“You Will Be Unprepared”…hmmmm…

Largely bloodless bullet-filled orgy of video game violence? Check!

Attractive young women in a variety of leather outfits? Check!

A geek-stravaganza of computer-generated visual wizardry? Check!

Virtually no story to get in the way of the eye candy? Double Check!

Unprepared? I think not. Sucker Punch was by and large exactly what I expected it to be. Yes, it can be successfully argued that the film caters to the basic adolescent male fantasy, but hey, even I like to be catered to now and again.

Sucker Punch, the latest film by Zach Snyder (the film maker who brought you 300 and Watchmen) has its fair share of detractors. Spare one one-hundredth of a second to visit Rotten Tomatoes and you’ll come to the accurate conclusion that even the majority of people who liked Sucker Punch were underwhelmed by that thing called “story”. So lets get that part out of the way first, shall we?

Sucker Punch has very little story to speak of. Cute young girl gets unjustly placed in an insane asylum filled with other cute young girls. Cute young girl has 5 days before she will be turned over to an unsavory character for nefarious ends. In a moment of pressure cute young girl travels to her happy place and discovers a wizened mentor who sets her on a quest to procure her freedom. Cute young girl enlists the help of other cute young girls. Violence ensues. It isn’t much, but to be fair it is enough of a foundation upon which to build a visual and aural feast for a certain audience, of which I am a member.

Would it have been great if Zach Snyder had been able to pair these visuals with a story as entertaining as last year’s Shutter Island or Inception (two films that share some visual and plot affinity with Sucker Punch}? Undoubtedly yes, and were that so I would rave about every aspect of the movie. But I wasn’t expecting that. What I was expecting is exactly what was delivered to me. Does that make me a shallow moviegoer? I don’t think so. For every Jane Austen adaptation or Oscar-winning film that I love I no doubt have an equal number of guilty pleasure films that I also enjoy. It just so happens that Sucker Punch delivers the pleasure without the guilt.

Well, now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about what works in Sucker Punch.

Zach Snyder had me with the very first Sucker Punch trailer, released many months ago.

First and foremost, I am a sucker for films set in or around an insane asylum. I’m not sure if that is a twisted thing born out of my career in mental health or if I just find it unsettling because the true story of so many of our asylums in the past are more horrific than any scary film, but that element alone usually has me hooked. Add in the trappings of science fiction, fantasy, steampunk and sprinkle liberally with video game homages and you have a movie that is sure to please my eyes. In that Sucker Punch succeeds mightily. One of the friends I saw this with, Jeff, mentioned that this was the “best video game movie I have ever seen”, a joking appreciation of the fact that this film was not based on any specific game but is indeed inspired by many and does a far better job of showcasing the appeal of video games for a film going audience than most of the game-to-film adaptations thus far made. As I watched a giant samurai attack the film’s heroine with an enormous chain gun, I couldn’t help but marvel at how the visual effects department had captured the game physics perfectly for any video game I have ever played that contained a similar weapon. The entire film, including opening and closing “cut scenes”, played out like a game, complete with an NPC dishing out mission objectives for different “levels”, each a mish-mash of the genres geeks find so intriguing. Clockwork Nazi’s, I, Robot-ish, er…robots, orcs and dragons, WWI planes and zepplins, this film had it all. I couldn’t have been more excited when I saw the poster with a bunny-illustrated mech that reminded me of the art of Ashley Wood.

The alternate reality action scenes were filled with slow-motion ballets of choreographed mayhem all designed and filmed to grab hold of the imagination and not let go. I have to think that once Zach Snyder decided to make this film that he decided to do so with the “go big or go home” mentality, refusing to acknowledge the notion that this film might be over the top. I can just see him sitting down to make a list of all the things he found fun in comics, video games, films, etc. and just giggling as the list got bigger and bigger, then deciding “why not?” and just chucking it all in the mix. And why not indeed? It sure was fun to watch.

At least equally as strong as the visuals is the film’s soundtrack. It includes reworkings of classic rock songs including work by The Eurythmics and Queen as well as songs by newer artists including Emiliana Torrini. The cast even gets in on the act, including Emily Browing, Oscar Isaac and Carla Gugino. The individual pieces merged together seamlessly to create an aural tapestry that wove together plot elements that were lacking in the film’s story.

And speaking of the cast, this one was a great deal of fun. I am particularly partial to actresses Abbie Cornish and Jena Malone from previous work and thus it was unsurprising that these were my favorites in Sucker Punch. I didn’t recognize the film’s lead, Emily Browning, until I went back and reviewed a list of her previous work (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Ghost Ship). The blonde hair, coupled with the fact that she is all grown up, threw me off. She did a nice job with the role she was given. Oscar Isaac, who I knew looked familiar but had to look up to remember that he was Prince John in the latest film version of Robin Hood, was a particularly slimy villain, complete with pencil mustache. He oozed evil and was fun to root against. I initially thought that I would dislike Scott Glenn, but he chewed his scenes with such relish that I couldn’t help but enjoy him.

Without casting dispersions on any female movie goers who will enjoy Sucker Punch (more power to you, geeks unite!), I agree wholeheartedly that Sucker Punch is a film geared toward the hormonal adolescent male crowd. But given the film’s look and target audience, I feel the film makers showed remarkable restraint in not letting the movie drift too far into prurient territory. Given the movie’s darker overtones there was no nudity, the leather-clad girls were actually quite tastefully covered in comparison to any prime-time Victoria’s Secret commercial aired on regular television, and the more potentially disturbing elements of the movie were either left unseen or were avoided altogether. I’m not trying to downplay or justify the titillating aspects of the film. What I am saying is that I was thankful to be able to attend a movie that I thought would be fun and not be exposed to the kind of Hostel-like line-crossing that I do not enjoy. Take that for what you will.

In Sucker Punch Zach Snyder took pulp-era adventure elements (like those shown in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, a film similar in visual spirit that I also enjoy) and kicked them up a notch, adding an engaging soundtrack and just enough “Wow, that was cool!” visuals to almost make up for the weak effort in the story department. Is it the best film of its kind that I have seen? Far from it. The movie is not great and is deserving of much of its criticism. But I watched the movie thinking the actors and actresses must have had an absolute blast making it and I had a blast watching it*. It really is okay to go to the movies just to be entertained. 🙂

*The 42 year old Carl V. takes sole responsibility for the 16 year old Carl V. who enjoyed this film and asks that the young man not be judged too harshly for his taste in films.**

**The 16 year old Carl V. offers the above review as proof that the 42 year old Carl V. enjoyed the film every bit as much and resents being thrown under the bus by his older self.