FILM REVIEW: Sinners
By The Masked Medic
It’s been a few slow months of cinema, in my opinion. I don’t know if that’s because it’s truly been slow or if I’ve not had the time to go to the cinema. The summer of 2025 is looking good, and I’m excited to hopefully get you guys some more reviews in the coming weeks. But we don’t need to delay, let’s start now! I had the chance last week to go and watch Ryan Coogler’s latest film on the big screen!
‘Sinners’ tells the story of Smoke and Stack, identical twins, who return to their childhood home following a stint working for some gangster joint in Chicago. With the money they acquired there, they buy an abandoned building from a local landowner. Their plan is simple, they want to make it into a “Juke Joint” for the Afro-Carribean and other ethnic minorities. Although the twins disagree on how quickly to open, Smoke, the more cautious of the brothers gives in to Stack and they plan to open that very night. In order to do that, they’ll need to make sure they have music, food and drink to entertain the masses. Whilst Smoke recruits Chinese shopkeepers Bo and Grace for supplies and his ex-wife Annie to cook food at their joint, Stack is busy getting musicians. Along with the twins’ younger cousin Sammie, Stack manages to convince legendary pianist Slim and a young singer named Pearline to come and perform at their venue that evening. It seems that all the key parts of a good party are in place and as the night gets started, Smoke and Stack are both hoping that this will prove that their juke joint has the appeal to become profitable, giving them a new lease on life, down in the Mississippi Delta. However, all of that begins to come into question when a mysterious Irish man named Remmick turns up in town. He’s drawn to the party and to Sammie in particular and he wants to enter their juke joint. Just who is this stranger from out of town? And can Smoke and Stack achieve what they set out to do?
Okay, right off the bat, I’ve got to tell you that this film had no bad acting performances. Every single actor bought their A-Game. If I start with supporting cast, let’s talk about Delroy Lindo as Delta Slim and Omar Miller as Cornbread. These guys bought such a richness to their acting that honestly, it only elevated the remaining casts’ performances. Moving on to our leading ladies, Wunmi Mosaku and Hailee Steinfeld played Annie and Mary respectively. Now Wunmi’s performance as Annie was fantastic; playing a character that has gone through hurt but remains a pillar of strength to her friends and family. Steinfeld was an actress that before I watched this, I had only seen in almost teenage dramas and I have to commend her on her performance. It’s sometimes difficult to break out of a typecast, but she proved in ‘Sinners’ that she has the chops to take on more daring roles. I have to mention Jack O’Connell who plays Rennick. I don’t want to give away too much about his character, but he is so subtly sinister that he makes for a great antagonist. One certainly to watch for the future. Speaking of people to watch out for, Miles Caton who makes his acting debut in the film as Sammie Moore did a phenomenal job. I mean to not have any acting experience and then pull that out of the bag? Wow. Okay, look, there is a standout performance, despite all this amazing acting, the lead roles of Smoke and Stack were played by Michael B. Jordan. I’ve always felt that he had the ability to pull off good performances, but I would argue this is a cut above. Playing two brothers, who are so insanely different, it honestly made you forget in parts of the film that it was one actor doing the work. Bravo!
This is not a particular controversial opinion but cinema has really suffered in the last few years. As a fan of cinematic universes, I have enough insight to recognize that they reduce the potential space for original films like ‘Sinners’. In a way, that’s what makes this film so so good. It’s come onto the scene and suddenly made people remember that we actually like watching original stories. Another thing I have to appreciate is that in a way, the film transcends genre. There are almost several different plots going on throughout the film and Ryan Coogler did a fantastic job of weaving them together. I sincerely hope that this gives studios the boost they need to start believing in funding projects like this again!
Cinematography? The film has some excellent scenes, especially the ones with Rennick in the dark. When you see the film, you’ll know what I’m talking about. There was one scene in the film that had everyone talking. My personal opinion on it was that it was phenomenal. When I mentioned transcendence earlier, that scene is really the epitome of how ‘Sinners’ achieves it. The cinematography of that scene goes hand in hand with the music. One of the key themes of the film really is music, and the way it bought that community together. From Slim’s talent on the keys, Pearlines crystal clear vocal riffs to Sammie’s guitar solos with his deep, rich voice. It’s impossible to talk about the achievement of ‘Sinners’ without mentioning the music. Also Ludwig coming in and smashing out another soundtrack? He’s on top form. Overall, as you can probably tell, I thought this film was fantastic, and was a much needed breath of fresh air for the big screen!
Rating:
Story: ★★★★
Acting: ★★★★
Cinematography: ★★★★½
Music: ★★★★½
Enjoyability: ★★★★