TL;DR – Soulful, Sanguine, Sensual, and more than a little Scandalous. It is the kind of film that one second will seduce you with the nectar of the Blues as your whole body moves along with the music but then horrify you with its brutality in the next instant.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid and post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Sinners Review –

Sometimes in life, you discover, ‘Ryan Coogler is making a vampire film set in 1930s Mississippi,’ and the moment you hear it, you know that you want to see it. Few directors have had such a remarkable track record as Ryan Coogler, and that alone would make this a must-see film. But add in a cast list like this and all the world and themes you know are going to be fascinating. Goodness, what a film this could be.

So, to set the scene, Smoke (Michael B. Jordan) and Stack (Michael B. Jordan) are two legendary twins from the Mississippi Delta who left to make their names in Chicago nine years ago. But they are back with a truck full of assorted booze and enough money to make even the most racist guy in the town still want to sell them the old mill. They have a plan to create a club/bar/gambling den/music hall for the people of the plantations. Part of that was getting the best food from Grace Chow (Li Jun Li) and her family, cooked by the one person all can trust, Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), with some of the best music around headlines by their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton). It was a glorious night, but sometimes music can be so good that it can pierce the veil, and not all that is good can flow from it.   

There are a lot of things I can say about this film, but I want to start with the music. The music in this movie was exquisite. Ludwig Göransson has outdone himself again both in the original score and in the arrangements that can be found throughout the film. For a movie where music is essential to both the setting and the narrative, it is a joy to see it arranged and performed so well. The songs can be uplifting, sad, sensual or, in at least one place, an oddly compelling threat. There is one scene when all the music and visuals come together in an explosion of cinema, and you can’t help but feel your body start moving with the beat as the line between the film and the audience breaks down.

Visually, this is a stunningly beautiful film. There is almost a wistful way that the camera captures the light throughout the film, defaulting to more natural light sources but not looking gloomy like many of its contemporaries. They made those IMAX cammers work for them, and it shows. There was an intentionality to the framing and construct that helped give Sinners the depth it needed. They also never took the easy route. For example, in the first scene, where we are introduced to the twins, it looks like a straightforward split-screen set-up, which people have used to portray twins for decades. But then you look, and there are subtle ways in which the two are interacting, which makes it a fundamentally more difficult shot. Then we have all the costumers and artists that brought 1930s Mississippi to life, and you can feel their skill in every frame. Sinners is a movie where you know they did their homework, even before you see all the consultants in the credits.   

You have the production and music locked down, the next thing you need is a cast that can bring this to life, and do they ever, pun intended. Look, you know this is a role that Michael B. Jordan is going to ace, even when he is pulling double duty, and of course, he nails it. Wunmi Mosaku gives a phenomenal performance, bringing the soul to the picture, that heart that you need. Hailee Steinfeld is electric in every scene she is in, and hats out to Jack O’Connell for being one of the most unhinged villains I have seen in an age. There are no weak links in the cast, but I do want to take a moment to recognise newcomer Miles Caton for making one of the most challenging roles in the film work as well as it did.

One of the surprises of the film is how structurally it takes quite a bit to get going. That slow burn can feel like it is starting to drag, but here, every twist and turn as they get ready for the party is a joy to watch unfurl. There is this wonderful oner through town as they find Grace Chow (Li Jun Li), and it feels almost luxurious to watch. I liked how it was clear that the characters did not know they were in a vampire film and acted accordingly, but conversely, you never felt like they were acting stupidly, just the best they could do with the information they had. The biggest threat the characters thought was out there that night was the KKK. On that front, there is a lot in this film that is left to context clues and subtext, and you will likely get more out of this if you understand the Jim Crow-era South or the role of the mob in Chicago, for example.

Another strength of the film is that you are thoroughly engaged with the film even before the first vampire turns up so that supernatural plot only adds to what is going on. But because there are vampires, be prepared for a bloody/gory mess at times as red sprays across the screen. I am quite interested in how they take their drama narrative and the supernatural one and crash them together because that often does not work. I am not sure that the ending will land narratively for people in places, given the setup. Also, I am not sure if it was just the session I watched, or the master, but the audio for some of the dialogue got a bit hidden in places for me.      

In the end, do we recommend Sinners? Well, it is a film that leans into its name, so if sex, language, and violence in cinema are not your bag, then this might not be the film for you. But I loved how they built this work, the actors giving their all, the music that pounded into my soul, and the sheer brashness of it all. Have you watched Sinners? Let us know what you thought in the comments below.If you liked Sinners, we would recommend to you The Moogai.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Sinners
Directed by – Ryan Coogler
Written by – Ryan Coogler
Music by – Ludwig Göransson
Cinematography by – Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Edited by – Michael P. Shawver
Production/Distribution Companies – Proximity Media, Universal Pictures & Warner Bros. Pictures.
Starring – Michael B. Jordan, Miles Caton, Hailee Steinfeld, Wunmi Mosaku, Jack O’Connell, Li Jun Li, Delroy Lindo, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller, Buddy Guy, Yao, Emonie Ellison, Saul Williams, Andrene Ward-Hammond, David Maldonado, Helena Hu, Sam Malone, Percy Bell, Peter Dreimanis, Lola Kirke, Nathaniel Arcand, Gralen Bryant Banks, Nicoye Banks, Christian Robinson & Justin William Davis
Rating – Australia: MA15+; Canada: 14A; Germany: 16; New Zealand: R; United Kingdom: 15; United States: R