Sucker Punch

Starring: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens, Jamie Chung, Carla Gugino, Oscar Isaac, Jon Hamm, Scott Glenn
Directed by: Zack Snyder
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
2011

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A young girl (Emily Browning) in a mental institution retreats to a world of her imagination as she searches for a way to escape and reclaim her freedom.

Review:

Tim: I like Zack Snyder. I thought Dawn of the Dead was great, 300 was really good, Watchmen was great, and Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole was surprisingly good. So, despite thinking Sucker Punch looked stupid, I was willing to give Snyder the benefit of the doubt. He certainly proved me wrong with his owl movie. Unfortunately, his magic ran out on this. The biggest problem is that this is just a stupid, stupid movie. I felt like it was a massive waste of my time. I was bored, it was predictable, and the story was almost completely atrocious.

I'll start with the visuals. As you might expect from Snyder, the visuals are impressive. The fantasy world of the lead character's imagination is incredible to look at- whether she's battling orcs, undead NAZIs, dragons, robots, or whatever the else she fought. This film felt like an overflowing potluck of fanboy elements. What other movie features all of those villains, plus a heroine in a short skirt with a sword and gun? This movie was made for a certain demographic. The special effects align with that- from the slow motion fight scenes, to the fire-breathing dragon, to the constant gunfire and swordfights. Everything looks very, very impressive. Plus, Snyder appeals to the fanboy in all of us. There's just one problem. All the monsters and zombies and dragons and robots in the world don't mean anything if the story at the heart is weak. And the story here is brittle.

I never got into why I was supposed to care. It might have been the loud music paired with the slow motion, or just a general lack of character development, but I felt completely removed from everything happening in this film. It was never my struggle, and I never really cared about any of the characters. I felt like the beginning of the movie was choppy, rushed, and telegraphed how the movie would end. None of the fantasy scenes mean anything if we don't relate to and sympathize with the one doing the fantasizing. Snyder dropped the ball hugely on this, by rushing into the blitzkrieg of fantasy elements.

Despite the weak script, I thought the cast was better than expected, even though they actually weren't that good (and even though almost all of them were 2nd or 3rd choices for the parts). Emily Browning is good in the lead role in a physical way. She is believable as a swordfighting, gun toting heroine. However, her acting just seems forced and wooden. It might have been the script. When she is staring straight ahead with her sword, gun, and blonde hair, she seems impressive. When you consider her actual acting ability, it leaves a bit to be desired. However, I fault the script more than anything.

Abbie Cornish, in my opinion, was a poor choice. I never cared about her character, and I think it comes almost completely from her lack of acting ability. She didn't impress me in the least, and I hated every scene of her in the film. Jena Malone is an actress I usually like, and I thought she did a good job with the limitations placed on her by the script. Vanessa Hudgens did nothing impressive, but didn't do anything to make me hate her more, either. Carla Gugino was a waste, besides her pretty awful accent. Jon Hamm felt completely ridiculous, like movies are just adding him in small roles for the shock factor. I didn't buy it, and it felt cheap. Scott Glenn was fine, and has some of the best scenes of the film. It was a good part for him.

Although I tried to like this movie, I was shocked by how bad it turned out to be. Snyder just made a massive misstep here. In my opinion, this is by far the worst film he's ever directed. I hope he learns from this bloated, silly mess and gets back to being the filmmaker we know he can be. Sucker Punch is a movie that fails on nearly every single level. Even the end, which tried so hard to be surprising and cool, flaws flat. Again- if I don't care about the character, it's real hard to care about whatever twists you throw in there. This is a bad, bad movie.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 4



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: 300, Watchmen, Dawn of the Dead, Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole