When the trailer for Ryan Coogler’s Sinners released, a common sentiment appeared online — audiences were growing tired of the vampire film. While I can never get enough of vampire media in all forms, I understand the need for something fresh. Viewers who are feeling vampire fatigue, however, should not shy away from Sinners. A euphoric period piece that’s part-musical, part-horror, Sinners is one of the most original films of the decade, and somehow manages to find an entirely new way to tell one of the oldest stories in history.
Sinners features Michael B. Jordan in dual roles — twin brothers Elias and Alijah, known as Stack and Smoke. After years away, the twins return to their home in the Mississippi Delta with a mysterious stash of money set aside to buy the town’s old saw mill and turn it into a new juke joint. We follow the two brothers and their younger cousin, Sammie, known as Preacher Boy (Miles Caton), as they prepare for opening night.
Part of what makes Sinners so refreshing is its pacing. About an hour of runtime is dedicated to getting to know the characters, their relationships and the community as a whole. The colder brother, Smoke, hardened by years of protecting his twin from their abusive father, is shown to have a soft side when he returns to his wife Annie (Wunmi Mosaku). Meanwhile, the charming Stack is confronted by his ex-girlfriend, Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), a white-passing, mixed race woman whose relationship with both Stack and the local community complicates the joint’s opening. By the time the titular “sinners” are revealed, the audience is well-acquainted with the Coogler’s cast of characters, creating emotional stakes that are sorely lacking from many modern horror films. This slow start also allows Coogler to flesh out the world of the 1930s south, where the characters are most haunted not by vampires, but by Jim Crow laws and the ever-present threat of the Ku Klux Klan.
When the vampires do appear, their arrival suggests much more than a standard slasher flick. Sammie, the son of the local pastor, is an extremely gifted blues musician set to perform at his cousins’ juke joint. His father believes that his music will eventually lead to trouble, and when the vampires arrive, he may appear to be proven right. Led by Jack O'Connell as Remmick, the initial group of white vampires attempt to gain entry by presenting themselves as well-meaning folk musicians who just want equality. It quickly becomes clear that what they really want is for the community to assimilate into their hivemind, and to take the supernatural beauty of Sammie’s music for themselves.
The horror of Coogler’s Sinners, then, is not really the vampires themselves, but what they represent for the Black community within the juke joint and beyond. The world on display here is steeped in historical accuracy and draws on real myths and legends to unpack the racism of the 20th century south through a new lens. Beyond this, Sinners, impossibly succeeds at being a wildly-entertaining film that can appeal to any audience. Shot on stunning 70mm IMAX film, Sinners is absolutely beautiful to look at, and I encourage everyone to see it on the biggest screen possible. Audiences looking for blockbuster entertainment won’t leave unsatisfied — Sinners has all the scares and action sequences one could hope for — but it also has something for viewers seeking something deeper.
At the core of the film is its music, composed by Coogler’s longtime collaborator Ludwig Göransson. The score creates a steady rhythm for the film, sometimes even syncing up with the actions on screen, and the musicians at the juke joint create a backing track for the events of opening night. The music is essential not just to the plot, but to the pacing and choreography of Sinners as a whole.
Sinners is one of the first truly great films of the year and one of the most original genre movies in recent memory. Yes, it is a horror film, but that label shouldn’t stop anyone from seeing it, especially those lamenting the lack of original releases. Sinners will certainly remain one of my favorite movies of the year, and I'll be waiting anxiously to see what Ryan Coogler does next.
Nicholas York is a sophomore in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He can be reached at nay22@cornell.edu.
‘Projections’ is a column reviewing recent film releases. It runs every other Monday.
