Does it pack the punch action thrillers need?To say that Zack Snyder has a mixed reputation in terms of his film repetoire is an understatement: from Dawn Of The Dead to Watchmen, there really hasn't been an instance where one of his films hasn't met reasonable criticism from one of its target demographics. Sucker Punch strives to do something different, though, taking place in the realms of a mental asylum where a young, tormented girl's mind holds the key to freedom via a psychadelic hallucogenic fantasy world. Typically enough, this concept is just the beginning of what is undeniably a crazy film to behold both philosophocially and literally, but thankfully the actual CGI implemented to create the latter land of illusion and sheer glorious violence is immensely satisfying to watch in HD. Snyder has clearly relished his role as a director here, holding no punches back in terms of the scale and the ambition of the piece, and his leads Emily Browning (A Series Of Unfortunate Events); Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical; Bandslam; Beastly...you name a rom-com, she's probably done it), Jamie Chung (The Hangover: Part II) and the rest of the girl gang don't disappoint in the realms of creating believable protagonists for us to root on despite the obvious knowledge that they won't all make it out alive. There's even a great enigmatic 'Wise Man' character played by Scott Glenn to drive the girls on, suitably mysterious and engaging to see develop throughout. On a whole, the plot manages to stay interesting despite the lengthy 128 minute running time, although the ending struck me as a bit predictable and less uplifting than it really should have been. However, I don't see where all the criticism for Sucker Punch has come from overall- it's a blazing riot of a movie that's sure to entertain hardcore thriller fanatics and newcomers alike!
4/5
