Movie Review: Sucker Punch

Sucker Punch

Dir: Zack Snyder

It's interesting to me to see what Zack Snyder is capable of doing. At times recreating my favorite comic books into spectacles of vision and effect, making zombies olympic sprinters, and dabbling with animated owls, all at times showing something unique. Though his films are a constant up and down of satisfaction with me, Sucker Punch was something different. It seemed just as I was falling in love with the film, some element of the film would change and make it something different. 

The story is basically Alice in Wonderland, a story that takes our main character farther down the rabbit hole, though this Alice is equipped with heavy artillery and a mini skirt. Simply, a young girl trying to protect herself and her sister from an abusive parent accidentally kills her sister. She is put in a mental institute with further unsavory characters, and in an act of self defense retreats into the world of her mind where she is adult entertainment, and again retreats farther into her mind where she uses weapons and martial arts, with the help of the other entertainers, to finally break free. The story, within a story, within a story, is interesting and executed as well as can be expected, though at times I wished they portrayed a little more of each of the other worlds.  The acting is held together mostly by Jena Malone, with subtle contribution from Abbie Cornish, who play sisters in the adult club. About halfway through the film I wondered if Emily Browning, the main character, had spoken a word of dialogue yet? It's the subtle mannerisms that really captivate her performance. Scott Glenn also has a nice role in this film, the poor man's David Carradine if you will. 

Altogether Sucker Punch was fun, and again visually stunning and exciting. I loved the musically score, which was a remix of some classic songs from the Pixies, Bjork, and Marilyn Manson. Emily Browning puts a great spin on one of the songs as well. What I wasn't pleased with was some of the story aspects, it doesn't all quit fit back together in the end. And, though not directly implied, one has to question whether the young girl was stable in reason or if she was suffering from a mental disease all along. It's a fairly depressing film, what seems so liberating for the girls that are being victimized is constantly under-minded by the presence of reality. Even the freedom sought in the mind is corrupted by the world they are trying to escape.

Monte's Rating: 4 out of 5.