Opinion on the Sucker Punch controversy.
Mar. 29th, 2011 08:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rogueslayer452I highly recommend reading this person's views and debunking of the arguments against the film which are perfectly articulated, however I do have some additional commentary and opinions of my own.
Everyone interprets things differently, have different perceptions and we're not always going to agree about everything. Some will like or possibly love a film, others won't. That's totally fine, to each their own and all of that jazz. But the amount of critical accusations against Sucker Punch are getting rather ridiculous, particularly the claims about it being "misogynistic" and "anti-feminist" and "exploitative of women." Throughout the film I never saw anything suggesting that, in fact I saw the exact opposite. While there are darker themes it's a fantastical world which deals with the coping mechanisms of those trapped in an ugly reality, and handling it with the power of their minds. That's it. While there may be some flaws here and there, overall there's nothing anti-women about it from where I stand.
Oh, and I also don't appreciate being accused of "supporting sexism against women" because I enjoyed the film or because don't agree with your stances. If I was entertained or felt empowered by such things, then that is my right. Don't say I'm wrong just because I don't agree with your viewpoints, and don't tell me how to feel because I am a woman and should feel "ashamed" for liking something that you disagree with.
Don't fucking speak for me, or for any other woman out there as a matter of fact.
Sucker Punch is no Black Swan or Inception by any means, but there is a story being told and a message that is being conveyed. At the end of the day, it's a fun action-packed fantastical world where girls are kicking ass. And what's wrong with that? Furthermore, what's wrong with a little campy fun in films without it getting mobbed by critics? Why does everything have to be either extraordinary or godawful to the point where everyone is bashing it all to hell? I don't get it. Why can't we have a happy medium, where something is kickass, visually stunning and fun at the same time?
Bottom line: Don't listen to critics who don't know shit, and don't follow the line of bitter reviewers. Just watch and judge for yourself and make your own opinions based on what you go into the movie for and what you yourself take out from it.
Everyone interprets things differently, have different perceptions and we're not always going to agree about everything. Some will like or possibly love a film, others won't. That's totally fine, to each their own and all of that jazz. But the amount of critical accusations against Sucker Punch are getting rather ridiculous, particularly the claims about it being "misogynistic" and "anti-feminist" and "exploitative of women." Throughout the film I never saw anything suggesting that, in fact I saw the exact opposite. While there are darker themes it's a fantastical world which deals with the coping mechanisms of those trapped in an ugly reality, and handling it with the power of their minds. That's it. While there may be some flaws here and there, overall there's nothing anti-women about it from where I stand.
Oh, and I also don't appreciate being accused of "supporting sexism against women" because I enjoyed the film or because don't agree with your stances. If I was entertained or felt empowered by such things, then that is my right. Don't say I'm wrong just because I don't agree with your viewpoints, and don't tell me how to feel because I am a woman and should feel "ashamed" for liking something that you disagree with.
Don't fucking speak for me, or for any other woman out there as a matter of fact.
Sucker Punch is no Black Swan or Inception by any means, but there is a story being told and a message that is being conveyed. At the end of the day, it's a fun action-packed fantastical world where girls are kicking ass. And what's wrong with that? Furthermore, what's wrong with a little campy fun in films without it getting mobbed by critics? Why does everything have to be either extraordinary or godawful to the point where everyone is bashing it all to hell? I don't get it. Why can't we have a happy medium, where something is kickass, visually stunning and fun at the same time?
Bottom line: Don't listen to critics who don't know shit, and don't follow the line of bitter reviewers. Just watch and judge for yourself and make your own opinions based on what you go into the movie for and what you yourself take out from it.
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no subject
Date: 2011-04-03 08:58 pm (UTC)Furthermore, what's wrong with a little campy fun in films without it getting mobbed by critics? Why does everything have to be either extraordinary or godawful to the point where everyone is bashing it all to hell? I don't get it. Why can't we have a happy medium, where something is kickass, visually stunning and fun at the same time?
MOVIES ARE SERIOUS BUSINESS OKAY. Seriously, it's like movies aren't allowed to be fun anymore.
I love your post here. I really don't know why so many people have latched onto the whole "this is a sexist movie" idea. It's funny; I've seen a great deal of mansplaining about why this movie is totally sexist and why women should hate it ... when I read that I thought, 'oh, I bet a lot of feminist reviewers really like it,' but apparently they don't?
I can get it if people find it triggering and that is the cause for their dislike, but, while there IS misogyny in the film, the film itself is not misogynistic. Which I think is something that a lot of people just aren't getting. (Tbh, I feel like a lot of people went in thinking the movie would anti-women and thus were absolutely determined to hate it and not even try and understand what the movie was saying and what it was trying to do.)
no subject
Date: 2011-04-04 09:51 pm (UTC)I'm quite baffled at how feminists seem to deem this sexist as well, even suggesting that no woman should ever watch it because it's very anti-women. I never got that implication, from the previews or from the film itself, and I consider myself incredibly pro-woman and I do call out the sexist bullshit when I see it. Sucker Punch however? Never got on that radar and I'm still majorly confused as to why it did with others. Is it simply because of what the girls are wearing? The context of where the girls are, for example the brothel? Because that's the only things I see people complaining about, and to be frank, I find that rather ridiculous because they are overlooking the actual story with what is happening.
I can get it if people find it triggering and that is the cause for their dislike, but, while there IS misogyny in the film, the film itself is not misogynistic. Which I think is something that a lot of people just aren't getting.
Exactly, and it's what I agree with Emily Browning and her defense of the film because the film isn't supporting the misogyny the girls are facing, but addressing that is the issue and it's what drives the girls to do something about it and break free. Now there are definitely certain things to wonder, what actually happened in reality versus what was only happening in their psyches, and things to think about, but these sexism claims are rather over-exaggerating an issue that shouldn't be in the first place.
And ITA with you. Many people who are crying "anti-women" over this film either haven't seen it for themselves or they are incredibly biased in their views. Even some people who were skeptical before seeing it, came out saying that the bad reviews have been over-exaggerated.
I wish the film would get more praise because it is a fun movie to enjoy, and I did feel empowered by watching it -- I mean, you can't tell me that I cannot feel empowered by something I watch regardless (which some of these so-called radical feminists are telling others, which is bullshit, you are not me, kthx.) After I left the theater, aside from being overwhelmed by the ending, I wanted to kick some ass like the girls were doing in their action dreamscape sequences. Big guns, swords and fighting zombie robots and dragons? Hell yeah, sign me up for that!