Sinners (Ryan Coogler, 2025)

[domino harvey]

Ryan Coogler's thriller Sinners with Michael B. Jordan in a dual role

Well, based on the reactions this is getting, it seems like the Oscars will have yet another horror movie in play next year...

Also, apparently it's in 2.76 ratio

[beamish14]

Ryan Coogler's thriller Sinners with Michael B. Jordan in a dual role

Well, based on the reactions this is getting, it seems like the Oscars will have yet another horror movie in play next year...

Also, apparently it's in 2.76 ratio

I didn’t care for Black Panther in the least, but the reviews are so strong that I’m going to check it out in IMAX 70mm

[hearthesilence]

If you didn't care for Black Panther, I'm not sure this will come off any better. I was okay with Black Panther, but aesthetically it was still very much a Marvel comic book movie, even if it was put in a new and welcome context. From what I've read (and from all the clips and trailers I've seen), this is apiece with that even though it's an original story...

Spoiler

...reportedly an allegory on how African American musicians have been exploited in the last century. Given the complexities and contradictions of that history, I'm not sure an allegory delivered through a vampire action movie can be all that nuanced, but I don't doubt it'll reach a lot more people than a history book or a television documentary.

[willoneill]

Also, apparently it's in 2.76 ratio

If you see it in IMAX, however, there are several portions in 1.43.

It’s a pretty impressive and ambitious film, though obviously very violent in the second half, and there’s one musical segment that’s particularly memorable, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see this gets some serious awards consideration. Of all things, I was most struck by the production design and I hope that gets some recognition.

[The Curious Sofa]

I thought Black Panther was overrated, but Creed is the only genuinely good movie in the Rocky franchise.

[hearthesilence]

The least charitable thing I can say about Black Panther is that a lot of what makes a Marvel movie a pain for me to sit through is still present, but at least they opened it up to other things that don't typically exist in big budget fantasies. I think the art team said they wanted to imagine an African country that developed and prospered without European colonization ever impeding on it - I can't remember if Wakanda was always designed with that in mind (at least originally in the comic book) but it's a great foundation for a movie.

[The Curious Sofa]

And yet Wakanda is an isolationist kingdom where major government decisions are made by two guys bashing each other up. I think that kind of primitivism has racist connotations. The second Black Panther movie is a dud. Given the tragic circumstances, it probably should not have been made.

I generally like the MCU movies, at least until they fell off a cliff with the multiverse storyline and would place Black Panther in the middle of the series, not at the top as it often is.

[beamish14]

Also, apparently it's in 2.76 ratio

If you see it in IMAX, however, there are several portions in 1.43.

It’s a pretty impressive and ambitious film, though obviously very violent in the second half, and there’s one musical segment that’s particularly memorable, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see this gets some serious awards consideration. Of all things, I was most struck by the production design and I hope that gets some recognition.

This is apparently the first horror film to get an “A” Cinemascore since Poltergeist

[The Elegant Dandy Fop]

I think there must be some sort of mass critical consesus that if a movie features an aligory about contemporary America, particularly one with as heavy-handed as a message as this, then it’s quality cinema. Found it to be a quite mediocre albeit with elements and ideas I enjoyed. I don’t think Coogler is the type of high-stylist to warrant shooting in 70mm or savvy enough to approach the lofty history and subject matters in this film.

Spoiler

Using white vampires as a stand-in for white culture or the desire for whites for the simultaneous destruction and coopting of American black culture isn’t necessarily the most subtle metaphor. Also, I can’t be the only one who think its odd that the racist whites are singing Irish folk songs, right? Weren‘t the KKK anti-Catholic?

I also appreciated seeing a new film on IMAX 70mm and the format does look incredible, but it’s rather confusing to see a film shot like this with lenses that have shallow focus and then avoid filming scenes in wides. It’s all medium-shots and close-ups and it’s a maddening decision. I couldn’t help but think of Sergio Leone who’d shoot in two-perf Techniscope and made films that had a real sense of grandeur and scale despite the format and budget. I think the format is Coogler trying to become the next Christopher Nolan (who’s special thanked in the credits along with his wife, Emma Thomas) as he transitions from his own super hero franchise to his own projects, but he doesn’t have the visual style to justify the format. But clearly, what do I know as the film’s box office is quite good for an R-rated film!

My last thought is one of the cinema experience as a whole. The row directly in front of my featured about eight people, three who constantly pulled out their phones to text during the film. When the films credits played, it turned out they were all there with someone who worked on the camera crew for the film and cheered him on. The person they were cheering was one of the people who kept using their phone! I’d figured that people who worked on the film would respect the cinema experience, but clearly not.

[aox]

I thought Black Panther was overrated, but Creed is the only genuinely good movie in the Rocky franchise.

I enjoyed Creed a lot more than I thought, though I never saw the other two. I finally checked out the original Rocky a few years ago to knock off my canonical queue and despite not caring for four decades, I was pleasantly surprised at how well it held up. I don't think it is without merit. I still haven't seen 2-6, and kind of don't care.

[thirtyframesasecond]

I thought Black Panther was overrated, but Creed is the only genuinely good movie in the Rocky franchise.

I enjoyed Creed a lot more than I thought, though I never saw the other two. I finally checked out the original Rocky a few years ago to knock off my canonical queue and despite not caring for four decades, I was pleasantly surprised at how well it held up. I don't think it is without merit. I still haven't seen 2-6, and kind of don't care.

You've never seen the Cold War-ending Rocky 4????

I hear that Hailee Steinfeld has a great role in this, and it looks like it's her first 'real' (e.g., non-voice) role for several years. She was terrific in The Edge of Seventeen and deserves better opportunities in film.

[Grand Wazoo]

I'm legitimately excited for the inevitable Armond White review of this.

[hearthesilence]

You've never seen the Cold War-ending Rocky 4????

Yeah, Rocky discovers a resolution to the Cold War. "If I can change...and you can change...everybody could change!"

[The Elegant Dandy Fop]

I'm legitimately excited for the inevitable Armond White review of this.

It's out there and he's phoning it in.

[Grand Wazoo]

I'm legitimately excited for the inevitable Armond White review of this.

It's out there and he's phoning it in.

Damn, he gets a few Armond-isms in there, but agreed. Big yawn overall.

[Beloved Aunt]

"This piece of crap is no comparison to this other piece of crap that I am pretending to like." Although, I'm wondering if he actually believes these things. Armond is so unfathomable. Has anyone really figured out what exactly makes him tick? There are definitely things about him that are valuable traits in a critic.

[beamish14]

I thought Black Panther was overrated, but Creed is the only genuinely good movie in the Rocky franchise.

I enjoyed Creed a lot more than I thought, though I never saw the other two. I finally checked out the original Rocky a few years ago to knock off my canonical queue and despite not caring for four decades, I was pleasantly surprised at how well it held up. I don't think it is without merit. I still haven't seen 2-6, and kind of don't care.

You've never seen the Cold War-ending Rocky 4????

I hear that Hailee Steinfeld has a great role in this, and it looks like it's her first 'real' (e.g., non-voice) role for several years. She was terrific in The Edge of Seventeen and deserves better opportunities in film.

The “No Easy Way Out” montage in Rocky IV is stunning. On par with Dziga Vertov

[pianocrash]

I went into this cold, only seeing the few teasers from last year & still not really knowing the arc of the plot. It all seemed to fall apart when

Spoiler

the Avengers: Assemble! moment happened, and I was entirely out of gas for whatever else was going to be thrown at me.

I don't doubt Coogler's abilities as a filmmaker, but the construction of the whole picture was hell-bent on a whole lot of stuffing (why was Michael B. Jordan playing a set of twins who nary had any discernible qualities when one could have sufficed, but I suppose their love lives are played for diametrically opposite ends...but why?), as well as just towing the grifter's line of horror & visual presentation (IMAX is as much a gimmick as VistaVision will be this year, but I don't pay to make these pictures, either), especially when the ends are primarily for pushing cashflow vs. narrative resonance. I did dig the murky images, but also, why shoot IMAX when you're just going to add CGI endlessly later (as well as switch back to 35mm for the action scenes (Marvel style!)? That's not as much a question as the purpose of impactful image making in the first place. That Coogler even released IMAX prints of this film is kind of a modern miracle, even if the film isn't so much of one (which I suppose is why Nolan, et al was thanked, as he is the only one with big studio pull to do such a thing in recent memory).

Cast is phenomenal, overall (Delroy Lindo, president of my heart), but it lacks the kind of grand guignol buy-in that it desperately seems to want to be. It's nice, but it isn't terrifying, it's conscious, but a little deflated. Strangely, the most effective moments were

Spoiler

the Buddy Guy afterword, even if they seemed to band-aid the concluding scenes (look who actually survived!) to tack on an afterthought that seemed inevitable. Cool as hell, nonetheless.

[Brian C]

The funny thing about Armond's review is that he could have more provocatively gone in the exact opposite direction - celebrating the movie as a rejection of leftist/"Millennial" multiculturalism, where the vampires seek to flatten cultural heritage into a melting pot of soulless assimilation and are threatened by individual expression and meritocratic talent. But no, he mindlessly decides to mistakenly conflate the vampires and the KKK instead (the movie goes to great lengths to separate the KKK and the vampires as two distinct evils!).

[thirtyframesasecond]

I really liked this.

Spoiler

Vampire films are a dime a dozen but I think this had enough fresh ideas about trauma, kinship and community and oppression to stand out. Here, vampirism is the great leveller, the end of the pain and racial discrimination African-Americans in the South have experienced, but for those with personal loss, what kind of solace is it?

The music scenes in the juke joint were terrific; particularly when it brought together the different sounds and cultures that have fed into/been inspired by the blues. And wait for after the credits roll as you find out

Spoiler

just what was going to happen when the KKK arrived and Hogwood got his just desserts

.

[hearthesilence]

Interview with Raphael Saadiq on creating the music for Sinners

[CineVince]

I enjoyed the slow-build and introduction of characters. Very strong ensemble, but Jordan's lack of distinct enough characterisations in his two parts was confusing. The action sequences were beautifully set up, but then became a mess upon execution. Also, I didn't quite understand why

Spoiler

stakes were so quickly forsaken for gun-fire (which had already been established as ineffective).

The sound and music were stellar.

This was an admirable effort though and shows that audiences are hungry, so to speak, for a true cinema-going experience.

[MichaelB]

"This piece of crap is no comparison to this other piece of crap that I am pretending to like." Although, I'm wondering if he actually believes these things. Armond is so unfathomable. Has anyone really figured out what exactly makes him tick? There are definitely things about him that are valuable traits in a critic.

The baffling thing about him is that he's actually a talented writer. With a dullard like, say, Svet Atanasov, the edgily "controversial" takes are pretty much the only thing that's ever going to catch anybody's eye, but White is perfectly capable of writing high-quality pieces if he was ever that way inclined.

[beamish14]

Is this the first feature to have a credited “Emotional Support Coordinator”?

[brundlefly]

Looks to be the only result on imdb for that specific title, if you trust imdb's comprehensiveness. But Kim Lee Whyte, who has that credit, also served as the "Mental Health Counselor" for Barry Jenkins' Underground Railroad.