I peccatori

It feels like The Sinners was directed by two different Cooglers-one responsible for the first half, and another for the second. If I had to rate them separately: the first half is a solid 8, the second a disappointing 4.

The film starts off brilliantly. Set in the Deep South during the 1930s, it plunges us into a world of chain gangs, overt racism, and raw human struggle-all wrapped in the soul of music. The characters are distinctive and memorable, the performances are top-notch, and the world-building is rich and atmospheric. It's a western, a drama, and a musical all at once, and somehow it works. For a while.

Then comes the second half.

This is where things fall apart. The pivot to horror-specifically vampires-feels abrupt and half-hearted. There's barely a story holding it together, and the horror/action sequences barely last 10-15 minutes. They lack any real suspense or memorable set pieces. The execution feels rushed and undercooked, especially after such a powerful setup.

The final 5-7 minutes attempt a bold anti-Klan message, and it's likely this moment of violence and symbolism that won over many critics. But for me, it was too little, too late.

What's most frustrating is the wasted potential. This could've been a truly unique vampire film-rooted in history, rich in theme, driven by character and song. Instead, it leaves you wondering what could've been if the second half had lived up to the promise of the first.

For years I've been emphasizing the importance of music in movies; how an amazing musical score can significantly elevate a movie. It shouldn't just be background dressing. It should be brought to the forefront. It should drive the story. It should be a character in itself. It should give you goosebumps in the big moments. Sinners is one of the best examples of this.

Aside from the music, I could tell I was watching high-quality filmmaking within five minutes. The directing, camerawork, editing, and sound design are pristine. The entire cast does a great job, but Michael B. Jordan shines. He is a superstar.

Sinners is also surprisingly funny, without taking away from the seriousness. And the horror elements are... satisfying. This movie goes hard.

(2 viewings, opening night IMAX 4/17/2025, 11/21/2025)

I'm not saying the movie is bad, it starts great, gets a little slow and the ending was okayish. But it's getting more hype that it deserves. It seems more like a one time watch rather than a timeless piece.

The cinematography is brilliant, soundtrack is great but the script is just mediocre. The plot just drops after 30 minutes or so. The ending feels somewhat lazy.

First half of the movie was very good. Great character set up. Second half of the movie the plot progressed very quickly with nothing particularly interesting happening. Not much of a story line involved and movie ended abruptly. The acting was great, Michael B Jordan did a wonderful job playing smock and stack and some of the supporting characters were great as well. The movie was filmed perfectly. Music was obviously great as well. Plot and storyline did not move the needle for me. Post credit scene was cool!

The plot for this movie is pretty much lifted from Dusk to Dawn. You introduce a handful of characters and get them all to a single location where they are then attacked by vampires. Sinners is much slower, more of a William Faulkner version of a vampire movie. The production design and cinematography are excellent. The cast is very good. The music is good. Everything about this production top notch.

However, I struggled to get through this. There were many long scenes where the dialogue became cumbersome. It felt like the whole movie was a slow burn moving toward a rousing climax of horror, but when they got there it was underwhelming. It never delivered the scares or the sense of danger.