I really like Zack Snyder. I like his style as a director, the insanely epic worlds that he creates onscreen, and his last two movies – 300 and Watchmen. That said, I’m not equally impressed with his newest film, Sucker Punch.
Sucker Punch, according to Snyder himself, is an “Alice in Wonderland with machine guns.” By that, he means an intense, action-packed, whirlwind of a movie with pretty girls using every weapon imaginable defeating ridiculous imaginary villains. The perfect combination for the fanboy crowd Snyder is obviously targeting.
The story follows Babydoll, who is sent to a mental asylum following (wrongful) accusations that she murdered her sister. Facing a lobotomy in five days, Babydoll teams up with four other girls to escape from the institution, armed with their imaginations and will to survive.
I loved the action in Sucker Punch. Typical top-notch work by Snyder here, with amazing landscapes of World War I aerial dog fights, trench warfare, Japanese temples, and medieval sieges. Enough slow-mo effects to put The Matrix to shame.
In addition to the awesome action, there’s a little bit of character development, and even some psychological twists that seem so popular these days with the success of movies such as Shutter Island, Inception, and Black Swan.
However, the small plusses come a little too late, as much of the movie is filled with a slow, predictable, and ridiculously absurd storyline in between the action. I understand that it’s supposed to be all fantasy and exaggeration, but when I have to mentally scream at the movie to move a little faster and make a little more sense, then we have a problem.
All in all, Sucker Punch had great visuals and action, but lacked the meat to hold everything together. 2.5/5
Falcon Punch at randomtidbitsofthought.wordpress.com.
