Female Clinical Adversaries

Shooting your assumed to be step father for the sake of your sister but accidentally hitting a lightbulb in the closet where she laid, causing the bullet to kill your sister will ultimately land you in an insane asylum by the exact hand you were trying to stop from molesting your now deceased sibling. All of this in a single, stormy night seals Babydoll’s (Emily Browning) fate for the rest of her life, however long that may be (five days to be exact). In order to cope with her landing in the labeled “looney bin”, she envisions hallucinations to make dead conditions suddenly breathe life, more of a life she preferred to live in with cohorts Sweetpea (Abbie Cornish), Rocket (Jena Malone), Amber (Jamie Chung), and Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens).

The main vision includes the girls as dancers for the pimp called Blue Jones (Oscar Issac), rather the owner of the facility who plays the role of pimp in reality a little too well. When Baby first arrives to her new home, the vision ensues right as we meet Issac’s character and his counterpart Dr. Gorski (Carla Gugino) who ends up teaching Baby to dance for her life to save her from Blue and certain doom.

Zach Snyder, director and screen writer of Sucker Punch, explicitly shows a few themes of not only stigma around mental issues and women reclaiming themselves sexually, but also the mistreatment of patients in mental facilities and how society throws away people they would rather not deal with regardless of actual sanity levels. The ridiculous conditions that patients were forced to live in before modern times were replicated with amazing accuracy and captured the dingy life behind steel wired doors.

A sneak peak into what Snyder is capable of, he expresses Babydoll and her group as if they were super heroes who can still kick ass and take names even when their backs are against the wall or their very lives are at stake. In a sense takes the female appeal and demonstrates how it has evolved over decades to enable women everywhere, no matter how they choose to use it. De-stigmatizes erotic dancing while pointing out some leftover feelings about competition between women through the ages.Snyder openly makes characters who seductively trap men by their dances thus reclaiming their power through their sexuality. Seen as taboo even in today’s world, he suggests that women were and are still powerful, regardless of the situation they’re placed in.

Elements of dark undertones in filming ultimately make the successes of the girls happier and the failures more grave. Sticking color palates to the different versions of the protagonist’s reality helps keep the three separate. Strictly speaking, our director has a fondness for deep sea greens, icy blues, and shades of fire truck reds for his symbolism. The soundtrack added into the movie allows the audience to be carted around very easily through scenes and add more futuristic vibes, sensual notions, and urgency when dictated by the girls. Going with a more nontraditional route of music choice, Snyder opted for some lyrical songs and to include the words while the scenes played out in front of them. A bold choice at the time of release, has now been copied (and praised more) by more loved films such as Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby and John Green’s The Fault In Our Stars.

For this production, you must pay attention and have a want for a deeper understanding of not just what goes on in the asylum or the brothel, but the struggles women go through all for the sake of mental and physical freedom. A relate-able film for all those who have been outcasted by the norms of society or whom have felt trapped in their own heads due to whatever circumstances.

Criticized by most, appreciated by few, I’d have to say this takes as one of my personal favorite films just because it makes the audience aware of issues that weren’t talked about much back in 2011 when it first released. If Snyder had waited a few more years until the feminism movement became bigger, the movie might’ve actually had impact and done well in the box offices. But such is life and the director has over shadowed this work with his new projects.

If you’re not a huge fan of the more modern day Snyder shit, this is ultimately one of his most unnoticed works additionally due to audience’s and critics love for easily found plots and schemes. This movie makes people understand deeper if they’re willing to dedicate their time (because they already paid ridiculous prices for their seat and snacks). Because the director puts so much effort into movies, why should we have to when we watch them? If you’re feeling particularly lazy, it’s not worth your while, but if you ever feel ambitiously inclined to watch movies, pick this one up first. A real, misunderstood treat to those who are willing to give it a shot.

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