Sucker Punch - Blu-ray review

July 5, 2011 Jeff Bayer

Blu-ray Review Sucker Punch

Directed by: Zack Snyder Cast: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Carla Gugino, Oscar Isaac Running Time: 1 hr 39 mins Rating: PG-13 Due Out: June 28, 2011

PLOT: A teenage girl (Browning) is institutionalized by her stepfather. She enters a fantasy world and with the help of other girls, tries to escape.

WHO’S IT FOR? You could say video game fans or those who like style over substance. Take your pick. But that’s what you need to be looking for with this movie.

Love the movie? Make sure to read Ruffcorn and Allen's He Said/He Said ... Sucker Punch

MOVIE:

Let your imagination run wild. Whoa, Zack Snyder, um, not so fast. Sucker Punch is a chance to let Snyder’s creativity vomit all over the big screen. Not surprisingly, we’re left with a mess.

There seems to be no stakes. Yes, I understand five days, fire, knife, map, blah, blah. But once we’re in the fantasy world and über-fantasy world, these girls are goddess that seem to be invincible. So we just watch insignificant levels of a video game. We don’t even technically know if all of these girls are working together in the über-fantasy or if it’s just in Baby Doll’s head.

The fantasy world doesn’t seem drug induced, nor does it feel like a true way to exist. At best, it’s a way for girls who are tortured to escape into their imaginations in order to survive the tortures of men who are violating them. Please correct me if I’m wrong! But the movie fails to bring this idea to light because they never bother to explain or give us any insight.

It doesn’t come off as female empowerment, it is stuck on how sick men can prey on seemingly helpless girls. That’s not a vibe I need, especially when it’s not taken seriously. And no, this movie can’t possible take itself seriously. It’s not a metaphor, it’s an imagination run amok.

Snyder has played the role of an amped up George Lucas (the bad one, not the good). It’s his first bad film.

MOVIE SCORE: 4/10

EXTRAS

Blu-ray Combo Pack includes:

Theatrical Feature Film and Extended Cut

Maximum Movie Mode: Exploring the Fantasy World: An immersive movie exploration with host Zack Snyder – featuring Picture-in-Picture, Director Walk-Ons, and much more (Runtime: Feature Length)

Animated Shorts: “Sucker Punch” Prequel Stories (Runtime: 11 mins)

Feudal Warriors

The Trenches

Dragon

Distant Planet

“Sucker Punch” Behind the Soundtrack (Runtime: 3 mins)

DVD includes: