Film: Sinners
Cast: Miles Caton, Saul Williams, Andrene Ward-Hammond, Michael B Jordan
Director/Writer: Ryan Coogler
Rating: 3.5/5
Runtime: 137 min
Writer/director Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ is a well crafted vampire movie. It has a rich story powered by a charismatic dual performance by Michael B. Jordan. It’s a gothic genre tale nuanced by ancestral inheritance. It is ambitious in its scope and the gritty period narrative is daringly different. Coogler’s attempt to translate big ideas into a movie that is appealing to all, comes good.
It’s the 1930s in Mississippi. Sammie (Miles Caton), the son of a preacher, has the power to see between the past and future. One morning, covered in blood and wounds, Sammie stumbles into his father’s church, broken guitar in hand. Obviously, there’s some horror story waiting to be told. But at that point the narrative rewinds to the previous day.
Smoke and Stack, twin brothers (both played by Michael B Jordan) return to their Southern home town from Chicago, where they have made money working for Al Capone. Their intention is to open up their own music joint with their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton) as one of the main draws.
They buy a venue from the local bigot, open up for a show but the first night is not without problems. Mary (Hailee Steinfield) one of the twins ex-lovers turns up unannounced and Remmick (Jack O’Connell) a country singer with a penchant for Irish songs, and a meagre repertoire, fails to hold the crowd. As the night progresses the drama turns into a vampire movie with the twins and several others fighting for survival.
‘Sinners’ is melancholic, running with themes of racism, spirituality, immortality and sexuality. The social commentary gets blurred when the blood begins to flow. The bloodletting is savage and often ghastly. Coogler’s assured direction and handling of set pieces is noteworthy. Jordan, Jack O’ Connell, Delroy Lindo and Miles Canton in his debut role give off a confident vibe.
Coogler, along with cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw, editor Michael P. Shawver, composer Ludwig Göransson makes ‘Sinners’ a sensory experience. ‘Sinners’ is a departure from Coogler’s earlier works. It is different and holds its own in a sea of vampire movies. Ryan Coogler has crafted a cinematic experience that goes beyond the ordinary and the Imax scale renders it even more worthy.
