Sucker Punch: A Reprieve



I realize that I have not posted since last November but upon hearing the myriad of sad, confused and just plain angry feelings geared toward the film Sucker Punch I felt compelled to speak.

For your Reading Pleasure: Sucker Punch: A Reprieve

directed and written by Zach Snyder

The film stars Emily Browning (oldest kid in Lemony Snickett or the little ghost kid from Ghost Ship) as Babydoll, Vanessa Hudgens (annoying "meek" lead in High School Musical) as Blondie, Jenna Malone (character actress, most recognizable as the chick who ferried Jude Law before getting shot in Cold Mountain, or as Lydia Bennett in the Pride & Prejudice with Kiera Knightly) as Rocket, Abbie Cornish (Elizabeth: The Golden Age, she's the one who Clive Owen knocks up) as Sweet Pea, Jamie Chung (nothing much...she was on the Real World: San Diego though) as Amber, Carla Gugino (Mom from Spy Kids) as Dr. Vera Gorski/Madam Gorski, Oscar Isaac (King John from Russell Crowe Robin Hood) as Blue Jones/Orderly Guy and Scott Glenn (among dozens of awesome roles, best known for Jodi Foster's FBI bossguy in Silence of the Lambs or one of the CIA guys in the Bourne Ultimatum) as Wise Man.

 

from left: Sweet Pea, Rocket, Babydoll, Blondie and Amber. The gentleman is Wise Man



The film opens with a voiceover explaining that one never knows when angels are going to come and help you.

Sucker Punch tells the story of a young woman (referred to as Babydoll) framed for murdering her sister by her stepfather, who has her committed to a mental institution where she will be lobotomized in five days (meaning having the frontal bone of your skull punctured with a big spike, effectively turning you into a vegetable....it was still in common practice until the late 70s, btw).  She enters the asylum where it quickly becomes clear after her stepfather speaks to an orderly about forging documents to get her lobotomized. The resident pyschologist as this asylum is Dr. Vera Gorski (Gugino) whose method of treating patients is having them reenact their fears on a large stage.

Side Note: I heard someone complaining recently that "that stepfather would never be able to have her checked into the asylum. thats ridiculous. this movie is stupid." And I do agree that her stepfather would not be able to commit her.  But no one argued when Snyder made Xerxes like 20 feet tall in 300. Its a movie people....sheesh. 

Now here we have the first instance of people going WELL HOLY CRAP THIS MOVIE SUCKS

Take a breath. We'll get through this together.

As Babydoll is watching Dr. Gorksi work the whole asylum melts away and transforms into a brothel. 

Now go with me. 

 

As it becomes understood in the brothel/dream, the mental patients/hookers are required to dance in order to be selected by their s, on a stage that mirrors the one in the asylum we just left. The lobotomy-giving orderly is now the pimp, Blue Jones and the Psychologist Dr. Gorksi is now Madam Gorksi. 

Gugino as Madam Gorksi and Isaacs as Blue Jones

Side Note #1 (get used to these side notes)
So. Yes. This is symbolism and it is also a dream within a dream (everyone looooooved Inception).  The young women are "dancing" in the dream-brothel but in reality they are performing their craziness in the real life asylum. Get it?

Now Babydoll has not had any dialogue up until this point.  But as the Brothel delusion continues (we will not return to the asylum until the end of the film), it becomes clear that within 5 days a "high roller" will arrive to take Babydoll away, an obvious reference to the lobotomy, thus reminding us they are connected. We are introduced to the rest of the cast, most importantly Rocket and Sweet Pea, who are a pair of sisters.  Babydoll saves Rocket from being raped/killed for stealing chocolate from the cook. 



I know I sound like Natasha from Rocky and Bullwinkle....but listen...

 Babydoll is forced to dance after a brief pep talk from Dr. Gorksi telling her (forgive my paraphrase here, it was actually a pretty good speech considering) "we must fight, you have it inside you. The Battle starts now....fight for survival." 
 Babydoll begins to dance (or rather sway) and the scenery behind her melts away into this crazy big dojo and thus we get the first crazy awesome battle scene!

Side Note #2 Now I will say this. I have yet to hear someone complain about the fight scenes beyond their "fakeness." Seriously? If you hear someone say that stop being friends with them.  As a child that person probably refused to play cowboys and indians because "they weren't really indians, but native Americans."  ITS A CUTE GIRL KILLING A DEMON/SAMURAI WITH A MINI GUN. STFU!!!

Here we meet the Wise Man.  Basically the Mr. Miagi for Babydoll and her friends, he explains to Babydoll that she needs five things to escape: a knife, fire, a key, a map and a sacrifice. 

Hatori who?

Side Note #3 Glenn totally steals these scenes with his Wise Man. He is channeling some serious David Caradine Legend of the Iron Master here with his altruistic sayings like: "For those who fight for it, life has a flavor that those who don't will never know."  I love fortune cookie crap, seriously. 
 

 Soon after this scene Babydoll becomes incensed to free herself and the other ladies from their prison at the brothel.  Sweet Pea reluctantly agrees to help but only because Rocket (who has bonded with Babydoll after cook problem) talks her into it.

  The ladies then go on a burglary spree, stealing the things they need to escape.  Each time they steal something off the list, Babydoll dances (her dances cause those watching to lapse into a trance) to distract people while the other ladies go get the stuff.  However once the dance/dream/kick ass sequence begins all the ladies are fighting together in this pseudo-war zone-fantasy/scifi/awesomeness mashup.



Dragon v. Airplane!!!! OMG!!

 Dream 1) Babydoll fights Samurai guys-->awesome
Dream 2) Everyone against Steam-powered WWI German zombies. It was awesome. Lots of guns(from of course wrong era), robots vs bi-planes, zombies, stabbing, angry Germans and an awesome soundtrack.
Dream 3) fighting a dragon with airplanes and swords. its awesome
Dream 4) getting a bomb off of a moving train, fighting crazy Asimov-esque robots

Side Note #4 Now what I find funny is that a lot of people are complaining because of how unrealistic these sequences are. seriously? its a robot fighting a bi-plane. why do you care? I don't think Snyder cared. I think he wanted an awesome fight and a chance to create some beautiful (albeit overthetop) images.  I think these sequences are meant to be fantastical in order to remind the audience that they are imagined and that the fight they represent is difficult.  Babydoll is fighting a battle here, but she is also dancing in an imagined brothel that is really an asylum.

As a bit of a cinemotography/CGI geek I truly appreciate the effort with which Snyder uses CGI to create his films.  Sucker Punch will never be accused of being an ugly film. 

Here is where spoilers begin, so page down if you don't want to know.

Spoiler Zone:
 Broads just keep getting killed. Rocket gets stabbed and dies, meaning Sweet Pea flips out and gets stuffed in a closet.  Blondie tattles and she gets shot for being a snitch.  Amber gets shot for stealing the knife. 
Babydoll is spared because Blue Jones needs to sell her. As Blue Jones is leaning in to be all like "I'm the gross scary bad guy" she stabs him and steals his key.  She then runs and frees Sweet Pea.  They create a fire for diversion since it will open all the doors (as made clear by a sign focused on during the asylum sequence).

I was literally bouncing in my chair and clapping my hands

They get just outside before a huge group of tall tough guys make it apparent that there is no way to sneak past.  Babydoll goes...wow. Now I get it. I need to make a sacrifice.  Me. I save someone. I save you Sweet Pea. So Babydoll goes up and kicks a guy in the crotch while Sweet Pea gets away.

We fade back to the asylum and see a mirror of the destruction incurred at the brothel (burned walls, cook missing a knife etc.).  Babydoll receives her lobotomy, but not before Gorski figures out that the orderly (Isaacs) has been forging her signatures. 

That same orderly is caught red-handed and arrested while attempting to rape the now vegetaized Babydoll, while screaming "I take care of them, their my girls" (a mirror to what Blue Jones yelled before killing Amber and Blondie). The last scene is Sweet Pea getting on a bus (driven by Wise Man) and going off into the sunset.

S
p
o
i
l
e
r
s
z
z
z
z

Ok its safe from Spoilers

Confused?
I was too. But I sat and thought about it. 
Here's my thought: 

Sweeeeeeet Pea....gun......*want gun drool*

At the beginning it is Sweet Pea's voice talking about meeting an angel that saves your life.  Thats why Babydoll does not have dialogue until she reaches the asylum.  This story is Sweet Pea's, not Babydolls. Babydoll is blond and blue eyed, a virgin (as the movie points out), brave and kind; all these make reference to the "angels" mentioned in the film's initial voiceover.  

The fight scenes Babydoll slides into are manifestations of the "you must fight!" that Madam/Dr. Gorski has given her.  They aren't meant to be real!! They are merely the product of her imagination!

  If you think of the movie in this context, with the addition of crazy Babydoll lapsing into her dream sequence for fighting zombies, the movie begins to not only make sense...but then relief washes over you....and you go "wow....that was actually a pretty good movie....heh..."

In all honesty I really detest movies where the symbolism is apparent. But to be fair I didn't really have a problem with that in Sucker Punch.  There was something about the obvious-ness about that made it mix well with the over-the-top silliness of what was on screen. 



I'm all out of thin mints.
I brought this sword instead.



People who don't like this movie at least a little bit are really thinking too hard.  Yeah the dialogue was at times a little silly and of course the *insert sex here* mentality for acquiring ticket sales is a little obnoxious but there is something of message beneath the blood, smut and LCD-y graphics. 

Sucker Punch is about fighting.  Fighting Zombies. Fighting Dragons. Fighting Robots. Fighting and never giving up.

Side Note #5-->The soundtrack for this film is amazing. Emily Browning actually sings a huge chunk of the songs, rather than HSM veteran Vanessa Hudgens--I find this amusing.  Covers of The Smiths, The Beatles, Bjork, Eurythmics, Queen among others.

 katetheflake out!!