“Dance with the devil.
Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.” – Letterboxd Synopsis
Sinners is one of those movies that was just a joy to watch. I came into this movie with high expectations and it exceeded those. It’s one of those movies that has either made me a huge fan of someone in it or involved (like Hailee Steinfeld), or has solidified my love for others (like Ryan Coogler, Michael B. Jordan, and Ludwig Göransson). This is a special movie that wraps up so much in its 138 minute runtime. There are strong messages of the importance of community, the strength of music and the power it holds, and it delivers on everything the premise and trailers promised on top of that. This movie was so good I have to own the physical when it comes out and I haven’t bought a movie in well over a decade.
Story wise, I loved it. I love the framing of having this one night where everything went down. In the beginning, it shows some of the aftermath, then it cuts to the hours leading up to the night until we get to the climax. This movie has such a strong feel of community that added a lot to the story, but especially the character interactions and dynamics. Smoke and Stack are returning to their hometown and it’s like we’re coming back with them. Everyone knows them, they’re good to the people they’re good to, but nobody would really dare to willingly cross them. There’s this mutual understanding that everyone is trying to get by in the Jim Crow south that’s only a generation or so removed from slavery. Where sun down towns and plantations are still prominent. Where, no matter where you go, racism is just a given. It’s a matter of how severe. The KKK is still a prominent organization. So all these people are just trying to get by. So nobody is really going to say no to the idea of a Juke Joint where they can cast all of that aside for a night.
Smoke and Stack are great characters. Michael B. Jordan did a wonderful job portraying how alike but also different they were. They love each other more than anybody else, but they also have their own past and demons that they have to deal with as they come up throughout the movie. I loved learning about their past and their relationship dynamic is very interesting. They are identical twins, but it’s clear that Smoke takes up that older sibling’s mantle. He’s the responsible one, always looking out for Stack. While Stack is a bit more on the wilder side, more carefree than his brother. They both are about their business though and their differences in personality really elevate this movie when you have one person playing both of them and they each have their own type of relationship with the rest of the characters. It is actually very impressive how Michael B. Jordan was able to portray the nuances in each of their characters. It’s always such a treat to see him act, but he did a great job interacting with himself and the community at large.
Miles Caton, go get you an award. What a performance, what a voice. Sammie’s story is something that we’ve seen in media a lot because it’s real. A young person from a small place who already has a path lined up for him by his father (that his father is pushing him towards) but he wants more. He wants to perform. He doesn’t want to be in the church like his father. So when you mix that with his big, larger than life, cousins coming back home and offering him what’s really an opportunity of a lifetime to perform at their Juke Joint. It just makes too much sense. I love the journey that he goes through. The way his character represents how powerful music can be and how it connects us to our past, present and future. Yet wherever there is deep connection and strong roots, evil will also be attracted to that. It was brilliant. His acting was great, his performances even more so. I’ve been listening to the soundtrack since I’ve seen this movie and in particular his songs because they are just so good.
Jack O’Connell killed it as Remmick. Us vampire fans have been eating so good when it comes to their on screen appearances lately. Interview with the Vampire, Nosferatu, and now this. Remmick is as equally unapologetically brutal and cunning as he is sincere in his personal goal. There’s sincerity behind what he wants and his Irish lineage allows him to connect with the cast and their struggles. I love how they tied that into everything. He’s very blunt about the things that were taken from him and the others and the things that were forced upon them. Every scene he’s in is wonderful. There are so many parallel scenes that just blew my mind. For as good as one particular musical number is in this movie, the one that he performs not too long after that is just as good. The climax of this movie is brutal but when he speaks his truth about the realities of what has been done to him (and very similarly to everyone else) it’s just so real. I couldn’t help but love him. Especially because I’m a big vampire guy and this movies take on vampires is so good. They stuck to a lot of rules that often just get tossed out and used them very well. The aversion to garlic and silver, needing to be invited inside. That rule in particular was used to its max potential and created so much tension and amazing scenes. There’s also the siring and memory absorption among everything else that we’ve become accustomed to when it comes to vampires.
The rest of the cast were amazing as these connecting characters. The twins are these infamous gangsters from the area that left for the war, then got in with the mob in Chicago. Now they’re back. And to everyone else they’re legends almost, but these characters know them. They have deep person connections to them and it grounds them in every scene. all of these character interactions are just chefs’ kiss. Hailee Steinfeld as Mary and Wunmi Mosaku as Annie had amazing chemistry with Stack and Smoke, respectively.
The music and direction in this movie was nothing short of some of the best I’ve ever seen. There is one scene in particular that I think is one of the best scenes ever. It’s so impactful and the wow factor when I realized what was going on and how it kept going and kept getting added to. It was phenomenal, and there were so many musical numbers in this movie. Ludwig Göransson, you are the goat. I have been following this man since he and Childish Gambino were both working on Community. To see them both grow as artist in their respective mediums has been beautiful. This is my favorite soundtrack that he’s done to date and that’s saying something when you look at this mans resume. The use of blues and soul, and then some Irish folk music, too. Add in the amazing directing. This movie was a treat to watch and hear. Well almost, legitimately, my only gripe with this movie was that the dialogue audio mixing was rough sometimes. It could be hard to hear the dialogue. It was like it was so loud. But it was something that I got over pretty quickly.
So yeah, I absolutely loved this movie. On a base level, it’s just cool as fuck. The acting, direction, music, and action are all top-notch. But it really has so much soul. As wild and crazy as this movie can get, it’s almost comforting in a way with how all these characters interact and feel like friends, loved ones, a community. How they prop each other up, help each other, encourage. And the power of music is so real and tangible. There are a handful of memorable scenes that I think are some of the best ever. There are a lot of themes that this movie tackles really well. It’s crazy that it felt short to me, because it’s a bit over two hours, but I think that just speaks to how good it is. I wanted more. Honestly, I hope we do get more in this universe. This movie to me has already climbed up high on my all-time favorite list, comfortably sitting somewhere in the top five. It does so many things so well and still delivers on being as sexy and soulful as the trailers promised.
Sinners – 10/10
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