Cinema Verdict Review: Sucker Punch

Sucker Punch

OPENING: 03/25/2011

STUDIO: Warner Bros. Pictures

RUN TIME: 110 min

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
You Will Be Unprepared

Opening Statement
I’m almost ashamed to admit that I liked Sucker Punch. All the reviews from “professional” critics suggest I should hate Zack Snyder’s latest slow-mo opus. And yet, by the time I left after the credits rolled and I regained the ability to move my eyes away from the screen, the only thought going through my head was: Boy, were they wrong!

Facts of the Case
A mental institution lends itself to Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch, a film set within the structure of the mind, ala Inception, except without all the exposition. A tragic accident sends Baby Doll (Emily Browning) to a local insane asylum where a corrupt warden exploits the women for his own personal use. Devising a plan to escape, Baby Doll and the other inmates engage in a dangerous battle, utilizing their wits and imagination to conquer their fears, and escape from a lifetime of servitude.

The Evidence
I’m not sure if the above description does Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch proper justice. This is the type of film that requires a second, maybe even third viewing in order to fully comprehend its vast scope. Is it complicated? Not really. Is it confusing? A bit. Is it fun? Hell yeah.

Snyder presents a dazzling, exciting, entirely computer-generated dream world that’s hard to resist. Planes circle blimps in a style reminiscent of World War I, humungous samurai warriors wield razor sharp katana blades amidst a snow covered dojo, dragons chase WWII bomber jets, and fat cooks defend their chocolate candy with razor sharp knives. Make no mistake, Sucker Punch is a video game come to life. No effort is made to conceal this fact; not even in the trailers, or countless promotional tie-ins. If you walked into Sucker Punch expecting something different, or more grounded in reality, then you’re an idiot.

So why did Punch bomb at the box office? I think the problem lies with the film’s failure to aim at any one particular demographic. Sucker Punch is too dark for youngsters, but not dark enough for the R-rated crowd (those expecting sex, bloody violence and grisly images); too geeky for girls, and too risqué for dates. Punch caters to movie geeks (like me), those who love CGI, and respect the slight nods to other motion pictures–Look! Lord of the Rings! Look! Seven Samurai! Look! Wings! This is visual pornography, replete with incredible fight sequences, nifty slow-mo shots, and a terrific soundtrack. If anything Sucker Punch deserves to be praised as the greatest music video of all time.

Yet, complaints from other critics are based on the film’s plot and characters, which they claim are not up to par with the film’s technical prowess. Okay. I’ll buy that. The characterization at times feels flat; the personas are shown by their names–Blondie, Baby Doll, Sweat Pea, Rocket–and wardrobe choices rather than by their actions or abilities. The story feels like one ripped off from a video game–the girls must collect four items (a lighter, a knife, a map, and a key) in order to escape the institution, while the dialogue does little but serve as a means to move the plot from point A to point B. (Granted, Snyder revealed that some 20-plus minutes of extra footage would find its way onto the Blu-ray, suggesting that most of the heavy characterization was excised in favor of spectacle.)

But what else did you expect?

Nothing in the ads promised anything otherwise, and yet critics walk out shaking their heads in disgust, surprised by the film’s overall execution.

Perhaps when not based on source material, people are unwilling to suspend belief. I didn’t find Sucker Punch more unbelievable, or lacking in characterization, than, say, Michael Bay’s Transformers, or Zack Snyder’s own 300, but those films were based on well-known properties, and have much higher critical scores as a result. Apparently it’s okay to adapt a video game or comic book for the big screen, so long as it comes patented first.

In Sucker Punch I found a thrilling, sometimes ponderous, splendidly shot action flick unlike anything I had previously seen. Like Watchmen, Snyder’s nifty comic book epic that ultimately crumbled under its own goofy significance, Sucker Punch refuses to play it straight. This isn’t Avatar, an otherwise stellar visual extravaganza that played to audience expectations when it came to character and story. No, this is dark, pulpy filmmaking, the kind typically reserved for Quentin Tarantino (eye popping visuals are to Snyder what dialogue is to Tarantino); the kind Tim Burton used to make. People punch, slice, shoot, and dance their way through situations; in Snyder’s world, violence is the only rational solution.

I liked Emily Browning’s sensuous Baby Doll, Vanessa Hudgeons’ rockin’ Blondie and Abbie Cornish’s Sweat Pea. Together, they made a slam-dunk trio. (Tellingly, after witnessing her performance in this film, Jenna Malone–who plays Rocket–has my vote to play Harley Quinn if they ever decide to include her character in the Batman films. She’s sexy, dangerous, and dangerously sexy.) Oscar Isaac, meanwhile, does an impeccable job playing the ruthless bastard who needs to die–quick. Scott Glenn was kinda random.

Sucker Punch caters to no one, but instead exists in a world of its own. All it asks, from the moment those curtains open to that somewhat diluted finale, is that we throw out convention and explore the realm of the imagination, and appreciate the film for what it is, instead of what it is not.

Personally, I think it’s the best film Snyder has offered so far–I can’t wait for Superman!

Closing Statement
Sucker Punch sees Zack Snyder doing what he does best–defying convention and delivering a bold, exciting, visually spectacular epic. Dont believe the haters, Sucker Punch is a damned good time.

The Verdict
8/10