Interesting But Poorly Executed

Rating: 4/10 (15 May 2011)

Zack Snyder is deemed a master of action-packed slow-paced visual effects, as proved from his previous work on 300 and Watchmen, and a similar visualistic aspect is certainly not lacking in Sucker Punch. He pulls off the stylized graphic novel look with ease and it looks brilliant most of the time. It is, however, unfortunate that the action that shrouds it is too dull and unengaging.
The levels of reality and imagination are maybe a little too distinct to be meaningful and the sequence of events are too ridiculous to be taken seriously. The subject matter is very dark and having two levels of imagination, one built on top of the other, is a bit more unbelievable, and this could have been much more than production team could have probably handled. We can understand what is trying to be conveyed on screen - a constructed fantasy in the mind of a character as she is indecently treated in a mental institution. However, it is poorly executed, especially the conclusion, and we are just left with scene after scene of nonsense and atrocious dialogue.
I give kudos to Snyder for taking a risk on such a project - it meshes some complex storyline with action - but it simply isn't great with either. The girls, which include Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens, and Jamie Chung, all give convincing portrayals of their characters, and Oscar Isaac is wonderful as one of the orderlies. The presence of some of the other supporting characters simply deteriorates the realism of the real-life sequences. Since most of the film is presented in a sub-reality or an imagination, anything that happens has less of an impact, leaving one not caring what actually happens to heroines.