How in the heck does Chibibar know anything about women empowerment. Well, in reality I don't since I am male, but being a supporter of women's right and equality, I think I may have a small glimpse of it.
So what do we got?
First the basic premise of the movie is this. Everyone has a Guardian angel. This angel might be a neighbor, friend, strangers, or just a voice inside your head. The guardian angel will help you in a time of need.
Meaning? It means then when you are down in the dumps, a situation, a person, or a vision might come to you to help you guide you to a better situation. This movie? it is about Babydoll being Sweetpea's guardian angel.
Second, the movie is trying to make a really boring escape from a mental institution a bit more interesting. I mean sure you can have a person who is "crazy" (babydoll) and trying to seduce each target to get what she needs to escape, but that is kinda boring. So they change "seduce" into a "dance" now that is what I got from it. What kind of dance? that is up to your imagination. The action scene is just a third level on making a mundane action into a fun thing to watch.
Third, the movie does project "some" women empowerment. I will get more into it as I describe what I saw.
The movie world.
We have three different perception/realities
The real world (RW): it is a mental institution. The world is bland and well, evil. Life is like that. Life is hard. Life is never about giving a person a chance. We learn this when Babydoll was attempted to be attacked by her step father and later the step father was trying to attack babydoll's sister. Why? he is a bastard, he also wasn't getting the inheritance from the marriage. Babydoll was trying to protect her sister and end up killing her
also the step father wanted the money so put babydoll in an institution and have her lobotomized. nice eh? The sad part is that, being the real world, that happen all the time and some people get away with it (the step father did)
The Sexy World (SW) : this basically is to draw on the men to watch it. Who doesn't like scantly clad women in a Burlesque type show. This world shows that if a women want to get somewhere, they have to be sexy. Well that is what people think the message is, but what it REALLY is that the women (the dancers) are really trapping themselves into that role. They think this is all there is. They think they are limited by what the world gives them. This world is "your perception" of the world. You make what you want of it. you can make your boring lives a lot more exciting via your own perception. You can make the difference if you choose to. This world shows that the women are "slaves" to the orderly BUT that is true because they only perceive it to be. Even the doctor (who in the real world is in charge), thinks she is "under" the orderly (my interpretation) (1)
The war world (WW): This is your sub conscious or your "soul" "inner thoughts" "your mind" What ever you may call it, this is where the real battle is about. This is where you think about the things you want to do, what you could do, you fight with your inner self to achieve your goal. The director/story writer made the actual sequence/result from this world. Why? cause it is easy that to show what a person try to do, and then show the real world and switch back? nah. too boring. It is better to let your imagination figure out what REALLY happen. (2)
(1) In any institution (pun intended) there is always someone who seems to "runs the show" It may not be the actual person in charge. The orderly seems to be doing a lot on the inside. He knows the ins and outs of the place and can make things happen. This is true in the real world. You be surprise how a person in certain position can seem to influence people or "make things happen" like an office. You have bosses come and go, but who usually are around (well most of the time) it is the office assistance, or a clerk, or something who knows what is what. They actually have more power than the CEO (again, perception)
(2) the exception was when sweetpea was trying to steal the knife and Rocket got killed. It was a touching moment, but not as awesome when you saw on the train where it was a choice/sacrifice of the younger sister save her older sister (launching her out of the train before it explodes = jumping in front of the butcher and took a stabbing for her older sister)
So. That is fine and dandy Chibi, where in the world is the women empowerment?
In the War World (WW), Babydoll met up with an old man (who is Babydoll's angel) told her that she had ALL weapons in the world to help her. It is figurative in terms that she has all the smarts to do it, but she project them as actual weapon. The battles she fought was actually using tools she had (sexual, psychological, or physical) to achieve her goals. The goals was to escape. She needed help. She saw the way and she need others to help her.
There was a scene where the Orderly found out (I forgot his name) or thinks he found out and try to scare the girls BACK into their submissive roles, but the women did not back down (after a small scene) Figure the will not take it anymore and move on.
In the end, where Babydoll was telling Sweetpea that she was the strongest only because Babydoll was Sweetpea's guardian angel. Babydoll knows that she can't fight against the situation she got herself in. The Orderly saw to that by order a lobotomize on Babydoll BUT Babydoll knows that she can do what she can NOW and then "dream" in peace (hence the last smile which freak the doctor out)
The story was actually Sweetpea, but it was twisted to start with Babydoll. Interesting twist. I didn't like it, but that was the director's choice.
So, what is the basic message.
Everyone has all the weapon they need to achieve the goals in life. This can mean almost anything really. It can mean that you have the capability to do anything if you put your mind to it. For a long time (men's fault) been putting down women or try to "stick them" into roles for a long while. Women as just as smart, talented, and some say better than men, but they let their perception (WW), social acceptance (SW) and physical limitation (RW) to block their way. Life is never easy. Life is hard. But life is what YOU make of it. Life is not about being totally rich (it would be nice) or have everything you want, but it is about personal fulfillment. Even in the 2011, there are many women still "stuck" in the role they are in now. They let the system (glass ceiling) block their progress. They let their partner talk down on them (intentionally or unintentionally). Their co-worker, their friends, their spouse, their family, you name it, there are so many people help keep the women down where they are. There are few women who go beyond and pursue their dream and goals. It can be anything, you have all the weapon (tools) you need to do it.
You can call me crazy, and maybe I'm reading too much into it, but when my wife said that this movie suppose to "empowered" women and she didn't see it at first, but when we sit down and actually thought about it, it kinda does in their own way.
You may or probably not going to agree with me and disregard this wall-o-text, but that is what I think.