I’ll be shocked if Sinners doesn’t land on the Best Picture ballot this coming awards season. Everything about this film is captivating and exactly what one should want when sitting down to watch a movie. It’s shot beautifully, is perfectly paced with superb edits, it has an incredible soundtrack and score, and the acting is so strong across the board that it feels as though we’re transported to 1932 Mississippi and we’re privy to watch a day in the life of all these characters unfold – mainly to tragic, horrific consequence.
Sinners is a supernatural horror film that feeds off of various mythos, opening with a voice over talking about how powerful music can be, how it has different names in different cultures, and how while it can bring out good and joy in the world it also has the potential to be a beacon for evil. Music is an incredibly important aspect of Sinners, with Coogler bringing in his longtime collaborator Ludwig Göransson to compose the score. The trust Coogler has in Göransson is clear, and Göransson’s brilliant work in Sinners once again proves why it’s just.
The film takes place in 1932 Mississippi and focuses on a number of characters, but the main trio are Sammie Moore (Miles Caton) and his cousins, Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordan). Sammie is the son of a preacher and wants to escape the life he was born into, with dreams of heading to Chicago to play music for a living. Smoke and Stack, who are notorious in their hometown of Clarksdale, have just returned from Chicago after spending seven years working for crime families. They’ve come back with money and are looking to start fresh by opening a juke joint. They purchase a sawmill from a clearly racist landowner and get to work, as they want opening night to be memorable so that their joint will be the go-to place from that night forward.
Sinners is more of a slow burn, so don’t go in expecting nonstop scares for the film’s almost two-hour and twenty-minutes runtime because you’ll be disappointed. It’s about 45-minutes into the film before an evil presence makes itself known and roughly 30-minutes after that before the violence really kicks into gear. Once it does the film doesn’t let up for the final intense and bloody hour, so it taking its time to get there is a good thing and part of what makes Sinners such a well-crafted movie.
We get to take this time beforehand to go around town with Smoke and Stack as they gather a group of friends and acquaintances to help make sure the opening night of their juke joint is a success. The time taken to flesh out these characters, to get to know the lives Smoke and Stack left behind, as well as various reasons they had for leaving outside of seeking financial success, all help make the inevitable attack from supernatural forces all the more powerful when it does happen. Even though Smoke and Stack have lived questionable lives and have likely done some terrible things to get to where they are, we get to see a more human side of them over the course of the day this film takes place.
Meanwhile, Sammie is someone who clearly idolizes his cousins and treasures the guitar that they gifted him years prior that sparked his musical interests and spawned the dreams of freedom he now has because of it. We’ve also got Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), who is Smoke’s love interest, and she believes in Hoodoo and believes that her prayer and spells kept the twins safe while they were in Chicago. She’s also our main source of information when it comes to the supernatural mythology within the film. Stack’s love interest is his ex-girlfriend Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), with whom he has a complicated relationship with.
Remmick, the film’s evil incarnate, is played by Jack O’Connell, who doesn’t appear until 45-minutes into the film. His goal is to bring Sammie over to his side, as he can sense that Sammie’s musical skills are so powerful that they have the ability to transcend time and pierce the veil between life and death allowing Remmick to reconnect with his people. While darkness doesn’t overtake the film early on, Coogler does start the movie with a bloodied Sammie arriving at the church where his father is midway through a sermon. During this time we’re treated with flashes that last only a second yet showcase the horrors that went down only hours before. We’re then shown the words, “One Day Earlier” and we go from there, knowing that death and destruction are on the horizon without truly knowing how we get there.
This sets the stage beautifully, as we know incredible, unescapable horrors are destined for this group, yet all we can do is watch as they come together, learning about their beliefs, their dreams and their lives as they do and hoping that while this evil may be unavoidable, hopefully it isn’t unbeatable.
Jordan, who has worked with Coogler a number of times before, seems like a no-brainer for the roles of Smoke and Stack. When you’re able to cast Michael B. Jordan you cast Michael B. Jordan, and when you’re able to cast him in two roles for the same movie? Well, that’s twice as good. Jordan does a great job of giving each brother their own dynamic and perspective, which helps the viewer separate the two when they’re on-screen together. It’s also quite beneficial that Coogler gives them reason to split up during the first hour of the film, which allows the viewer to get to know each brother and their personality independently from one another, as it’s apparently rare for them to not be side by side in life.
Sinners is just an incredible film that I’m already eager to revisit. The film earns its R-rating, as while it does take a beat to reach, once the violence begins its unrelenting. Coogler continues to be a force in Hollywood with a track record that only grows stronger. He also has a lot of important things to say and skillfully finds ways to say them so that they’re woven seamlessly into the story and come out naturally instead of ever feeling forced or out of place. If you’ve yet to see it be sure to put Sinners near the top of your “must watch” list, as it’s one of the year’s best and not one to be missed.
Also, since it’s not a given outside of Marvel movies, know that there are a few mid-credit scenes that are important not to miss.
Overall Movie Score: 5/5
4K Blu-ray Video and Audio Review:
Sinners is a gorgeous film. Absolutely gorgeous, and it sounds incredible too. Again, two areas where I wouldn’t be surprised to see it come awards season and both are transferred spectacularly on this 4K disc. The movie was filmed for IMAX so we’ve got various scenes shot with expanded aspect ratios, so the film will switch from 1.78:1 to 2.76:1 periodically. I’ll say that it’ll make you wish they could do the entire movie on IMAX cameras, as it looks incredible and covers so much space; however, the transitions are fairly seamless, as you’ll be aware of it momentarily, but it’s unlikely you’ll remain out of the moment for longer than a few seconds.
The cinematography is superb, and the shadows and natural feeling of lighting and soft electricity at the time is expertly handled by cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw. There’s such a realism to everything and while there are moments where past and present are intertwined through music, nothing seems out of place. The costumes are beautiful and the set designs are superb. The visual effects and creature/injury prosthetics all look real in this high-definition release, which is exactly what you hope for, as the last thing you want is for a creature to be revealed and look like they just came out of a Spirit Halloween.
On the audio side of things we’ve got Dolby Atmos that will rock your living quarters if you’re not careful. The score and music shines through as beautifully as Coogler desired, dominating every scene it’s meant to dominate, but never taking away from the performances when it’s there for support. The dialogue is clean and clear, and the sound effects are wonderfully handled, coming at you from all angles with the proper setup. From fire crackling on one side, to eerie supernatural voices talking from the shadows from all angles, this release is the type of release that you show to people to show why upgrading to 4K is worthwhile.
Special Features:
Dancing with the Devil: The Making of Sinners – This feature comes in at almost 33-minutes total and covers just about everything one would hope to see covered in a making-of. We hear from Coogler and how the story came to be, we see what filming with the IMAX camera is like, and how filming was heavily influenced by the weather in the shooting locations so they often had to change things up on the fly. We also learn how they played the music that would be playing in the film on set so the characters would know how things would sound while dancing. Overall, there’s just a lot here that fans of the movie and film in general will get a lot out of.
Thicker than Blood: Becoming the Smokestack Twins – This feature comes in at almost 11-minutes and focuses on Jordan taking on the roles of both brothers. We learn how he trained to give each their own persona, their own walk, their own style, how they talk and how they deal with life in general. Again, a solid length feature for the topic at hand that covers pretty much all we’d like to know.
Blues in the Night: The Music of Sinners – Here we hear from Ludwig Göransson about creating the unique sound for the film, the influence of the Delta Blues, and writing for the film in general. It’s just under 14-minutes in length and much like the other features before, you really do just get a lot of information out of it. None leave you wondering for much more, which is perfect.
Spirits in the Deep South – This is an 8-minute feature about the use of Hoodoo in the film and the spiritual aspects. They wanted to do it justice, and Professor. Yvonne Chireau talks about the history of Hoodoo in the deep south, why it was used, and how it was seen as a defense against evil.
The Wages of Sin: The Creature FX of Sinners – Here we see Creature Makeup FX Designer Mike Fontaine talk about how he had to do the movie as soon as he heard vampires were involved. We get to see him working on the designs, the makeup and so many other aspects. We hear from Coogler and Fontaine speaks about how Coogler allowed them to just go wild with designs and blood and gore, which was a freedom that was appreciated.
Deleted Scenes – We’ve got almost 19-minutes of deleted scenes here, some extended, some deleted altogether. I did scan them and it’s clear that while I’m sure some had meaning and Coogler would’ve loved to have kept them for the performances alone, they simply were drawn out or broke the pacing of the movie too much. There were a few that were probably easy cuts, such as the quick talk between the two KKK members before Remmick shows up on their doorstep.
Disclaimer: A review copy of this Blu-ray was sent to me to cover in honest and truthful fashion.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents Sinners. Written & Directed By: Ryan Coogler. Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Miles Caton, Delroy Lindo, Hailee Steinfeld, Wunme Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Saul Williams, Andrene Ward-Hammond, Tenaj L. Jackson, Omar Benson Miller, Li Jun Li, Yao, Lola Kirke, Dave Maldonado. Running time: 117 Minutes. Rating: R. Released on 4K Blu-ray: July 8, 2025.
About Brendan Campbell
