Why So Blu?

Sucker Punch (Blu-ray Review)

Since the film’s theatrical release, it has been very interesting to hear everyone’s thoughts on Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch.  I have people in my life that very much opposed the film, going as far to say its subject matter is an abomination of the screenplay format, and others like me who can’t wait to view it again and see if this 18 minutes of extra footage on the Blu-ray makes this worth our while.  Yep, that’s right.  You heard me correctly.  This Warner Bros. Blu-ray contains an Extended Cut of the film that adds an extra whopping serving of 18 minutes of footage and even bumps the film’s rating up from PG-3 to an R.   You got to love that, huh?   But the main question you are all probably dying to know is whether or not that 18 minutes is enough to make this a somewhat enjoyable film and warrant a purchase, rather than the theatrical presentation we all suffered through.  That question and more is what I hope to address below so if you pardon me, I have some writing to do.

Film  

Say what you want to say, with or without the extra 18 minutes, there’s really no polite way to put it.  In my opinion, the film is still an utter mess.  I find myself saying this time and time again as of recent.  It’s amazing what Hollywood green lights nowadays.  Sucker Punch still is and will always be just a loud, rock music video, action ride.  That’s all it will ever be.  The extra 18 minutes does nothing to strengthen or make the film better.  The movie is pure eye candy and my score of 2.5 is simply for the entertainment value only.  That’s all there is for me.  It’s E-Y-E C-A-N-D-Y and nothing more.  Just like the Metallica song, it’s sad, but true.

Sucker Punch prominently features five onscreen beauties, Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens and Jamie Chung (who can forget that bubble bath scene in Sorority Row).  The supporting cast includes the likes of Oscar Isaac, Carla Gugino (a beauty in her own right), Jon Hamm and Scott Glenn.  The 2007 script, which was penned by Snyder and Steve Shibuya in only five months, was actually supposed to be produced before the Watchmen.  It is also rumored that Amanda Seyfried was once attached to Browning’s lead role.  Damn, that would have been nice!  On the flip side, the one other thing that I was very happy to learn was that Emma Stone was also offered the role, but ultimately did not get it.  Thank goodness.  There is a God!

Sucker Punch, by all means, is first and foremost an action/adventure film.  Now like most action/adventure films, just because there are plenty of non-stop zany antics and fight scenes doesn’t necessarily guarantee it will be a good movie.  It’s hard to go into detail without spoiling things too much so I will tread lightly here.  I wanted so much more here.  I really did.  I expected the feature to be deeper, psychologically speaking.  The extra 18 minutes was a bit deeper, but ultimately it still didn’t pay off.  However, the film’s opening was simply incredible (Browning’s cover of “Sweet Dreams” was haunting and just gorgeous), but things quickly fell apart for me when Baby Doll (Browning) goes into her dancing dream state.  Seriously?  Dancing?  The biggest problem I had was correlating how the other girls get sucked into her dream induced action sequences.  I want to say it’s all in Baby Doll’s head, but that does not explain why if certain characters were not on screen at the time before Baby Doll’s dancing dream, how they coincidentally were not in her particular action adventure either.  Does that make any sense?  Probably not, but you will understand what I’m talking about when you see it.  People can say what they want about Nolan’s Inception, but at least he did not fail to explain how multiple people were tied into each other’s dream sequences.   That’s all I got to say on the subject.  In my opinion, that huge plot hole is devastating, not to mention the creepy man (Scott Glenn) that appears everywhere too.  LOL.

Speaking of the plot, do we even really need to cover it here in this review?   Do you really want me to waste your time?  I have no problem doing so, but I’m just looking out for your well-being.  It’s just that it’s so absurd, I really feel stupid even talking about it.   Simply put, it’s the music, the girls and the action that shine here and truly nothing else.  The story is shite, the acting is wooden at times and the plot holes, as I already said before, are darn right unforgivable.  And for the love of God, as I will make a duplicate statement once again, can somebody please tell me where Scott Glenn’s character came from and how he just happened to be everywhere?  Please, I need help in understanding.  There’s no doubt that this film was an orgasmic feast of sight and sound, but the loud action sequences made no sense.  How do futuristic robots and spacecraft cohesively blended with a 1950’s storyline?  WTF?!

Video  

Combating the film’s disastrous plot comes a nearly impeccable 1080p AVC MPEG-4 codec gorgeously framed in a 2.40:1 aspect ratio.  Wow!  That’s the nicest thing I said in this review so far, huh?  I used the words nearly impeccable and gorgeous in the same sentence within this review.  Well thankfully folks, now that we are done talking about the movie itself, things are looking up here in these next three categories.  Other than the excessive use of CGI that seems to take away fine details here and there momentarily, I have no other qualms with this video presentation.  The blacks are all inky and deep.  The skin tones all look normal.  The colors and shadows that hide the colors flourish throughout.  And not that you would expect it from something this new, but it’s my duty to report on any and all areas in regards to the video quality and I’m pleased to announce…there’s not a speckle of dirt is to be found on this print.  I had you going there for a minute, huh?  Admit it.  Overall, it’s what you would expect from a Warner Bros. Blu-ray.  Fans of the Watchmen Blu-ray will be equally excited about how this one looks.

Audio  

The video presentation is one thing, but the Blu-ray gets its revenge on the less than desired plot with this aggressive, in-your-face DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track.   This one will rock your house when played at your normal operating levels.   Be prepared to be shell-shocked!   Paint will peel off the walls.  Okay, all kidding aside, things sound fantastic here.  Every punch, dragon roar, explosive device and zinging bullet self-destructs in fury all around you.   In the case of Sucker Punch on Blu-ray, the chaos is a good thing in the audio department…a very good thing.   The rear speakers work overtime as if they were trying to compete with the bombastic bass.   But who’s kidding whom here.   The bass will win in a fight anytime.  The rock song selections, as I mentioned earlier, are what make this track so dynamic and exciting for me on so many levels.  And oh yeah, the voices, even the faintest of whispers, are audibly heard over the most destructive of scenes.   P-E-R-F-E-C-T!  Kudos to Warner Bros. for this exceptional presentation.   This is nothing short of reference.  Trust me.

Special Features  

Although it may not look like much in print, the Special Features department on the Sucker Punch Blu-ray set really packs quite a punch, unlike the movie.  I apologize.  Needless to say, I can’t stop taking jabs at the film.  Ha ha.  I said “jabs.”  Okay, I really have to stop.  I promise.  Let’s take a closer look at what’s spread across this three-disc set.  But before, we begin…I know you’re hating me right now, I need to tell you that the 110-minute PG-13 rated theatrical cut is housed on the first Blu-ray disc, while the not quite superior 128-minute R-rated cut is found on the second Blu-ray disc.  Okay, now that we have that all cleared up, we are good to go.

• Extended Cut: Maximum Movie Mode (Disc 2, HD 128 mins.) – This is the reason we are all here folks.  This is why this shallow Special Features department gets the score it does from me.  It took me awhile to get through this, not because I hated the movie, but because I savored every minute of this.  Zack Snyder breaks it all down for you here in this seamless Picture-in-Picture playground.  Go behind-the-scenes, see CG action sequences, catch casting sessions and much more.  There is a wealth of knowledge to take in here.  Breathe slowly, and let it all sink in.  This is the stuff that aspiring film disciples of Snyder will want to see.  Like I asked of you in the audio section, trust me!
• Sucker Punch: Animated Shorts (Disc 1, HD, 11 mins.) – These are 4 motion comics that feature a back-story to the action packed environment seen within the film.  There’s nothing too special here.
• Behind the Soundtrack (Disc 1, HD, 3 mins.) – This one I approve. Here’s a brief look at Snyder with composers Tyler NBates and Marius De Vries and the music of Sucker Punch (the soundtrack is heaven to my ears).
• Digital Copy – A third DVD disc in the set is home to the standard definition, theatrical cut of the film that you can put on your portable devices, most notably the iPad and iPhone, but of course!
• BD-Live Functionality

Final Thoughts  

I only liked Sucker Punch for the action, the girls and the music, basically, for all the wrong reasons.  There’s not much really here folks except a wild MTV music video set to a pretty divine soundtrack (interestingly enough…much of the cast lends their vocal talent to it).  It’s shallow and dense and unlike Shallow Hal, there’s no real story worth telling here.  It could have been and should have been so much more.  Oh Superman…I’m really scared for your safety and concerned over your intellectual property.  Here’s hoping Mr. Snyder doesn’t cripple you yet again with kryponite.  So heed my warnings and proceed with caution when thinking about purchasing this one.  Sucker Punch is not for captive audiences…. brain dead, maybe, but definitely not captive.   Despite the near reference video, the bombastic audio surround track and the Maximum Movie Mode that dreams are made of, this one I’m afraid is nothing more than a rental.  Proceed with extreme caution.  This transmission is over.

Wait!  Hold up!  You thought you heard the last of me, huh?  Not so fast!  Just for the record…I just came back from the press screening of Transformers: Dark of the Moon and I will say this about it.  That film had more violence in it than this so called rated R-cut of Sucker Punch.  I’m just saying.  Don’t be fooled by the rocks!  That’s J-Lo.  Peace out!

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