Gugino’s alter-egos

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/04/2011 (5482 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LOS ANGELES — From "Spy Kids" to "Sin City," Carla Gugino has played a wide assortment of characters.

"Sucker Punch," which opened in theatres last week, gives the 39-year-old actress an opportunity for something different, yet again. Gugino plays a mental institution’s psychiatrist, Dr. Vera, and her alter-ego, Madam Gorski, who runs a brothel full of mental patients.

If this sounds strange, it should. It exists in a world created by director Zack Snyder — who co-wrote the "Sucker Punch" script — that’s even more bizarre than the worlds he cooked up in "Watchmen" and "300."

Set in the 1960s, "Sucker Punch" unfolds around Baby Doll (Emily Browning), who has been tricked into a mental institution/brothel by her abusive step-father. To survive, Baby Doll fantasizes, but her tripping might lead to an escape.

Obsessed with a plan, she persuades inmates Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens), Amber (Jamie Chung), Rocket (Jena Malone), and Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish) to join her.

While Madam Gorksi looks on, the institution’s brothel boss Blue (Oscar Isaac) tries to stop Baby Doll, even as a mentor (Scott Glenn) offers assistance each time Baby Doll, and her gun-toting sidekicks, head out on a mission.

That’s the cue for some bizarre battles with samurai warriors, ghoulish German soldiers, and a fire-breathing dragon, in a wacky mix of anime, science fiction, and action.

Mostly filmed on Vancouver sound stages, the production is as eccentric as Snyder intended. And among the cast, only Gugino anticipated the result, having portrayed Sally Jupiter/Silk Spectre I in Snyder’s 2009 cinema version of the comic book, "Watchmen."

Unfortunately for Gugino, her characters in both "Watchmen" and "Sucker Punch" get smacked around.

"I know," says Gugino says, pretending to smirk. "I’ll have to talk to him (Snyder) about that,"

More seriously, the actress insists she understands each of the films "exist in a comic-book esthetic" that should not be analyzed too closely.

That doesn’t mean Gugino is casual in her approach to playing the dual personality of the well-meaning psychiatrist and the madam with a conscience.

"She’s a complicated lady; a damaged person with good intentions," the actress explains.

Gugino is an old hand at playing vamps, tramps and femme fatales.

After a brief modelling stint in her teens, Gugino began a low-profile career in various TV sitcoms.

Her first film was opposite Pauly Shore in the 1993 romantic comedy "Son in Law", and she earned some recognition as Michael J. Fox’s love interest in the series, "Spin City", although she left after the first season to pursue a more challenging path.

A few years later, she co-starred with Nicolas Cage in "Snake Eyes," and while the film had only modest success, she received decent reviews.

Gugino returned to TV for the final season of the hospital drama "Chicago Hope" in 1999. The next year, she was featured with Antonio Banderas as the spy parents in Robert Rodriguez’s big hit, "Spy Kids," returning for the subsequent sequels in 2002 and 2003.

She was disappointed when her well-received 2003 crime-thriller series "Karen Sisco" was cancelled after one season because of poor ratings. But she recovered nicely: Gugino received great reviews for her sexy Lucille in Rodriguez’s 2005 brooding film version of Frank Miller’s comic-book series, "Sin City."

In sharp contrast, she charmed audiences as Ben Stiller’s sweetie in the 2006 kids’ flick, "Night at the Museum," then stole a few scenes in the 2007 crime yarn, "American Gangster," with headliners Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington.

She also played Vincent Chase’s no-nonsense agent in the HBO series "Entourage."

In 2009, she co-starred in the adult-oriented "Watchmen" and the Disney remake of the family film, "Race to Witch Mountain," featuring Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson.

Currently, Gugino is a recurring character on the controversial cable series, "Californication," playing a lawyer and love interest to Hank Moody (David Duchovny).

On the movie side of things, she’s co-starring with Rob Lowe in the upcoming "I Melt with You." She is also in the Jim Carrey comedy, "Mr. Popper’s Penguins," out in June, and Garry Marshall’s all-star ensemble farce, "New Year’s Eve," to be released at Christmas.

"I could be working 365 days of the year, because I like it so much," says Gugino. "But I always have to consider what is the next step, and take it from there."