The Film
There has been no shortage of over-the-top action films in recent years. The truth is that those based on video games (Tomb Raider, Mortal Kombat, etc.) tend to miss the mark - but then again most video games based on movies tend to somehow simultaneously both blow and suck. The truth is that movies based on comic books tend to be very much hit or miss as well. All this brings us to Sucker Punch, from Zack Snyder who connected perfectly with 300 and Watchmen.
Sucker Punch is essentially a comic book inspired movie that plays out almost exactly like a video game. The set up has a young girl nicknamed "Baby Doll" (Emily Browning) - who looks and dresses like a baby doll throughout - institutionalized by her scheming stepfather, who plots to have her lobotomized to conceal the truth about the death of Baby Doll's sister. This alone could make for a compelling setup, but Synder takes it a step further having Baby Doll escape into a fantasy world. The fantasy world, of course, is one of teenage boys who play too many Japanese video games: a brothel where Baby's virginity will be sold to a "high roller."
Working with other "dancers" in this prisonesque brothel, Baby hatches a plan to escape, where she "dances" and by this we mean lets loose an inspired melee of over-the-top ultra-violence. Here we are treated/forced to endure video game style sequences where Baby engages giant iron samurai warriors wielding swords and mini-guns, takes part in a steampunk World War I battle, fights a dragon, etc. If this sounds confusing, it is. It is visually stylized but in the end neither fulfilling nor ground breaking. The film makes good use of CGI to look and play out like a video game, but one where you only get to watch your friend play. Maybe that's the real Sucker Punch.
The Picture
Not enough can be said about the visuals. The 2.41:1 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer is full of eye candy, and has that Snyder look to it beginning to end. The visuals have a muted quality with lots of earth tones, dinginess and grime that makes the little things - such as bright over-saturated colors - all the more vibrant and eye-popping. The film was made to look like a graphic novel meets video game and it delivers. It is visually flawless and true eye candy.
The Sound
The lossless track never skips a beat nor stutters for a moment. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack offers clear dialog that can be heard through the thundering noise of the fantasy within a fantasy sequences. The music - much of which is completely anachronistic to the 1960s setting - is never too hot and never too quiet. The guns blast away in the action sequences, while there are those subtle sounds of dripping water, footsteps and other ambient noises that make for an immersive soundscape. Loud, quiet and in between, this one sounds as good as it looks.
The Extras
Serious fans might feel sucker punched with the lack of extras with this release. The package suggests a lot more, and with three discs you'd think there would be more. The Blu-ray package includes the 110-minute PG-13 theatrical cut along with Snyder's 128-minute extended R-rated version (with most of the added footage being from the four action sequences). Also included are four animated shorts that came out as promotional tie-ins for the movie's release, a short featurette on the soundtrack, and an Extended Cut: Maximum Mode that includes video commentary with Snyder. This latter feature is a bit self-indulgent and became tedious, but fans might enjoy it. Finally the package includes a DVD copy of the theatrical film along with a digital copy.
Final Thoughts
It isn't just that Sucker Punch is a bad film - and don't get me wrong, it is a bad film - it is more that this one had some great potential, which was squandered. It looks really good, sounds really good and thus might make for a good reference disc to show off your home theater, although it is no reference for color accuracy due to the intentially hyper-real look. But again, it feels like a video game so much that I am still left wishing I could have played it instead of just watching it. Baby Doll says at one point this isn't really her story, and that kind of is how I'm left feeling - again, like I just spent two hours watching my friend play a video game and I didn't even get to touch the controller.
Product Details
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