Hot women with guns!
Sucker Punch (2011)
Directed By: Zack Snyder (300)
The Prologue
It came to my attention the other day that outside that Owl move he made, I not only have seen every Zack Snyder movie, I own them. Well there was one I hadn’t seen, that was Sucker Punch! I’m sure you have noticed but Zack Snyder tends to do movies based off other people’s work. Watchmen, 300, Dawn of the Dead, all none of his own material. But he took that stuff and made very good movies out of them. But in Sucker Punch, if we don’t count the connections to Alice in Wonderland, or more importantly American McGee’s Alice, he’s now doing his own thing. Which seems to be just lasting a single film since we all know he’s got the next Superman movie next.
The Movie
A young girl (Baby Doll) is locked away in a mental asylum by her abusive stepfather where she will undergo a lobotomy in five days’ time. Faced with unimaginable odds, she retreats to a fantastical world in her imagination where she and four other female inmates at the asylum, plot to escape the facility. The lines between reality and fantasy blur as Baby Doll and her four companions, as well as a mysterious guide, fight to retrieve the five items they need that will allow them to break free from their captors before it’s too late…
With a movie like this mixed with the women we get in it, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a red blooded man who doesn’t want to see it. And above anything else, the movie does come across as just eye candy. Of the hot women in skimpy outfit nature and of the weird but spectacular settings mixed with action and explosion nature. And it’s a very interesting story. If you didn’t know better you’d think it was another Snyder film with him putting his spin on a comic book, but it’s not. Yet it still looks like it fits right in next to any other comic based movie, especially Snyder’s Watchmen and 300. There’s a LOT of CGI but since the film is PG-13 we don’t have to deal with CGI gore so it works out just fine.
Our main character, Baby Doll, and her friends are sent on a mission to gather five things for their escape. The fifth thing, is of course a secret which makes you guess a bit as to what that could be. The trouble I had with the film (and I didn’t have trouble with much), was the fact the four missions we see them go on (while outstanding looking) doe make the film seem like it’s dragging in spots when according to the run-time it isn’t. I would have been happy with just three things they needed and then a mystery object. Because truth be told some object they go after (like a knife and lighter) should have been easy enough to find without a grand adventure. And the fact they seem hell bent on going after only certain ones from certain people just seems a little silly. Also, if I must complain a bit. I didn’t feel emotionally attached to any characters or the story. I thought it was fun and cool, but I was still impartial.
As far as acting goes everyone does a fine job. And it’s always great to see Vanessa Hudgens in something not Disney related. Come to think of it, this may be the only thing I’ve seen her in that wasn’t. The pretty women to look at is here and the action is here in spades. We get great action scenes and even if I wasn’t that emotionally attached to any of it, it was still a cool story to spite being just a little bit too predictable. I guess if you wanted a simple way to put it, it’s just harmless fun that you can’t or shouldn’t take too seriously. I am also very happy to hear The Smith’s old tune, “Asleep”, in a film even if it wasn’t their version. But should we look for anything less from a man who seems to have great taste in music? Also a man who once directed a Morrissey video ya know? But as far as Sucker Punch goes, it’s worth watching when you just want something fun.
The Conclusion
I guess we could call it Alice in Wonderland with gun (Some of you might get that). But Snyder has yet to make a movie I didn’t like. But again keep in mind I haven’t seen his little Owl story. If he can keep this up however perhaps he can give us a good Superman movie? If it’s as good and as fun as Sucker Punch, I don’t think he’ll hear many complaints. Be sure to pick this up or rent it on the 28th of this month.
The Rating (7.5/10)
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