Sucker Punch (2011)
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A woman trapped in a mental institution escapes into a series of vivid, high-octane fantasy worlds.
The story
Following the death of her mother, a young woman is framed for her sister's murder by their stepfather and is subsequently committed to a mental institute. Upon arrival, she is given the nickname Babydoll. As she collects items she needs to escape, she enters a series of fantasy worlds where she and her fellow inmates are strong, experienced warriors. In these imagined realms, she must navigate various dangers to secure the tools necessary for her liberation from the facility.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After being framed for her sister's murder, a woman named Babydoll is confined to a mental institution. To escape, she enters a series of fantasy worlds where she and other inmates are warriors. She is told by a 'Wise Man' that she needs four items—a map, fire, a knife, and a key—to escape. These items correspond to real-world actions: while she performs a dance in the asylum, she imagines herself in feudal Japan, a World War I trench, an Orc-infested castle, and a train full of robots. In reality, the other girls are performing corresponding tasks in the asylum. The girls eventually succeed in their escape attempts, though some are injured or killed in the process. In the final sequence, Babydoll's escape is completed while the doctor realizes the orderly has been forging signatures. The police eventually arrest the orderly, and the girl who was 'lost' in the fantasy is successfully moved to safety.
- First release year
- 2011
- Runtime (minutes)
- 109
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Zack Snyder
- Writers
- Zack Snyder · screenplay; Steve Shibuya · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Emily Browning · Babydoll; Abbie Cornish; Jena Malone; Vanessa Hudgens; Jamie Chung; Carla Gugino · Madam Gorski; Oscar Isaac; Jon Hamm · The High Roller; Scott Glenn · The Wise Man
- Genres
- fantasy; action
- Themes
- escape; imagination; sisterhood
- Tone and mood
- stylized; action-packed
- Premise and plot tags
- fantasy; action; imaginary worlds
- Source material / true-story basis
- original concept
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received generally negative reviews and underperformed at the box office, but it has since gained a cult following.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 4.1 · scale: 10 · review count: 220; Metacritic · score: 33 · scale: 100 · review count: 29
- Awards and nominations
- Scream Awards · Best F/X · 2011 · nomination; Taurus Award · stunt work · 2011 · nomination; Academy Award · Best Visual Effects · 2011 · pre-nominated
- Production trivia
- Snyder described it as 'Alice in Wonderland with machine guns'.; The film was originally intended to be rated R.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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