One word came to mind when I saw the trailer for "Sucker Punch," and that word was "epic." Of course, it's also being talked up as "Alice in Wonderland with machine guns" by director and co-writer Zack Snyder.
As his first original screenwriting effort (his screenplay for "300" being adapted from the graphic novel by Frank Miller), it has all the same straight-off-the-comic-pages imagery he's known for bringing to the big screen in his directorial work. I especially like the stylish-but-gritty film noir vibe.
My only (tentative) hang-up is with the fantasy elements. "Sucker Punch" packs everything from samurai to dragons in action sequences based in the mind of the main character, Baby Doll (played by Emily Browning). They're meant to be her coping mechanism to make it through being forced into a mental institution by her step-father, so I can see how they fit in in terms of contrasting imagination with the sterile, suffocating confines of a hospital.
What will make or break this movie: The ending. As much as I like Zack Snyder's work, I'm still not totally sold on the whole story. Because the movie is already set up unconventionally, there's a chance things could get too over the top at the climax. On the other hand, Snyder could pull the "it was all in their heads" card (it takes place in a mental institution, after all). It would be predictable to cap it off with a jolt of reality, but not necessarily cliché -- if done right.
Chances I'll spend theater money to see it: I'm already in line at the ticket counter.
Here's the overview: "Sucker Punch" is an epic action fantasy that takes us into the vivid imagination of a young girl whose dream world provides the ultimate escape from her darker reality. Unrestrained by the boundaries of time and place, she is free to go where her mind takes her, and her incredible adventures blur the lines between what's real and what is imaginary. When she is locked away against her will, she urges four other young girls to band together to escape their terrible fate at the hands of their captors. With a virtual arsenal at their disposal, the girls engage in warfare against everything from samurai to serpents. Together, they must decide what they are willing to sacrifice in order to stay alive.
Showtimes: http://onmilwaukee.com/myOMC/movie/show/72228
Contrary to her natural state of being, Renee Lorenz is a total optimist when it comes to Milwaukee. Since beginning her career with OnMilwaukee.com, her occasional forays into the awesomeness that is the Brew City have turned into an overwhelming desire to discover anything and everything that's new, fun or just ... "different."
Expect her random musings to cover both the new and "new-to-her" aspects of Miltown goings-on, in addition to periodically straying completely off-topic, which usually manifests itself in the form of an obscure movie reference.
