:: SUCKER PUNCH :: HAIR :: MAKEUP ::

I told everyone at the salon I was excited to see this movie on my day off and I got quite a few chuckles. Whatever. I saw the trailer and visually it looked interesting and quite possibly inspiring. So I went.

The movie’s based on a video game and basically it’s about mental patients forced into prostitution. Wait! Stay with me. Keep an open mind…

*Click on all the links for images from the movie.

:: Hair ::

The continuity of hair styling was better than in most films. Baby Doll (played by Emily Browning) has bleached blond hair and she had the same amount of roots in every scene. Her bangs were consistently asymmetrical during the whole movie. The Mad Men-esque updos worn by Dr. Gorski’s character (played by Carla Gugino) were well executed and the finishing always suited the scenes. Sometimes the hair was perfect, sometimes there were fly aways. But it was always appropriate. When the film slipped into fantasy, the use of product on each of the girls was superb. My favorite was Jena Malone’s character, Rocket.  During the fantasy scenes her short layered hair was sculpted with heavy product in a way that reflected the fantasy/video game element. It withstood a lot of movement and stayed in place. Very impressive. There were also nice haircuts and styling/grooming on the men. A really quality fade, shape, and outline on Blue (Oscar Isaac) was nice to see including an old school, tasteful mustache.

:: Makeup ::

A lot of the women’s makeup looked very exaggerated and glam with a few moments of natural, fresh looks. Again, all the makeup was very consistent and there were A TON of closeups. Blue (Oscar Isaac) donned flawless skin and wore nice contouring during the fantasy scenes. Broken capillaries and spider veins conveyed the cook’s gross, bloated, sweaty character. Ew…yuk!

:: OVERALL AESTHETIC ::

I shamelessly fall asleep in any movie that has a dark color palette. But I stayed awake in this one because at least details could be seen in the darkness. There was a treatment used throughout the film that gave the movie its animated video game feel and it used technology in a controlled, artistic way. Too many times all these special effects seem to say, “Hey, look what I can do!” as opposed to, “Hey, look how beautiful I made this look.” I felt like Sucker Punch used these tools in the latter way.

:: STORY ::

So the movie’s not winning an Oscar and it’s not the deepest content around (however the overall message is positive). But visually, I give it an A+. There’s a lot of good inspiration in here for those who are in the business of making things look good.

Anji Bemben was the Hair Department Head and she was also the Hair Department Head for Tron: Legacy (can’t wait to see that one as it comes out on DVD!). Much of the special effects makeup was performed by Quantum Creation FX.

*Click on all the links for images from the movie.