Sucker Punch: Mundo surreal

I heard about SUCKER PUNCH since very long because it's one of Zack Snyder's first movies before he directed the DC comic book movies and also because it has tons of divergent reviews (some great, some bad and most in between). Last July I finally saw it and I ended up liking it, not loving it.

The movie is set in the 1950s. Babydoll is accused of having killed her sister during a moment of madness and is taken by her stepfather in the institute for mental illnesses named Lennox House for the Mentally Insane for lobotomize her so that he can take her dead sister's inheritance all for himself. Five days before lobotomy Babydoll enters in her imagination in a burlesque game house and she meet other four dancers that like her want to escape. During a dance lesson by Vera Gorski (Carla Gugino) Babydoll imagines herself in Ancient Japan where she meets the Wise Man (Scott Glenn) that reveals her how to escape from the institute and she'll need five objects: after the dream sequence is over Babydoll has finished her dance and the director Blue Jones (Oscar Isaac) is pleased.

Soon Babydoll, Sweet Pea, Rocket, Blondie and Amber find the objects and end up from battling a World War I battle to a dragon in a medieval castle and other adventures and fugues, up until we return to the instituion where the Player is none other than a surgeon (Jon Hamm) specialized in lobotomy and just practised it on Babydoll. In the meanwhile Sweet Pea is seen riding on a bus with the Wise Man as the driver that takes her despite she is ticket-less because they have a long road to go.

If you go into this movie expecting a superhero movie you are wrong. Yes it's directed by Zack Snyder but it's a totally different movie for him because it was Snyder's original concept and it's good nonetheless. The acting was great, not surprising considering the cast members and the action scenes well coreographed. It's also unique because there are various moments that you just have to see them to believe them (like the aforementioned one of the World War I battle that shiftes with the dragon in the Medieval castle).

Overall, an action movie capable of satysfing its fans and for everyone else, a nice time passer and a guarantee for two hours of fun.

Nearly every review you read for this film will say the same thing, it's a 'love or hate' movie, and there's a very good reason for this. "Sucker Punch" is not the film you were expecting, whatever that might have been, particularly if you were expecting a hyper-masculine affair a la "300". If anything it is hyper-feminine; at its core this is a movie about women struggling against the evil male influences in their lives. That doesn't mean it isn't loaded with action - it really is, and it is beautiful, but if you're looking for an easy watch, this isn't for you. In terms of sheer originality, this movies narrative style is right up there with classics like Pulp Fiction and Memento, but there is a downside to this - you need to keep an open mind. If you can't watch this movie, at least once without - and this may sound weird, but you'll get what I mean when you watch it - demanding to know exactly what is going on, right the hell now, it will lose you, and it won't get you back. But if you can keep an open mind, right till the end, at the very least it will give you a lot to think about

On the other hand, don't go thinking that is all it has to offer. It is visually stunning in a way that makes director's like Michael Bay and (dare I say it) James Cameron, look like blind toddlers with a handy-cam strapped to their heads. As for the music, it's not often I'm afraid of giving spoilers for a movies soundtrack, I'll say that much, and every track fits the movie perfectly.

I'm going to shoot myself in the foot here, but when it comes to this movie, don't listen to the reviews, and just go see it. I really think time will tell with this one on that front. I can't promise you'll like it, but I can promise you'll remember it 6 months from now, and how many movies can you say that about?

Really underrated movie. It's not just your typical stylized action flick, it's quite a heartbreaking story in its core.

On a rewatch of this movie I really started to understand what was REALLY going on here. Once you understand what's really going on in the movie it will break your heart.

Great action, great story line, characters you really feel for.

I think this movie is rated so low because the people drawn to it don't think past the surface.

Off the bat I have to say I'm over thirty years older than what some pro critics have claimed is the demographic for this one. Sucker Punch, as reviews etc attest, is not for everyone, it has been called any number of things in derogative fashion, which since I enjoyed the film a lot means I'm a misogynist fetishist gamer, which to the best of my knowledge is not true. Lest I'm in the closet and now in middle age about to unleash traits and feelings previously untapped. Which if the latter is true you would have to say well done Zack Snyder, for that's serious film making...

Sucker Punch is loud, full of visual orgasms, musically adroit, exciting, clever and very sexy. Snyder has made no secret of his fetish leanings when making this piece, but it hardy constitutes a dark seedy mind at work. It can easily be argued that the film is very much pro women, the story itself - in amongst the explosive thunder of the fantastical action - is tender and beautiful, complete with emotional kickers. Perhaps it's in the eye of the beholder? But I see a strong female led action movie, with shifting fantasy realms, and cunningly it calls for deeper ponder come the finale.

Love it or hate it, Snyder has pushed buttons with this exercise. Better that than another cash cow sequel or another remake, re- imaging or rebirth. 7/10

I've loved this film since its first run in theaters. Largely panned by critics and somewhat of a box office bomb, this film has been misunderstood from day one.

At face value, its t*ts and *ss and violence. I suppose the majority of viewers either loved it or despised it at that level. No doubt, knee jerk feminists were loud and strident haters. Seeing it as exploitation. I believe there is more nuance to 'Sucker Punch'.

It's more of a comment on how girls and young women are manipulated sexually and emotionally. You have to look a bit deeper past the in-your-face sex and violence. Most viewers won't invest themselves enough to see past this which is a bit sad.

Aussie actresses' Emma Browning and Abbie Cornish are exceptional as is Jena Malone. The rest of the cast is adequate.

The dream sequences are sublime, and the soundtrack is simply outstanding. These are some of the greatest songs sever recorded. I would rate this as one of the best soundtracks of the last 20 years.