Film Review: Sucker Punch

Published 4/04/2011 in The Mancunion

Girl Power.

4 Stars

  Frequently described as ‘Alice in Wonderland with machine guns’, director Zack Snyder’s latest offering to whatever heathen God they worship up at Warner Bros is a little more Crazy Town than Wonderland. Recently chosen to reboot the Superman franchise, Snyder follows hits 300, Watchmen and The Legend of The Guardians (that owl film) with this deliciously grungy, original, Sci-Fi fantasy.

  It begins with the institutionalization of Baby Doll (Aussie actor Emily Browning) following the death of her mother, and subsequent death of her younger sister as the result of a rape attempt at the hands of her stepfather. To stop Baby Doll from spilling the beans and halting his inheritance, she is taken to Lennox House; a dingy hospital for the ‘mentally insane’, where orderlies take cuts, and sexual abuse is high on the menu.   

  To survive both the squalid conditions, and her imminent lobotomy, Baby Doll retreats down the rabbit hole, and into her imagination, as she and the rest of the female ensemble (Jamie Chung, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone and Vanessa Hudgens) battle to escape the asylum before Baby Doll loses her mind (literally).

  Beginning with almost disturbing intensity (and a fantasy within a fantasy) the mental hospital is transformed for almost the entirety of the film, into a Moulin Rouge-style, Mob-run whorehouse, Dr. Gorski into a dance instructor-come-brothel Madam (Carla Gugino), and the patients into exotic dancers. It is a setting that works well; theatrically highlighting the overt sexuality of the abuse suffered by these young girls. However, they’re far from helpless.

   Like all good fantasy stories, there’s a quest; items to find, and baddies to defeat, and the characters are more than ready to do both. Snyder’s signature grimy, gothic aesthetic is ever present, as the girls bend time and space to encounter demon samurai, Steampunk-zombie-soldiers, Orcs, dragons, and futuristic alien-robots; all to gather fire, a map, a key and a knife (oh and the cryptic fifth item – a mystery). But will they find the items and escape their prison in time? And will any of them survive Baby Doll’s fantastical delusions?

  The all-star female cast show us the meaning of girl power, battling hoards of monsters in and out of Baby Doll’s mind to reach their goal, in kick-ass costumes to boot. However, somewhere in the layers of fantasy, the reality of their fate is lost; it’s easy to forget that if these fetish-clad girls don’t manage to kill the dragon, or shoot the zombie, then they die for real. With minimal urgency throughout, the storyline falters.   

Verdict: As with many fantasy films, you have to take it as it is; don’t try to rationalize it, in fact don’t even think about it too much. Part anime, part superhero flick, the graphic novel-esque tone combined with a great cast and great music, make this an easy one to enjoy; watch it if you can.

Film Review: A Turtle's Tale

Originally Published 28/03/2011 in The Mancunion


I hate when you feel like you're going to sneeze and then don't.

3 Stars

  Not your typical animated film, A Turtle’s Tale (dubbed ‘turtley awesome’ by whatever marketing genius Optimum hired) focuses on the life of Sammy (Dominic Cooper); a chipper little green back hatchling, with a percent for dangerous situations; and best friend Ray (Robert Sheenan). Of course there’s a love interest as well, and the film only really gets going when Sammy bumps into lost love Shelly (Gemma Arterton). Separated at hatching, the two star-crossed lovers reunite, and embark on a quest to find the secret passage to the ice sea. Sadly, after run-ins with alligators, hawks, and an environmental research lab, they become separated, and Sammy’s priorities shift from finding adventure, to finding his missing mate.

   I hate to give a film three stars (am I saying it’s good, bad or am I just indifferent?) but unfortunately this turtle’s tale falls smack-bang on mediocre. The use of 3D in the stunningly colourful underwater seascapes is unparalleled in animation; there’re a few good songs, and most importantly of all, I actually cared about Sammy (I know that doesn’t say much for my mental health, but it’s important in the film). However, a complete lack of direction almost ruins what otherwise could plausibly be described as an ‘emotional rollercoaster’; Sammy almost dies, meets the love of his life and a new best friend in the first ten minutes; but the rest of the film fails to live up to the initially rapid pace, as any excitement generated with the search for Shelly is ruined with Sammy’s frustrating reluctance to declare his feelings, and an annoyingly rushed ending. 

  It soon becomes clear that what at first appears to be a light, adventurous romp, is in fact a vehicle for thinly-veiled environmental propaganda; as Sammy and his friends battle through oil spills, fishing nets, rubbish dumps; human involvement that is equal to (if not greater than) the dangers of the sea. Despite this serious edge, one thing that is made very clear is that Sammy’s tale was designed for children. Forget toilet humour, racy music and Shrek-esque euphemisms; in this film you won’t find a cross-dressing Ken doll, or wise-cracking, leery sidekick whose only purpose is to make accompanying adults chuckle. And it’s nice. All too often kid’s films are sauced-up in a desperate bid to snare the parental vote; and while I’m all for chucking long-suffering mum and dad a bone (or jokes about getting high on frankincense and myrrh; y’no, whatever floats your boat) it’s a welcome change.

Verdict: More ‘turtley ok’ than ‘turtley awesome’; with the best 3D since Avatar, and a decent (albeit at times vague) storyline, is you can stomach the irritatingly moral undertone then this Turtle’s Tale is worth a watch.