards to superhero films. In an essay for Lithium Magazine, I wrote about sex scenes in cinema and how caped crusaders have essentially wiped out any sex appeal in blockbusters. That is, until The Suicide Squad. Regardless of the relationship between Peacemaker and Bloodsport, from Rick Flagg in a tight t-shirt with a bunny on it, to Idris Elba smoking a cigarette while his hands are cuffed behind his back, it seems like James Gunn took a nod from the Zack Snyder school of capturing men’s bodies. Almost every man in the film has a scene where the camera focuses on their body longingly, and for a movie that’s mostly going to be seen by Dude Bros, that’s pretty queer to me.
