Sinners

Grade: A

I tried to go into Sinners cold, not knowing anything, and I almost succeeded. I thought it was safe to skim the review on Roger Ebert’s website. Nope. The first WORD of that review gives something away that I wish I hadn’t known. They thought it was ok to talk about it right off the bat, and maybe it is, but I’m choosing not to. I will never know how finding it out during the movie would have colored my experience, not to mention when I would have caught on, but it ultimately doesn’t matter. I just got a little information earlier than expected. All good. I was still blown away by so so much in Sinners.

I first got a taste of what writer/director Ryan Coogler could do with Creed, when he successfully made me really enjoy a kind of movie that I usually don’t otherwise. His Black Panther was fine. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, not so much, but I understand. Gotta get the crew back together and pay tribute to Chadwick Boseman. He frequently works with Michael B. Jordan, who stars in Sinners as twin brothers Smoke and Stack. At first, I went by the color of their hats to tell them apart, until other differences emerged. Smoke is more soft-spoken, with a raspy, breathy smoky voice. Stack is smooth, charming, persuasive, and a hit with the ladies. Jordan has never been better, and I now believe this is the best director/actor working relationship since Martin Scorcese and Robert De Niro.

It’s 1932 in the Mississippi Delta, and Smoke and Stack are returning to their hometown to start anew. They stole some money from gangsters, and want to open up a juke joint. The first half of the movie is mainly them going around reconnecting with old friends, and recruiting them for employment at the bar. Their little cousin Sammy, played by Miles Caton in one hell of a film debut, can lay down some mean blues guitar. It’s the jangly acoustic kind, tuned to an open chord. He uses a slide. Among the people who join them are the always valuable Delroy Lindo, with impeccable blues harmonica/piano stylings, and the fierce Hailee Steinfeld. The movie isn’t limited to this genre of music; it’s a diverse melting pot that manages to incorporate the likes of heavy metal and Irish jigs in some of the most inventive ways I have ever seen. Ludwig Göransson’s score is the best of the year, and one of the best I’ve ever heard. The sound design is top-notch, and really pops. As these characters’ plans come together, we get the sense that this is building up to something, and we wonder what. (Or rather, I didn’t, because I already knew.)

Something happens halfway through that changes everything. It is extremely reminiscent of a movie from the 1990s that I think is one of the coolest ever. If I mentioned it, you would immediately know where Sinners goes. We are thrust into this new layer, and watch the characters deal with it. From a standpoint of richness with storytelling, subtext, and social commentary, I like Sinners better than that one from about 30 years ago. I’d also compare Sinners to Challengers from last year. Both came out in the spring, announcing and presenting themselves with unflinching in-your-face tension and stakes.

One of the many reasons I want to see it again is to get a refresher on the first half. I loved it, but with the latter 50% being so involving, by then, the setup felt like several days and films ago. I am super surprised that what would have been an ideal final scene for the official movie is held back and tacked on in the middle of the credits. Some people might miss it if they leave too quickly. I don’t know what to say other than…it’s the ending. It puts a perfect period on everything. If you stay until the bitter end, there is one more scene that didn’t necessarily need to be there, or anywhere. It reminds me of something that would pop up as a deleted scene on a DVD, but it’s nice to see it. It’s a snippet of the calm before the storm, before everything happens. It will make you think “you have no idea what you’re about to be in for.”

What a joy it is to find that a piece of cinema can still make me feel the way Sinners did. I walked out of it rejuvenated, exhilarated, and the good kind of exhausted. Ryan Coogler has paid his dues doing the popcorn superhero thing – now he’s taken his Marvel money and used it to tell a story that he’s obviously passionate about. Sinners is a celebration of music, race, filmmaking, and storytelling – and it’s the best movie of the year so far.

Grade: A