Sucker Punch

Director: Zach Snyder
Writers: Zach Snyder, Steve Shibuya
Starring: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone
Release Date: March 25, 2011
Length: 2 hours

Imaginative director Zach Snyder, of 300 and Watchmen, delivers his first original action movie, Sucker Punch. Now that Snyder has gained enough recognition and appreciation in his career, he can finally make the fantasy he had as a 13 year old into a real film. Sucker Punch stars Australian actress Emily Browning as Baby Doll, a 20-year-old girl living in the 1950’s who has been forced into an insane asylum by her demonic stepfather. When she arrives at Lennox House, Baby meets four other institutionalized girls, Rocket (Jena Malone), Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens), Amber (Jamie Chung) and the cold standoffish Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), who have turned their tragic time there into an escaped figment of their imagination. Under the guidance of the Polish Dr. Vorski (Carla Gugino), the girls pretend the old wrecked theater, being used as a building for the institution, is an old Burlesque bar and they are the dancers forced to work in it. The bar is run by the cocky and abusive Blue Jones (Oscar Isaac), who really runs their division of the asylum and most likely sexually assaults them in reality. After Baby finds out she is due for a lobotomy from the feared High Roller (Jon Hamm) in five days, she tells the girls her plan of breaking out of Lennox House. When Baby dances, she escapes even further into an unreal world, where she is guided by the spiritual and old Wise Man to collect four objects and defend herself. When her peers decide to join her, Baby and the group begin to execute Wise Man’s plan in continuously dangerous adventures within their wildest imaginations. There is always a wonderful eerie feeling created by a Zach Snyder film. With the always interesting choice of music, stunning visual effects and art direction, the film is brought to a disturbingly unreal level. One of the most compelling parts in particular is the first seven minutes of the film that introduces Baby’s story with no dialogue; just fantastic music, slow motion and incredible visuals. Watching Sucker Punch is like going through a beautiful crazy dream of somebody else’s. You aren’t amazingly pulled into the film to the extent that you forget you’re sitting in a movie theatre, but it is always breathtaking to witness. It is safe to say that visually and musically, Sucker Punch nails it. Abbie Cornish and Jena Malone give terrific performances and Emily Browning carries the film very well as the lead character. Oscar Isaac is superbly menacing as Blue Jones and Jon Hamm and Carla Gugino are marvelous in their two-minute roles. There is so much to appreciate about Sucker Punch down to the costumes and make-up besides the action scenes. Those were when I woke up from the dream. I’m unsure if Zach Snyder was trying to make this film replicate a video game but a girl in a sailor’s outfit, sword fighting and shooting undistinguishable figures or warriors seems like one to me. As a girl, who isn’t addicted to video games, I couldn’t fully enjoy the action sequences without thinking they were there to make teenage boys smile and definitely will. If you are the kind of person who falls in love with storylines and settings that are made up in the characters mind, you will respect and enjoy that glorious aspect of this film. If you don’t get anything out of imaginative plots, I can tell you right now, you will not care for Sucker Punch in the slightest, unless of course, you are a teenage boy. Sucker Punch is a film that entices you with its original premise and unsettling storyline, but loses you in its pointless action scenes that take up half the film and will make or break your enjoyment of the film.