FILM: SUCKER PUNCH

Posted by Primary primate on Apr 10, 2011 in Film, Reviews | 8 comments

Review By Duncan

Director: Zack Snyder

Cast: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Vanessa Hudgens, Jamie Chung, Jena Malone, Carla Gugino, Jon Hamm, Scott Glenn, Oscar Isaac

Synopsis: Presenting animated shorts inspired by Zack Snyder’s new film, Sucker Punch. Director Zack Snyder and animator Ben Hibon collaborated with Comflix Studios to further explore the fantasy worlds in the film. The animated shorts provide a distinct glimpse into those surreal places, allowing people to experience the worlds in a very unique way. “It made sense to me to not only approach the worlds from an original direction in terms of story and focus,” says Snyder, “but also to really push the visual style in a different direction as well. Having seen his contribution to the latest Harry Potter film and looking at some of his other recent work, Ben’s talent was obvious and his aesthetic felt like a perfect fit. His work is graphic and visually arresting.” Hibon relished an opportunity to expand upon Snyder’s unique vision. “Zack is one of the most exciting and original directors working in Hollywood today. Sucker Punch is nothing short of pure visual madness.” DISTANT PLANET: In Sucker Punch, the girls find themselves on another planet battling a robot militia on a hijacked train. In “Distant Planet” events unfold from the perspective of the robot hijackers leading up to the girls’ arrival. Sometimes those with less have more to fight for…

Review: As I was not a fan of WATCHMEN this reviewer had no expectations going into SUCKER PUNCH. In fact there was little Primate knew about the piece going in. This blind viewing perhaps added to the enjoyment. The sliver of information that I did have was that Aussie starlet Abbie Cornish had a leading role. Apart from this being a boom for her career it was a great casting choice and a very worthwhile role for her.
The same visual style that was employed on both 300 and WATCHMEN was on show here. This was due to Snyder re-teaming with Larry Fong. The cinematography was great. Given the comic origins of this film, the general feel of the piece was well suited to this theme. Regardless of the general success or otherwise of Snyder’s films, they always have a consistently high quality of visual finesse about them and that makes them appealing to the eye regardless of the quality of the film itself.
There was a large portion of CGI on display here and for the most part it worked, but when the dial got pushed up to 11, the effects looked “computer game” cheap rather than jaw-dropping as one might have hoped.
If WORLD OF WARCRAFT, SAILOR MOON, KILL BILL & MOULIN ROUGE had a love-child then SUCKER PUNCH would be it. This is very much a pastiche of all of these. It is not a film that lends itself to deep thought or great emotional depth. The gaggle of girls prance about in either lingerie or camo-gear shooting people or endeavouring to obtain token items that will allow them to escape the place they’ve found themselves in. It is a fun ride that explores some themes such as female sexuality and empowerment and also the sex trade.
This film will polarise people. Men will go for the lingerie and women will go to see just how far Snyder has regressed the women’s movement.
What we must remember is that this is a popcorn action flick. It is supposed to be fun. It dabbles in the superhero genre and has some kick-ass action sequences.
Emily Browning channels SAILOR MOON, ALICE IN WONDERAND and SNOW WHITE in her costuming. Her demeanour is not exactly striking and she spends the film doe-eyed. Browning wasn’t the strongest talent. That was left up to Jenna Malone and Abbie Cornish to fight for.
Malone as ‘Rocket’ was great. Her edgy look and tom-boy persona was just what the film needed to shake things up a little. Her performance was very entertaining and her portrayal was exciting enough to the point that it would be enough to spawn a movie of her own.
Cornish was the leader of the pack and the protector. Cornish’s strong dramatic sensibilities weighted this role well. Despite her obvious beauty, Cornish can demonstrate an edge to her performances that makes each of them watchable and almost scene stealing.
The rest of them are ok but none of them really stand out. The characters of Vera Gorski and Blue Jones play to stereotype and don’t have many redeeming features. Neither pushes their character “too far” but there is fun in the performances. This is particularly evident in the performance of Oscar Isaac who was so good in BALIBO so it’s somewhat of a letdown what he does here.
Grab your popcorn, clutch your Cola and strap yourself in for a couple of hours of solid whimsical entertainment. It’s a fun ride that will lend itself well to Blu Ray viewing just as much as the big screen. Snyder might just have found himself a cult hit.

SEE HOW IT RATED ON ROTTEN TOMATOES.COM HERE