Theater Review: Sucker Punch

-Jerry Lundegaard

I was really looking forward to Sucker Punch. A lot. So much, in fact, that I bestowed upon the film the illustrious honor of “Most Anticipated Movie of 2011“. That didn’t mean I expected it to be the best movie of the year, simply the one that had me most intrigued- or as I put it back in January, the one movie “I really hope doesn’t suck.” Well, Sucker Punch has finally arrived…and it kinda sucks.

I guess that’s not entirely fair. Much of my negative reaction to this film has to do with the fact that I was indeed looking forward to it. A lot. And while my hopes for Sucker Punch were sky high, I wasn’t really sure what to expect out of it. All I had to go on was that glorious trailer- hot chicks in short skirts wielding rather large firearms? Yes please! I had seen what kind of badassery Zack Snyder was able to pull off with 300 beefed up, shirtless Greek dudes- surely my enjoyment would be amplified if said Greek dudes were replaced by a group of scantily-clad young ladies! But even what I perceived to be a more attractive  method in which to dole out an ass-kicking wasn’t what had me most excited. The simple fact was that Sucker Punch was the first movie that had come completely (with apologies to Mr. Shyamalan) from the mind of Zack Snyder. No one has ever accused his movies of being too cerebral, but sometimes you just want to go to the theater for some good old-fashioned visceral thrills, and for that, few are better than Snyder. An original movie from one of the most visually exciting and viscerally thrilling filmmakers today? Yes please!

So there they were: my high hopes for this movie and my vague expectations as to how they would be met. A seemingly intriguing premise presented in a visually stimulating way by a director who specializes in style. As long as you know what you’re getting into, what could go wrong? Unfortunately, Sucker Punch answers that question.

This movie doesn’t just value style over substance (which I fully expected), it worships style and treats substance as if it were the antichrist. Whatever semblance of a plot this film has exists only to support the massive amounts of action going on around it. And with the style to substance ratio so monstrously lopsided, anything resembling a coherent storyline is crushed under the weight of unrelenting dazzle. Everything that happens in Sucker Punch happens at a thousand miles an hour. And while it’s great at first, exhilaration soon gives way to exhaustion. There are only so many steam punk, mechanized ogres I can see obliterated before I become numb to the entire spectacle. All of these sequences are executed wonderfully and it all looks fantastic, but there comes a point when you would like to see the story progress in a way that doesn’t involve a katana or a gatling gun. Yet when Sucker Punch does take a breather from the action (however briefly), all you can think is “Why the hell aren’t they blowing shit up?!” And then you remember that you’re bored of that too. And then you realize you want the movie to be over.

But alas, my ticket was paid for, my seat taken, my pack of Sour Patch Kids opened, and I was in this for the long haul. And a long haul it was. The movie clocks in just under two hours, but feels at least eight times that. Never has such a fast pace felt so slow, which again has to do with that pesky plot (or lack thereof). If this movie will teach you anything, it’s that hectic action makes not the time fly. Time flies when a movie has a well told story and characters you can really invest in. Sucker Punch has neither. Instead we get a story and characters whose sole purpose is to get you from one fantastical action scene to the next. And since we don’t care about the characters or the story we don’t care as much when those action scenes finally do come. Sure, you can still appreciate how cool everything looks and how little clothes everyone is wearing, but none of the action carries much emotional weight.

In fact, none of the action carries much weight of any kind. It all takes place in a fantasy where the girls seem pretty much invincible. In reality, they’re trying to distract their Y-chromosomed oppressors through the ultimate weapon…seductive dance. Snyder’s choice of having physical warfare take the place of dancing is interesting in theory, but it ultimately comes off as pretty arbitrary. At the end of the day, there is no real statement being made by this choice and nothing of meaning to tie reality to these fantasies. It just comes off as an excuse for the films story to progress through fight scenes rather than dance scenes, nothing more. And because of this, these long fight scenes, however interesting to look at, end up seeming kind of pointless.

And despite the fact that I was extremely underwhelmed by Sucker Punch, I can’t help but kind of admire it. Is it groundbreaking storytelling? No. Is it making any kind of statement? Not from what I could gather. Is it empowering to women? Far be it from me to speak on their behalf, but I would guess probably not. Is it even an enjoyable movie? Not for me. Where Sucker Punch succeeds is at being a great spectacle. We probably won’t see another film this year that revels in that as much as Sucker Punch. I only wish there was something underneath all the flash, to ground it and make it something more. But from the get go it was pretty clear that Sucker Punch wasn’t concerned with all that. Instead, the entire movie is pretty much that glorious trailer stretched to about two hours. A great spectacle. Not what I had hoped for, but maybe what I should have expected.

Amy Adams is Lois Lane in Snyder’s ‘Superman’

-Jerry Lundegaard

Fresh off her third Academy Award nomination, Amy Adams has now landed the role of Lois Lane in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman reboot.

The LA Times reports that Adams will join the cast, lead by Henry Cavill as Superman/Clark Kent along with Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Jonathan and Martha Kent, Superman’s adoptive parents. This seems like a great move for the Christopher Nolan-produced project, as Adams is one of the most talented actresses in Hollywood today. With Snyder recently revealing that his take on the Man of Steel will be “the most realistic movie [he’s] ever made” and with the cast beginning to take shape, this project seems like it will be an interesting and exciting rebirth of the classic hero.

Zack Snyder to Direct Nolan’s ‘Superman’

-Jerry Lundegaard

Deadline is reporting that Zack Snyder will direct Warner Bros. upcoming  Superman film.

Christopher Nolan, the “Godfather” of the Superman project, released a shortlist of potential directors last month:

• Duncan Jones (Moon)
• Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In)
• Jonathan Liebesman (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning)
• Tony Scott (Deja Vu, Taking of Pelham 123)
• Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen)

Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler, Black Swan) was unofficially added to the list shortly after, with Natalie Portman rumored to star as Lois Lane. But with Snyder the official selection for the project, speculation can now begin about how he’ll handle the Man of Steel.

I have been a big fan of Snyder’s work so far, though his style seems to clash with the buttoned-up portrayal of Superman that we’re used to seeing. This could prove to be an exciting match however, and at the very least a significant departure from Bryan Singer’s take in Superman Returns. With Nolan and David S. Goyer tackling the script, Snyder will move on to the project once he is finished with his latest film, Sucker Punch.

Trailer for Zack Snyder’s ‘Sucker Punch’

-Jerry Lundegaard

Another trailer debuted at Comic-Con has been released- this one for Zack Snyder’s new film, Sucker Punch.

With just three features to his name, Snyder has quickly garnered a reputation as a director with a flair for captivating visuals.  The trailer for Sucker Punch is definitely one of the more visually interesting trailers I’ve seen in a while.  It resembles a mixture of video games with live-action anime, but Snyder’s visual style is definitely all over this one as well.  It’s doubtful anyone will be able to make out much of the plot from the trailer alone, but Snyder released this synopsis of the film back in February 2009:

Set in the 1950s, it tells the story of Baby Doll, who is trying to hide from the pain caused by her evil stepfather and lobotomy.  She ends up in a mental institution in Brattleboro, Vermont and while there she starts to imagine an alternative reality. She plans to escape from that imaginary world but to do that she needs to steal five objects before she is caught by a vile man. She has 5 days to escape before being lobotomized. In order to cope with the situation, she enters the hyper-real world of her imagination, and the lines between reality and dream begin to blur. She is joined with friends who are inmates from the institution. Lessons learned in the said fantasy world could help the girls escape their real-world fate.

Sucker Punch hits theaters March 25, 2011.

Check out the trailer for Sucker Punch: