Post by petrolino on Jun 2, 2018 1:00:32 GMT
In the musical fantasy 'Sucker Punch' (2011), Babydoll (Emily Browning) is committed to an institution by her abusive stepfather (Gerard Plunkett). At the Lennox House For The Mentally Insane in Brattleboro, Vermont, she stands accused of having been responsible for the death of her sister. Her wicked stepfather bribes disorderly orderly Blue Jones (Oscar Isaac) to forge the signature of the asylum's head psychiatrist Doctor Vera Gorski (Carla Gugino) on to a medical order for Babydoll to be lobotomized.
During her admission to this dark institution, Babydoll becomes aware of several items that could enable her to make a daring escape. Babydoll slips inside a fantasy world that opens up other fantasy worlds, befriending four troubled burlesque dancers – Amber (Jamie Chung), Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and sisters Rocket (Jena Malone) & Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish).
"Everyone has an angel. A guardian who watches over us."
Principal Players
Emily Browning as Babydoll
Abbie Cornish as Sweet Pea
Jena Malone as Rocket
Vanessa Hudgens as Blondie
Jamie Chung as Amber
Carla Gugino as Dr. Vera Gorski / Madame Vera Gorski
Oscar Isaac as Blue Jones
Jon Hamm as The Doctor / The High Roller
Scott Glenn as The Wise Man / The General / The Bus Driver
Gerard Plunkett as The Stepfather / Priest
Sweet Pea, Babydoll & Rocket
Mark Kermode on 'Sucker Punch' & Roger Corman Productions
The freewheeling fantasy 'Sucker Punch' has been dealt a rough hand over the years. It was widely reported that Quentin Tarantino ranked it as his worst film of 2011 (his best film was Woody Allen's fantasy 'Midnight In Paris'), but by that point, 'Sucker Punch' had already been routinely savaged and ripped to shreds by hungry critics who'd accused it of committing all manner of crimes against cinema. But despite such poor notices, it's always had its fans and I'm one of them.
Babydoll and her incarcerated cell sisters Amber, Blondie, Rocket and Sweet Pea exchange tales of solidarity in 'Sucker Punch' and display a willingness to sacrifice their own lives for the greater good. They perform a classic horror scenario as a prison escape picture, they mount a dystopian dance academy within a government protected brothel, they forge a classical backstage melodrama built from old school gangster motifs and evoke a long Hollywood tradition for producing heart-tugging weepies. I think the crossover narratives blend together well to concoct a virtual world of "fighting fantasy" platform game levels that invite Babydoll to negotiate her own road to freedom.
"Superficially, 'Sucker Punch' (2011) is an easy film to hate. Between the maudlin histrionics of the plot, the stilted, tone deaf dialogue, and the glossy CGI pyrotechnics cluttering the screen while signifying little, it appears to be little more than a bombastic, exploitative spectacle. Loud, voyeuristic, and seemingly concerned with the systematised objectification and abuse of women, upon its release it was savaged by critics who labelled it juvenile, misogynistic, and even hysterically, garishly overwrought.
However, as almost a direct reaction to this overwhelming panning, over the years a select few critics have sought to vehemently defend the film, lamenting that no one, in their estimation, has taken the time to look beneath the surface of the work. No one, they declare, has appreciated the irony at the heart of its narrative, the sardonic statement its narrative was making about the exploitation and debasement of women."
- Colin Dray, Pop Matters
"I saw Sucker Punch under the best possible circumstances: With absolutely no expectations that it would be good. For a lover of the Strong Women Who Blow Things Up genre of entertainment, the appeal of Sucker Punch had nothing to do with whether it got favorable reviews (it didn't), or whether its plot made any kind of sense (it doesn't), or whether it had memorable and well-crafted dialogue (oh, Lord, no). It had to do with the goofy, thrilling payoffs promised by its trailers: Strong Women with dragons! Strong Women with robots! Strong Women destroying robots and dragons, with swords! Indeed, all of these things were present. But Sucker Punch still managed to disappoint. It has the dragons, the robots, the steampunk zombies; it has everything. Except for the Strong Women."
- Sady Doyle, The Atlantic
However, as almost a direct reaction to this overwhelming panning, over the years a select few critics have sought to vehemently defend the film, lamenting that no one, in their estimation, has taken the time to look beneath the surface of the work. No one, they declare, has appreciated the irony at the heart of its narrative, the sardonic statement its narrative was making about the exploitation and debasement of women."
- Colin Dray, Pop Matters
"I saw Sucker Punch under the best possible circumstances: With absolutely no expectations that it would be good. For a lover of the Strong Women Who Blow Things Up genre of entertainment, the appeal of Sucker Punch had nothing to do with whether it got favorable reviews (it didn't), or whether its plot made any kind of sense (it doesn't), or whether it had memorable and well-crafted dialogue (oh, Lord, no). It had to do with the goofy, thrilling payoffs promised by its trailers: Strong Women with dragons! Strong Women with robots! Strong Women destroying robots and dragons, with swords! Indeed, all of these things were present. But Sucker Punch still managed to disappoint. It has the dragons, the robots, the steampunk zombies; it has everything. Except for the Strong Women."
- Sady Doyle, The Atlantic
The Wise Man
'He's My Thing' - Babes In Toyland
Writer-director Zack Snyder teeters between providing a definitive route to redemption and engineering a violent quest for vengeance but Babydoll's undeserved feelings of guilt feel very real. At its core, I think it's a story about the power of the imagination and the ways in which young people often retreat into fantasy to deal with heavy trauma. The screenplay may be basic but it does touch upon some disturbing themes including abduction and enslavement, the corruption of minors, the crippling effects of sexual abuse and the perils of institutionalisation.
'Sucker Punch' also presents a barrage of questionable social practises that mainstream society typically turns a blind eye too. Much of this is inferred rather than stated, and one of the main arguments that's frequently been launched against 'Sucker Punch' has been that it raises important issues without exploring them in any depth, even to the extent of trivialising them through its glamorous presentation.
"You could go to see “Sucker Punch” this weekend — a lot of people probably will, and a few may even admit as much back at the office on Monday — or you could try to make it yourself, which might be more fun, though not necessarily cheaper. Here’s what you will need: a bunch of video-game platforms; DVDs of “Shutter Island,” “Kill Bill,” “Burlesque” and “Shrek”; some back issues of Maxim; a large bag of crystal meth; and around $100 million. Your imagination will take care of the rest.
Zack Snyder’s imagination is certainly feverish, though not exactly fertile. Mr. Snyder, whose previous live-action films are, in ascending order of quality, “300,” “Watchmen” and the 2004 remake of “Dawn of the Dead,” specializes in recombining pulp pop clichés into grotesque and bloated spectacles that show just enough visual bravura to be disappointing rather than merely awful. With “Sucker Punch,” his first movie not based on pre-existing material, he runs wild through the dank corridors of a gothic mental hospital, the velvety rooms of a high-end bordello and combat landscapes that evoke World War I, samurai epics and science-fiction futurism.
All of these might actually be the same place, as filtered through the mind of a young woman with enormous eyes and pouty lips who goes by the name Babydoll (Emily Browning). Confined to a creepy, windswept New England loony bin by her nasty stepfather in the wake of family tragedies, Babydoll slips through a series of mental trapdoors."
- A.O. Scott, The New York Times
"One major gripe about 'Sucker Punch' is that the film makes no effort to get the audience familiar with its characters. It simply tosses these girls into bizarre fantasy action sequences to the delight of fans being serviced. However, viewers need to realize that the majority of the film takes place entirely in Babydoll’s mind. We’re viewing things from her perspective. With only three days to escape, there’s no way she could’ve had an opportunity to flesh out the personalities of her cohorts. This isn’t the narrative cop out it seems to be, either; the characters have their purpose in the film.
Remember that these are all illusions in Babydoll’s head. As such, there is a tendency for the character to project tidbits of her own personality into her crew. Suddenly, you see different parts of what must be going on in Babydoll’s mind reflected by each of the characters: Amber, the action-seeking go-getter; Blondie, the compassionate, scared little girl; Rocket, who shares Babydoll’s desire for escape; and Sweet Pea, the voice of responsibility and reason. Babydoll herself is admittedly and purposefully flat in the fantasy – she becomes the personification of her own will."
- Marco Sumayou, Word-Doodling
Zack Snyder’s imagination is certainly feverish, though not exactly fertile. Mr. Snyder, whose previous live-action films are, in ascending order of quality, “300,” “Watchmen” and the 2004 remake of “Dawn of the Dead,” specializes in recombining pulp pop clichés into grotesque and bloated spectacles that show just enough visual bravura to be disappointing rather than merely awful. With “Sucker Punch,” his first movie not based on pre-existing material, he runs wild through the dank corridors of a gothic mental hospital, the velvety rooms of a high-end bordello and combat landscapes that evoke World War I, samurai epics and science-fiction futurism.
All of these might actually be the same place, as filtered through the mind of a young woman with enormous eyes and pouty lips who goes by the name Babydoll (Emily Browning). Confined to a creepy, windswept New England loony bin by her nasty stepfather in the wake of family tragedies, Babydoll slips through a series of mental trapdoors."
- A.O. Scott, The New York Times
"One major gripe about 'Sucker Punch' is that the film makes no effort to get the audience familiar with its characters. It simply tosses these girls into bizarre fantasy action sequences to the delight of fans being serviced. However, viewers need to realize that the majority of the film takes place entirely in Babydoll’s mind. We’re viewing things from her perspective. With only three days to escape, there’s no way she could’ve had an opportunity to flesh out the personalities of her cohorts. This isn’t the narrative cop out it seems to be, either; the characters have their purpose in the film.
Remember that these are all illusions in Babydoll’s head. As such, there is a tendency for the character to project tidbits of her own personality into her crew. Suddenly, you see different parts of what must be going on in Babydoll’s mind reflected by each of the characters: Amber, the action-seeking go-getter; Blondie, the compassionate, scared little girl; Rocket, who shares Babydoll’s desire for escape; and Sweet Pea, the voice of responsibility and reason. Babydoll herself is admittedly and purposefully flat in the fantasy – she becomes the personification of her own will."
- Marco Sumayou, Word-Doodling
Blondie, Amber & Babydoll
'Not Too Soon' - Throwing Muses
The imagination behind 'Sucker Punch' impresses me more each time I see it. Each episode of historical theatre hits out like an arcade game, upping the ante for a spiralling, whirlwind trip through multiple millennia of parallel dimensions, with spiritual guru The Wise Man (Scott Glenn) serving as the girls' guide. Babydoll's alternate realities may be the result of a disturbed mental condition, a flight of imagination, an elaborate coping mechanism or something else; what we do know is that the reworkings of rock 'n roll numbers on the soundtrack are symbolic of Babydoll's entry points into new worlds. There are complimentary covers of classic mindbenders by the Beatles, Jefferson Airplane, the Stooges and the Pixies, as well as fresh takes on tracks by Queen, Eurythmics and the Smiths. The trailer campaign was launched with 'When The Levee Breaks' by Led Zeppelin and Babydoll's theme is 'Army Of Me' by Bjork. Emily Browning is a fine singer and she went on to secure the lead role in Stuart Murdoch's musical 'God Help The Girl' (2014).
I think it's important to contemplate the history of the baby doll rock movement in relation to this movie, a loosely connected alternative fringe recognised by arts publications like 'Details' and 'Andy Warhol's Interview' in the 1980s, and one that emerged a shade before the politicised bands associated with the riot girrrl movement hit it big. Rock groups in the late 1980s were regularly drawing imagery from Elia Kazan's controversial motion picture 'Baby Doll' (1956) and these musical origins were rooted further back in the 1970s punk movement (Teenage Jesus & The Jerks recorded the atonal drone anthem 'Baby Doll'). More recently, Sweet Spirit released a great new song, 'Baby Doll'. Bands like Throwing Muses and Belly, Babes In Toyland and Hole (see Sugar Baby Doll & Pagan Babies), the Muffs & the Geraldine Fibbers, Letters To Cleo & Veruca Salt etc. momentarily explored imagery connected to 'Baby Doll' and/or evoked the lyricism of southern gothic writer Tennessee Williams, within a fresh musical era that also saw the emergence of Bjork's band The Sugarcubes (and led to her constantly being tagged within the pages of the music press as being "like a living doll").
"A while ago I had written a script for myself and there was a sequence in it that made me think, "How can I make a film that can have action sequences in it that aren't limited by the physical realities that normal people are limited by, but still have the story make sense so it's not, and I don't mean to be mean, like a bullsh*t think like Ultraviolet or something like that."
- Zack Snyder
"The songs in the film really function as the subconscious mindset of Babydoll and her journey."
- Tyler Bates, 'Sucker Punch : Behind The Soundtrack'
"Whenever I make a movie, the music is always one of the first things that I think about because I'm really inspired by how music interacts with images."
- Zack Snyder, 'Sucker Punch : Behind The Soundtrack'
- Zack Snyder
"The songs in the film really function as the subconscious mindset of Babydoll and her journey."
- Tyler Bates, 'Sucker Punch : Behind The Soundtrack'
"Whenever I make a movie, the music is always one of the first things that I think about because I'm really inspired by how music interacts with images."
- Zack Snyder, 'Sucker Punch : Behind The Soundtrack'
Babydoll
'All Hail Me' - Veruca Salt
There's some meticulous constructions and staging elements at work in 'Sucker Punch' which was carefully storyboarded to correspond with aspects of the adventurous production design, while also accommodating the cast's rigorously rehearsed fight routines. There's actually a series of 'Sucker Punch' animations available to watch, but I'm not sure which came first. The film is technically dazzling, a spellbinding cocktail of fluid motion photography experimenting with speed. Outrageous camera placements range from extreme overheads to raking undertows and there's high colour contrast established between the heavy industrial filtering of the gothic world and Babydoll's intense sparkle fusions during battle sequences. Snyder employs montage as another launchpad for the storytelling and occasionally introduces time lapse editing. How well this all hangs together is down to each individual viewer's feelings but I find it to be a very entertaining mixtape.
I think 'Sucker Punch' falls within a lineage of surreal horror fantasies like Paolo Heusch's 'Werewolf In A Girl's Dormitory' (1961), Narciso Ibanez Serrador's 'The House That Screamed' (1969), Nobuhiko Obayashi's 'Hausu' (1977), Dario Argento's 'Suspiria' (1977), Jean Rollin's 'Night Of The Hunted' (1980) and Lucio Fulci's 'Aenigma' (1987). Speaking of Argento, when Snyder sends his camera through a keyhole at the beginning of the movie, I always think of the bullet through a keyhole in 'Opera' (1987). Snyder sprinkles on a heady dose of 'Alice In Wonderland' theatrics within an adult context, much like experimental genre filmmakers have always done, from Claude Chabrol and Louis Malle to Atom Egoyan and Tim Burton. There's probably a lot of pop culture references I don't get that allude to comic books, anime and other art forms, also some classic kung fu.
