Incredible visuals spoilt by an insidiously creepy plot

Rating: 6/10 (30 September 2014)

Version I watched: UK bluray release
Actors: 6/10
Plot/script: 5/10
Photography/visual style: 8/10
Music/score: 6/10
Overall: 6/10
Nominally Zack Snyder's first (and to date only) original project, Sucker Punch is actually nothing of the sort, wearing its influences openly and proudly. The film features a series of lovingly crafted fantasy sequences set in worlds inspired by Lord of the Rings, the Matrix, steampunk culture and Japanese manga.
The framing device for these sequences, however, is a problem. A young girl, nicknamed Babydoll (Emily Browning) is wrongfully imprisoned at an asylum that turns out to be a brothel that exploits her and other girls who are similarly fraudulently incarcerated. Her escape plan involves performing (implied) erotic dances that captivate and distract all onlookers for several minutes while a group of her fellow captives collect the plot tokens they need. While dancing, Babydoll distracts herself from her own shame and degradation by escaping into the fantasy worlds described above, transposing her aims as 'missions', mostly of an aggressive kind, performed by her 'team' of fellow captives, now transformed into badass warriors clad in costumes with classically fetishistic connotations: schoolgirls, sailors and soldiers of the past and future.
No matter how I look at this, it's not good. The most charitable interpretation is that Snyder is trying to 'sucker punch' us by luring us into escapism and then hitting us all the harder with the harsh reality; a form of social commentary. However, my conscience refused to let me be lured away, and indeed I rather resent the implication that I can be distracted so easily. The grimness of the 'real world' soured the fantasy for me.
A worse interpretation is that Snyder didn't care, that he thought it was okay for Babydoll to be treated like meat, because she has somewhere cool to escape to. Or at least, that it doesn't matter because it's all just cool stuff passing in front of our eyes for a couple of hours, so it might as well be REALLY cool stuff.
It's such a shame, because the fantasy sequences are simply stunning, and I am sure I would have greatly enjoyed the whole if they had found a framing device that wasn't so damn creepy...