Sucker Punch is an action fantasy that takes us into the vivid imagination of a young girl whose dream world provides the ultimate escape from her darker reality. Unrestrained by the boundaries of time and place, she is free to go where her mind takes her, and her incredible adventures blur the lines between what’s real and what is imaginary.
She has been locked away against her will, but Babydoll (Emily Browning) has not lost her will to survive. Determined to fight for her freedom, she urges four other young girls—the reluctant Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), the outspoken Rocket (Jena Malone), the street-smart Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and the fiercely loyal Amber (Jamie Chung)—to band together and try to escape a terrible fate at the hands of their captors, Blue (Oscar Isaac) and Madam Gorski (Carla Gugino), before the mysterious High Roller (Jon Hamm) comes for Babydoll.
Filmmaker Zack Snyder wanted to push the envelope of what is fantasy versus reality in his first film to be based on his own wholly original concept, Sucker Punch. Snyder, who conceived of the story and co-wrote, produced and directed the film, states, “Sucker Punch is a movie about escape, both literal and figurative. It shows how the mind can create an almost impenetrable barricade against the real world, and to what lengths we’re willing to go, what sacrifices we’re willing to make, to get out of a difficult situation.”
On the heels of 300 and Watchmen, the visually complex film is the result of an idea Snyder says “was an evolution for me. I’m inspired by fantasy art and magazines like Heavy Metal. It’s sort of a mash-up between those influences, as well as Twilight Zone and the writings of Richard Bach.”
The full story was years in the making. “I’d written a short story a while ago, which included a character named Babydoll,” Snyder says. “As I worked on it further, the idea evolved and expanded, and took on a life of its own.”
Producer Deborah Snyder adds, “It was so liberating for Zack to create something for which there were no preconceived expectations. This movie could be whatever he wanted it to be, and even though the story changed over time, at its center it has always been about this young woman, Babydoll, who is faced with so much adversity that she retreats into these fantastical worlds in her mind in order to cope with what’s going on around her. In so doing, she finds great strength within. She’s a survivor.”
“Sucker Punch” is now showing on Video On Demand. Check your cable system for availability.
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© 2011 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. and Legendary Pictures