Film Failure, thy name is Zack
Now, almost a decade later, I have the luxury of rewatching this with all the past years defenses and criticisms in mind, and all the extra "information" now out in the open.
I think, ultimately, that the verdict on this is written by a single act alone: Zack Snyder spending almost a year continually having to "explain" all the parts of the movie as he "intended" them to be, and the continual fanbases' whine of "you just don't get it".
If the large majority of people didn't get what you were trying to say in the movie, then THAT'S THE MOVIE'S FAULT. Not the audience - that's a failure to communicate what you intended. That's bad moviemaking. If you have to dig through 3 layers of meaning to get to what the supposed "proper" one is, then again, the movie is a failure as art. You can't claim to be talking about some particular topic when you layer the completely opposite 10 miles deep on top, and then fail to acknowledge that your message is in complete opposition to what your movie actually shows and promotes.
That's not to say that all art has to be 1 dimensional and superficial. But the fact is, Sucker Punch is a morass of conflicting messages that it results in an almost unwatchable mess. It can't decide whether it is a parody, social criticism, straight porn, or just an anime action homage. Snyder doesn't have the intelligence as a scriptwriter and director to juggle the competing messages successfully - he just presents them all together, as "Choice A, B, and C", then whines that "Of course you were supposed to pick C!" when there's no reason to do that whatsoever.
Given Snyder's movies in the intervening decade, Sucker Punch is a pretty good example of how he's not an auteur, and, frankly, more like a Michael Bay where visuals "tell the story", which, if the truth be told, is frankly almost completely lacking in any impact. It's all flash and no substance. There really is No There There.
To quote another poster on the internet: Sucker Punch really is deep. As a puddle.
Film You Have To Look Deeper
I had read a lot of negative reviews for this movie before watching it, but I felt like I should give it the benefit of the doubt and go for it.
That time I watched it, I didn't love it, and I didn't hate it. I understood all the negative reviews. It's filled with action, and while the special effects aren't terrible, the story just seemed so lacking! I thought it could be way more if they had just done a few things differently.
So, I left it alone for a few years... and then I read about it from a completely different view, and once I re watched it, Sucker Punch became one of my favorites.
It's one of the best examples of Fridge Brilliance ever, really. Trust me, you won't understand SuckerPunch until you look deeper.
I think there's something for everyone, and while this may not be it, I'd say give it a go so you can establish an opinion yourself.
Film Two positive reviews and no negatives?
It would be dishonest to call Sucker Punch a trashy movie. It is not a movie, it is a two hour long cut-scene from a bad videogame. It is hard for me to find a single facet of this movie that isn't god awful, and I'm struggling to even begin describing how it all goes so wrong.
The thing that stands out the most about this movie is just how excruciatingly boring it is; quite an achievement for a movie about scantily dressed babes fighting robot samurai. The problem is I don't give a damn about the vacuous protagonist and her implausible situation so there is no tension to the CGI heavy, anime-esque action sequences. The "real world" is more ridiculous than the dream sequence action scenes. It is a world in which a young lady can receive a lobotomy within days of being spuriously accused of murder, without any police inquiry (let alone a trial).
But why look for logic in something that is clearly meant to be dumb fun? Because the movie forgot to provide the fun. The action is an intangible clusterfuck of green screens, trashy rock covers and Zack Snyder's patented slowmo abuse. The first ten minutes of this movie is entirely shot in slow motion (I shit you not). The final insult is that in its desperate attempt to get a PG 13 rating, much of the violence and sexiness is curtailed and the cussing is drowned out. This movie just doesn't have the balls to give the goods.
I think the worst thing though is how the movie dresses itself up as a female empowerment allegory. These women are meant to use their looks, their imagination, and their strength of character to over come their real world and dream adversaries. But would the victims of rapists and murderers have fantasies about Lolita outfits, trench warfare and mecha? This isn't empowerment, it is exploitation. And these aren't escapist fantasies for women; they are the wet dreams of a 13 year old boy.
It might seem like I've been heavy on the hyperbole in this review, but I am honestly not not exaggerating. No one should watch it. If you're really tempted towards seeing this movie, just don't. You'd be better off with anime and internet porn.
Film Not perfect, but I'd rewatch it
First, let me state for the record that I am both straight AND female, so my reason for enjoying this film has nothing to do with Fanservice from the girls' outfits. Let me also state that I have a somewhat biased opinion, because I'm the type of person who, if given a choice, would rather rewatch movies like Sucker Punch compared to more lauded films like Avatar. In addition, I was 15 years old when this film came out and I first watched it.
This film has been criticised for sexism, shoehorning a message about feminism, fanservice, a nonsensical plot and a million and one other things I can't recall at the moment. However, when I went to watch Sucker Punch, I did so because the gritty landscapes of ruined, apocalyptic wastelands sucked me in. For some reason, I find this sort of scenery fascinating, perhaps morbidly so, and more so than bright and stunning scenery. Being a huge fan of fantasy, I loved the fantasy fight sequences in the third level of reality, and the hauntingly beautiful music only served to reinforce the sheer weight of despair and desperation emanating from the characters.
I thought the plot was intriguing, and though trying to truly understand it gave me a headache at the time, it fascinated me enough to make me want to rewatch it and examine the story again. Most of my friends can't understand why I enjoy it, but it nonetheless remains one of my favourites. Like I said though, I have rather strange tastes in movies, so maybe I'm just weird.
Film I didn't like it.
When I first saw the trailers I expected a dumb and entertaining movie aimed primary at geeks. First I didn't want to watch it, because too much Fanservice (there was enough of it in the trailers believe me...) makes me feel uncomfortable, but then various people highly recommended it, praised it and gushed about it like you wouldn't believe so I gave it a try.
The first question I asked myself after this movie was why the hell would Snyder cram his message about "you control your own fate blablabla" (which in my opinion is a pretty stupid message) and so on down our throat in a movie where blond schoolgirls fight Nazi Zombies and Dragons? Well, I think that Snyder with all his pointless symbolism and other stupid stuff he put in simply wanted to make the movie seem insightful or intelligent. You don't have to be very bright to get the message. In fact the movie flat out told us. Also you can find in almost anything some sort of message or deeper meaning if you search hard enough (or want to find it...). Oh and then there are the characters and their relationships, but to be honest... I really didn't care about them at all. There wasn't enough time for any complexity or development. I found all of them to be flat and extremely boring.
The most annoying thing about the movie are the fans. After expressing my dislike of this movie to various people almost everybody told me that I "don't get it" or that I should "open my mind a little bit". I understand the message of the movie alright? I just find the message to be stupid and handled in a ridiculous way.
To me this movie is nothing more than mindless and entertaining stupidity, but since I'm not a fan of Crazy Awesome or Rule Of Cool I didn't feel entertained. Oh and Snyder also made the probably most stupid and ridiculous excuse for Fanservice I've ever heard.
Film Sucker Punch
This seemed like less of a movie and rather an excuse to have 4 kick ass action sequences of roughly ten minutes each. That leaves about an hour of screen time to set up those individual excuses and make an attempt to give some arc, connection and coherence to the story. The first 12 minutes are the set-up that ostensibly occurs in the "real world" (if there is even such a thing in this story) and then another 6 minute scene near the end that is set there as well. The remaining 40-odd minutes take place in what seems to be a first-layer fantasy world where the limited character and plot development take place.
The inter-relationship among the three layers of reality is somewhat vague and, in the end, unsatisfying. There is a line between creating a thought-provoking story that gives rise to interesting and meaningful questions, and simply being as confusing as hell to mimick that in an otherwise transparent endeavour. People can go to great, twisted lengths to explain away ambiguities, omissions and inconsistencies here and there, but I got the feeling that the creator actually didn't know but went with it anyways.
The disconnect between the action scenes happening each in their own little world, and the first layer fantasy and the "real" world makes it hard to create much suspense or fear that the protagonists are actually in harm's way. Sure, the action sequences are well done, but the characters seem invincible and in any event, with one exception that occurs far to late, the threat of death in an action sequence doesn't compel the viewer to think that the other-world consequences are much to worry about, so there isn't much audience tension.
All of this doesn't make Sucker Punch a bad movie, just mediocre but with fantastic special effects. Many action movies are like this in that they are just a reason to blow some shit up, and the rest is filler. I would still recommend that people take the opportunity to watch it if they want to see cool, mixed-genre fight scenes and either a)they like to spend hours trying to think of how to make what they just saw make sense or b) they simply accept the fact that the rest is crap. And the "you're the sexist; no YOU'RE the sexist" schtick that the creator gets into is, at best, merely too clever by half and not worth discussing.
Film It Had Me At "Hello"
If Terry Gilliam and Quentin Tarentino collaborated on a movie it would be this movie. It has the layered approach to reality and moody atmospherics of the former and the babes and stylized violence of the latter. Some warnings: First, if you like your stories linear stay away from this one it's all about psychological symbology. Second don't pay attention to the trailers, yes there are hot women in stripperific outfits, swordfights and gunfights, dragons and undead Steam Punk Germans and they're all very fun but it's the characters and their relationships that grabbed me.
Also should note that the movie is bookended by two wonderful covers of 80s hits. I never thought that someone could match Annie Lennox's rendtion of "Sweet Dreams Are Made of This" but Emily Browning manages it largely by changing the tone from cynical and defiant to melencholy. At the end sit through the credits to catch "Love Is The Drug", a version that in context of what came before it is downright chilling.
Film Love It Or Hate It
I'm going to be honest: I loved Sucker Punch. I'm a female nerd Troper with a feminist streak wide as the Grand Canyon, and I freaking loved this movie.
Having said that, I'm going to continue with my honesty. Not everyone will like this movie. In fact, probably most of the people who see it will either see it as exploitative trash or completely confusing. But since True Art Is Incomprehensible, that's all good, right?
See, Sucker Punch has a powerful message buried underneath everything: you control your own fate. It's a message to men that they're scumbags who take advantage of women, yes, but it's also a message to women that men aren't what's stopping them. And the way that Snyder chooses to tell this moral is convoluted and dangerous. I understand Baby Doll's motivations. I get where she's coming from. But I've spent years in my fantasy worlds. I know what she's trying to do. Not everyone who sees her will have been where I've been. And not everyone who sees her will appreciate her for what she is.
I can't make it any more clear than that. This film is not light entertainment. It's not mindless exploitation. But at the same time it's not preachy and heavy-handed a la Avatar. It simply exists, and any ideas you have about it are ones that you came up with. Does it empower women? This woman (and her three friends who saw it, two female and one male) says yes. Does it vilify the mental health system? No. It vilifies those who take advantage of that system to exploit the vulnerable souls within. Is it sexist drivel? No.
But will you like it?
Only you can make that decision.
Film I was left wanting more...
...but not necessarily in a good way.
First off: I had a good time watching this film, mostly. It was entertaining in many ways, frankly gorgeous to look at, with great fight sequences (again, mostly) and a frigging beautiful sound track. Even as I found nits to pick with the film I still enjoyed it, which is what matters to me.
What also matters to me, however, is story, and as others before me have pointed out this film was a tad lacking in that department. I had no real quibbles with the general plot itself, and I believe that handled better it could have made for an extremely interesting tale, but the problem is that this kind of story, a psychological battle for self-healing and freedom, really needed to be driven just as much by the characters as the special effects and situations, and unfortunately we get far more of the latter two than the former.
Now, credit where it's due, I did actually care about some of the characters and what was going to happen to them; but to this I plead bias. The very concept of a lobotomy terrifies me, and I wouldn't wish it on even a fictional character. So yes, I wanted Baby Doll to escape from the asylum, but more from the desire that she avoid such a horrible fate rather than any serious attachment to her. As for the other girls, only Rocket and Sweet Pea lived up to the advertising blurb that had gotten me so excited; Amber and Blondie, given so little to do as they were, made practically no impression on me other than that, oh yeah, there was occasionally someone flying a vehicle or firing a gun or sobbing hysterically.
And the sad fact of the matter is that this could have been remedied if the film hadn't been such an extensive tribute to CGI and battle underwear. Several battles could easily have been trimmed to make room for more characterization and still have been brilliant to watch without becoming tedious, as I hate to say they did. One scene on the futuristic train stands out in particular, simply because it went on for way, way too long. So long, in fact, that I was quite literally begging for it to finish, and not least because it was making me feel queasy due to the way it was shot.
I repeat, I enjoyed the film. I'm glad I saw it. But while I'm by no means disappointed, all the while I wanted more (or sometimes less) than what Sucker Punch ultimately gave me.
Film The quircks of sexual attraction
This film has, when not in the action scenes, pretty good settings (the huge jukebox in Blue's room and the posters on the walls in the practice area). This film has boring fight scenes, one of which is unnecessary (all girls except for Babydoll have been scrubbing floors and walking about freely for some time, they don't need a map, so that action sequence was one we could have done without).
Now to the funny bit. Snyder keeps showing these girls in a sexualized way (I could go on for ages about the amounts of paedophilia Babydoll brings with her into every single scene), and then states that we must feel guilty because we are manipulating these innocent girls for our pleasure. The second time round I actually found an attractive female in the entire movie (something I failed to do the first time) and it was Gorski. I liked Gorski because nobody was trying to add or subtract from her apparent age, I liked her because as inept and helpless as she is she still has some agency. We can actually think about what she did and how she would act based on things we know for sure, with her it wasn't a game of fill in the blanks, that is to say it was but strangely enough to a lesser extent than with the girls. If talking about the purely physical then dresses helped too, unlike Amber's corset which made me fear she would be smothered by her own cleavage. (Of course even Gorski is so weak that the first time watching I clearly remember Blue killing her for no apparent reason)
So where does that leave me in regards to the film's Great Moral? Angry and insulted (maybe a tad amused). I am insulted on behalf of men for once, this flick was obviously not meant for straight or most lesbian women (not sure if Snyder realized that girls go to the movies at all, or even if they exist outside fetish fantasies) no matter what he says. The men are, on the other hand shown as childish and disgusting (Blue, the cook) sex-obsessed pigs, who will swallow down anything. They obviously have no preferences, they're men after all!
In this film about finding your own strength everyone is lead and generally bullied into doing anything. Remember folks, it's OK to be raped or be bullied into sex, you'll kill the man in the end or you'll learn that it was all for a greater good!
Film Polarising, but well worth the watch.
YMMV quite a bit, but Sucker Punch is possibly my new favourite film.
Anyone watching this for the fanservice/action alone has missed out on so much of what makes this a great film. Sucker Punch is a film with layers, and to fully appreciate this brilliance, you'll need to think. A lot. It's something that won't appeal to a lot of people, and I just count myself lucky that this film suits my personality and imagination enough for me to truly love it.
Put simply, the movie is a parody/satire/thing of Male Gaze. That insane action-fantasy-fanservice thing you're watching? That's the film analogy for Babydoll's dance: something so emptily attractive or erotic that it sucks you in. That's what the asylum staff are seeing!
The whole movie is like this- deep layers and meanings that justify or mock the shallow action. This is an art film that manages to be as entertaining as all hell when it wants to be. Go see it as soon as you get the chance.
Film It's a good movie
I've read a lot of negative reviews on this page, and none of them were really about the film, rather they were about what was percieved to be the film.
Sucker Punch is not a film for stupid people. It's not some Matrix or 300 where you can go to the bathroom or answer some texts during the movie. It's really complex and you have to be paying attention the whole way throughout.
If you do, I promise you you won't regret it
(Also, anyone who says the film is sexist hasn't seen it)
Film A gamer's bad trip
As the title says, that's how I felt about the "dream world" parts. The main plot point is an inexplicable Fetch Quest for completely arbitrary items, which could easily be emulated by much more common ones, like a box of matches from the kitchen instead of the mayor's ornate lighter, but I guess the developers didn't think about that. It's even lampshaded with the cook's knife. The fantasy worlds caused by Baby Doll's dances are painfully devoid of any creativity. And I'm not talking just about the parts lifted from Peter Jackson. They all mash-ups of general themes we've seen hundreds if not thousands of times. And the action is just grind. Luckily, we didn't get an Escort Mission in a sewer.
But maybe I shouldn't look at the movie from that perspective. After all, the blandness is fully self-aware and just a brilliant lampshade of geek entertainment. And the movie has an important Aesop for us. Which is: only you control your life. You are the one who defines your strengths and fears. Only you can set yourself free.
Um, yes I got that. It didn't require much thinking. In fact, the movie flat out tells us that. Repeatedly. And it's not like it's the first work to come up with that.
So, how do the protagonists get around to controlling their lives?
By escaping into fantasies, of course.
Well, I have years and years of experience in that. It never really worked that way. So I'm gonna call this a bit of false advertising.
Of course, the movie's supposed to be so much more than that. But I don't buy it. Zack Snyder wanted to make a satire on geek media or something, so he went for the most primitive way of doing one — to play all the parodied tropes completely straight, but it's A-OK, because we lampshade that we do it. It's no longer just bad writing — since the creator know it is, it suddenly turns... good?
Well, hell no, it doesn't. And just because you say you wanted to put a deep meaning in it doesn't mean it's actually there.
As you can tell from the above rant, I didn't enjoy the movie. In itself it's just bland, but it's the pretentiousness that is plain offensive. Even more so since the default response from Snyder (and the fans, so it seems) to those who didn't like it is "you're just too dense to get it".
Again, it's not as if I didn't hear that one before.
Film Requires Double Think
This seem to be a movie that people either love or hate. A friend wanted to see it with me, and I said okay but warned him that I had heard bad things about it. He decided that we should go and see it anyways, and it turned out that I loved the movie but he hated it.
The thing is, Sucker Punch works on so many levels simultaneously. This can be one hell or a ride, or simply exhausting.
The way I see it, there are two ways to enjoy this movie. Either turn off your brain and enjoy the action without trying to make any sense of it whatsoever. Or go with the flow, and accept a fractured reality with multiple layers of Unreliable Narrator where reality itself is reduced to From A Certain Point Of View. To enjoy Sucker Punch at this level require massive Double Think of the audience. Not only simultaneously taking in three separate levels of reality and simultaneously taking each one for what it is, but also doing it fluently. The last part is crucial: The story isn't deep enough to be worth the effort if you have to struggle with it. For it to be fun, you need to do the Double Think reality-juggling while relaxing and enjoying the ride.
The final argument between my friend and I was that he thought the wise man's wisdoms were shallow and corny. And I was like, "Of course they are: The wise man is not a real ultimate guru, he's the ultimate guru dreamt up by an immature and mentally unstable young woman". And he was like "Okay, but that's not worth watching!" and I was like "yes it is".
So, in conclusion, this movie is insane. For better and worse. Personally, I loved it.
Film Shallow
If there's one thing I've learned about Snyder films, it's this: Snyder is a good visual director, and as a result his films look nice after the first viewing. But once you look past the visuals, his films don't have much past them.
This film is no different.
The film relies heavily on visual graphics - and much of the imagery and even some story elements feel to have been borrowed from other, better movies. Most of the imagery feels to be there just because it looks cool, or to try to give a feeling of depth that really isn't there. Though the graphics are nice to look at and have some good moments, they just aren't enough to hold the movie up.
It also gives me the feeling that Zack is starting to use CGI as a crutch. It makes we wonder if he could make a movie without any CGI or special effects at all.
The story itself is a mess and feels soulless. The characters aren't given any room to develop, and are really only arc types to move the plot along. Coupled with repetitive dream sequences where it's practically spelled out to the audiences how they will go, the middle of the movie gets predictable and dull. By the time the film gets to its closing act, it's hard to really care about the characters. As for the dreams themselves, the symbolism of the items is obvious, and there isn't anything else to them otherwise. Most of the dreams feel disconnected to the rest of the movie, even more so when coupled with the imagery that only serves to look cool.
The acting ranges from average to poor, but nothing stands out.
The music is nice, though at the same time feels like the obvious choice. A few times the music feels to outshine the visuals, and make some of the scenes feel like music videos. I once heard that Zack actually picks the music before working on the scene. He should probably break that habit.
However, I wouldn't say it's a horrible movie, there's certainly worse. It's passable, something that kills time with some nice special effects but otherwise pretty forgettable. Zack should probably stick with adaptations and remakes, or at least leave the script in more talented hands.
Film Looking Good does not equal Good - Simple as That.
What am I implying here with this review of Suck Punch. Exactly what the title says.
As an attempt to do a film about female empowerment, Sucker Punch kind of a failure, unfortunately, filled with posing, posing, and more posing to special effects we've all seen and glossed over before, helped along only by the downer of an ending (though the beginning makes sense, sad and dark as it is, too). In Zac Snyder's position, this kind of dark and sad ending, bright new hope beginning setup worked in 300, a movie from him I actually like - this, sadly, felt like self-parody of past works from /snyder as an end result to me. This is because of the moral tacked-on before the credits.
I think if Snyder and Co. hadn't casted all hot women to do this movie, everything in it would have been more believable. That and the villains lacked motivation- they, like the main characters, hookers that they sadly are, were just THERE. Nothing more, nothing less.
But most importantly, and I need to reiterate- casting hot women beating up on hundred-to-thousands of bad guys with little to no tension or motivation for their actions whatsoever does not make for compelling cinema, now does it?
Also, seeing Zac Snyder on a ton of the credits didn't ease matters, making this feel more like a personal story about how he feels about women in general- which, to be honest, is not outside the plausability realm. I know this, though- I kind of get the feeling he thinks ill of them if all he could cast these main characters as is showgirls. At least he had the deceny to not make them dance all sexy just to keep audinence interest in the movie up.
I did like the special effects in this movie, but it''s like I said - special effects don't make the movie, but they can break it if that's all there is to it, which is what this movie felt like, with all the bland parts, one-dimensional characters (Sans the girls trying to escape - not completely), and overall, the fact it feels sleazy with the misuse of its message about female empowerment
At leasst Scott Glenn is a treat to see in this movie, even if he seems bored with it , IMHO. Peace Spoken.
Film Impressive, but Lacking
I liked this movie...but things could've been better.
The special effects of Sucker Punch is astonishing. The opening scene was great, with a dramatic remake of "Sweet Dreams Are Made of This" and striking imagery, probably the best opening scene I ever seen. The fight scenes were also awesome, and the Cyberpunk sequence, even though the focus was a little off there, was mind-blowing. The mecha in the Steampunk sequence was great too.
But the story...was mixed. On the positive side, it was a little deep at parts. The final scenes were heartwarming, and the three levels make some great Mind Screw. However, I can't believe it was two hours. Too much time was spend during the action scenes, that not enough Characterization is given. Both Amber and Blondie...are just there. They only served to fill out rolls in the Five Man Band, and they had no personality. Any character could've been betrayed them to Blue, just by seeing them. Also, I wanted to see the dance scenes at least a little bit, just a little peek.
Lastly, I wished there was one more fantasy sequence at the end. The ending felt like an Anti Climax. I wanted Babydoll to fight one more time, as Sweet Pea escapes, and Babydoll spends the last few seconds fighting before being lobotomized.
Distribute the time a little better, and work more on the story.
I rate this movie three and a half stars out of five.
Film Yes, sexy action girls can go horribly wrong
I actually expected a lot from this movie. I thought, "How can sexy action babes in scenes taken out of videogames go wrong?" The answer is, yes, it can. It did. There is absolutely no coherence in the plot. The rampant sexism is laughable. The themes of female empowerment is completely negated with the fetishistic outfits. It features the worst cover ever of "Tomorrow Never Knows" by the Beatles. In fact, the best thing I can say about it is that it made me want to watch Kill Bill again.
Film Confusing but Awesome
I'll be honest, I was very worried for the first half of the movie. It seemed random and stupid to the point it had me thinking of walking out of the theater but maybe 5 min before Rocket died it just sort of clicked, all the crazy, silly, things suddenly made perfect sense and I was completely hooked. The movie is very much a love it or hate it film (me being the former) and I can see why. I'm finding a lot of the love it reviews say it just takes a lot of thinking but thats not true, it takes a different kind of thinking, the ability through the eyes of insane person, to see how it all flows and interconnects, which is why if you view it with a more ridged stance it seems non-sensical and boring. So I get what both sides are thinking but personally this film was a dream.
Film It's... definitely a movie
I don't really know what to make of Sucker Punch. I certainly don't hate it, but it certainly wasn't anywhere near as entertaining as I hoped it would be. The action sequences were masterfully executed and brilliantly presented, but the only one which got any real exploration whatsoever was the World War I sequence. By far the coolest dreamworld of the four was the far-future cyberpunk colony on Titan, but it got even less characterisation than the dragon-slaying Mordor world. We only got to see about thirty seconds of the city, which was probably the coolest-looking thing in the film. What it felt like was a series of exceptionally entertaining music videos connected by a very weak plot. The Gainax Ending didn't really add or resolve anything. Zack Snyder is a very good director, but not a good storyteller.
Film ...I liked it.
Sucker Punch...how can I begin to describe Sucker Punch?
I read some reviews before going to see the movie, and they were mostly negative. However, the trailers were too epic for me to not see it, so I did.
The mood of the first part of the movie (the real world) is mysterious and miserable. It was impressive how they could get so much through with so little speaking. The transitions between worlds is nice and smooth. The brothel serves to keep the plot going while the fantasy world serves to just be epic. I'll be honest, sometimes the action sequences got downright ridiculous, but that made perfect sense, since it was all a hallucination. Besides, it all fit in the brothel world and in the real world in some twisted way.
The movie felt like I was watching an anime, playing a video game and reading a comic at the same time. And it felt great. Seriously, I'd play this game, I'd watch this anime and I'd read this comic any day. Even if you don't think the same as I do in the above paragraph, you have to admit this film is just fun to watch. It's fast, it's sexy. At first I thought that would be all it would be, but I was wrong. Very wrong.
Overall he effects were nicely done, and the acting was decent enough. The message and the way it ends really moved me. It's a movie that will stay in my mind for a very long time. Even if it's a polarizing film, I think it'll stay in the public conscience.
Film Good movie that could've been much more
I loved Sucker Punch, it was a fast paced film with great action, creative backdrops, a creative premise and some extremely emotional scenes. The use of music was fantastic and the villains were thoroughly disgusting.
Now onto the problems, after watching this movie, I asked myself a bunch of questions, and they all began one way, What If.
This film is full of could'ves and should'ves, the limited characterization, bizarre pacing, continuity problems and let down of a third act (I'm fine with the ending, but everything building up to it was flawed) could've been solved. This movie screams inexperience, which makes sense, but it felt like this was a rushed job, a good editing and storyboarding session was desperately needed.
Let me explain, SPOILERS AHOY!, many characters lack motivation and characterization, Baby Doll was okay, but Emily Browning can't carry a film. Rocket and Sweet Pea were fine. Now onto the main problem...Amber and Blondie, what use do they have in the story? I feel like they were thrown in to increase the body count and were killed because there was nothing to do with them, they had little interaction so I couldn't bring myself to care for them. All of these problems with characterization could've been solved by putting aside thirty minutes at the beginning of the story for the characters relationships to blossom and Baby Doll to persuade the other girls into helping her with Rockets help.
A thirty minute introduction before the action, combined with more time between the action, would've been another improvement, pacing people. Also make every fight should've gotten longer and more epic (anybody think they blew their budget early?). And seriously, what's the deal with no final fight? Whenever she got a Mac Guffin there's a fight! That's how it goes.
Another thing that would've helped SP would be some sort of recurring theme or motif through the dream fights. All of this would build suspense towards the final confrontation. A thread that ties all the dreams together. And they didn't use the juxtaposition of fantasy and reality nearly as well as they could have.
Beyond my bitching, this really is a great film, go watch it, but I'll always feel like it could've been much much more.
Maybe the directors cut will fix these problems.
Film Highly Enjoyable, But Hard Hitting
I've heard a lot of people say that this movie is stupid. It's not. It isn't the most intelligent movie, but it can throw you on a few twists.
I highly like this movie. It's not good in an Oscar sort of way, but the action scenes are tons of fun, the acting is passable, and the parallels between the asylum, the brothel and the action world are interesting.
Film That was a well-plotted piece of non-claptrap that never made me want to retch!
What a waste of time and money this film was. I guess I should have realized from the Downer Beginning that the film was never going to get better. (Spoilers ahead.)
Two girls suffer the death of their mother and being at the mercy of their physically and sexually abusive stepfather. After the funeral, he tries to take advantage of the girls, the older one grabs his gun, shoots and hits the baby sister, killing her. He then uses his pull to have her arrested for the sister's death and lands in a mental institution with a bunch of other young women who prefer fantasy to their harsh realities and inevitable fates. Having fun yet?
While I do applaud the visual effects of the fantasies themselves, they really do not make up for the rest of the film. The writing is stitled and offensive. The story itself is disjointed. The cinematography outside of the fantasies is occasionally difficult on the eyes. The acting, while good, does not make you interested in any of the characters, good or evil. The protagonists all suffer horrible, undeserved fates, save for Sweet Pea (the only one who got away, albeit left with residual psychological trauma) and Blondie (who stupidly messed up the plans of the girls' escape and who I didn't feel anything for when she got killed—and I'm not alone in that sentiment; when I saw this, a group of people actually cheered when she got shot). The antagonists are too plentiful, serve as little more than misogynistic stereotypes or peripheral characters planted in to hurry the storyline along and, most disturbingly, receive absolutely no comeuppance for their crimes. I actually felt both dirty and drained after leaving the cinema.
If this film was hoping to be the next Watchmen or even Kick-Ass, then it failed miserably. You know you've goofed up your film's story and pissed off the fans when you have to come out later and Retcon the characters' supposed deaths, much like in Planet Terror (only that film is actually enjoyable and well-written). I have no idea what Zack Snyder was thinking when he made this, but if I ever meet him, I'll be sure to use a less offensive term when speaking about my distaste for the film, like "garbage" or "dreck".