By the time I hit the end I knew it demanded a re-watch. I’d started watching it as a low-concept sci-fi adventure, but it turned out to be social commentary + world-building + an interwoven paradox thing. So. I knew I’d missed a lot.
Like what was Janeane Garofalo doing there for 3 seconds?
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I would say Sucker Punch is a 90-minute music video that looks great, with a bookended plotline that feeeeeeeeeeels deep, man, but is actually wicked misogynistic. I think it’s an entertaining watch for sure, as long as you go in knowing that Snyder’s idea of the inner desires of female empowerment involves sexy ninja schoolgirls fighting Nazi robots.
Sucker Punch throws out a lot of wild and ridiculous visual ideas that mash-up different genres. Which is wacky, but compelling. At the end of it, though, the fever-dream plot is fairly linear. It’s a nerdy brodude’s genre wetdream. Southland Tales, by comparison is very non-linear and mashes up so many different genres, beyond just nerd chic. It’s military movie, BIblical apocalypse, sci-fi, musical, Hollywood satire, 80s camp, and a dire political thriller all at once.
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I thought Donnie Darko was great, but after seeing the Director’s Cut I decided not to rush blindly into any more films from Richard Kelly.
I don’t necessarily think you are the one missing the crucial element - it seems like it was just missing from the film in general due to the scope of what was trying to be achieved. The VICE article that Thom linked to goes a bit into this, but you’re essentially coming in mid-way through a trilogy (that was supposed to eventually be 6 films??) based on a partially-published graphic novel series. It was heavily edited and reworked many times during production, and never seemed to fully come together before release.
It was way too ambitious, but also that’s one of the things that really resonates with me about it. The cast-list is fucking wild, the story tries to encompass so many pieces of social commentary without necessarily hitting the marks (the scene with Jon Lovitz with the actors in the empty house), and the genres that are all melded together…it was already going to be a monolithic task for the most seasoned Hollywood veteran, much less someone who had just been breaking through into that world.
It’s not a good movie, oh no. But it’s still definitely one I try to watch with friends who haven’t seen, due to the sheer audacity of what they pulled off. It’s certainly one of those movies that leaves you with the feverdream feeling of “what the hell did I just watch?” for better or worse.
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Southland Tales destroys Sucker Punch IMHO. And I actually tend to be forgiving of Zach Snyder.
The thing is, Southland Tales really is not incoherent at all. I have seen the movie many times. It makes total sense, but yes, even to the sophisticated cineaste it will require multiple viewings. A background in popular culture, politics, socialism, the surveillance state, alternative energy, and a handful of other subjects is useful. 
It’s a great movie. I’m not saying that everybody will or should like it, but it’s under-appreciated, and I imagine almost certainly will be “rediscovered” more broadly at some point.
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So little of her made the theatrical cut 
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I picked it up on Blu-Ray and was surprised to find one of the extra features was a gallery of the prequel graphic novel. We haven’t watched it yet, but we’re looking forward to it.
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I have the graphic novel, which is nice as it fills in a little detail, but I don’t think it’s required to appreciate the movie or anything.
Yeah, I saw your comment about that above. But filled in details would be nice, and the cheapest I found the graphic novel for was $80. So it’s a nice unexpected bonus to have it on the blu-ray.
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