Sinners (2025)

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Free at last, free at last, Thank God almighty, Ryan Coogler (Creed, Black Panther) is free at last! From languishing in the corporatized big-budget prison known as IP, one of Hollywood’s few fresh black faces has delivered an original story as timely as it desperately needed. Sinners is a beautiful, stylish, fun genre film that feels like a breath of fresh air against the stale franchise fare usually taking up the time slots for your local IMAX. More than just a tribute to Robert Rodriguez’s Dusk Till Dawn, this beautiful symphony of black expression, music, and culture elevates itself above the rest and proves why film is still an avenue of bold and timeless expression.

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From the opening shot of Sammie (Miles Caton) being scolded into a more righteous path by his pastor father Jedidiah (Saul Williams), his final words “You keep dancing with the devil… one day he’s gonna follow you home”, the intense spiritual atmosphere instantly transports you to 1930s Mississippi, warts and all. Horizon spanning plantation fields of cotton, bustling southern black towns, the titular Juke Joint that plays host to most of the movie’s second and third act, every set expertly crafts a lived-in atmosphere with a texture to the presentation few films could match. And Ludwig Göransson’s (Oppenheimer) score further highlights the southern black roots ever present within the film, with traditional sounds blended with old school blues and jazz.

I mention the score not only because it is phenomenal, but music and its ability to transcend generations as a central theme throughout the picture, leads to the movie’s best scene where Sammie literally “burns the barn down”. Moments like this, where the subject matter rises above its typical genre sylings, showcase both Ryan Coogler’s directorial and authorial voice (he also penned the screenplay) in full fortissimo.

And let’s not forget the other stellar characters that flesh out this world, such as twin brothers Smoke and Stack (Michael B Jordan), gangsters who made their money in Chicago and have just returned home under a cloud of suspicion to start their own venture. Others include Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), and Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo), who hold a lot of the movie’s heart and light up the screen whenever they’re involved.

I’m sure by now you’ve noticed that I’ve been relatively sparse with my description of what the movie is actually about. This is on purpose. Sinners is best seen without a plot synopsis, and I stand by that. While the trailer may have lifted the veil on its ultimate secret, many of the film’s most exciting and haunting moments deserve an unfiltered viewing experience to land as Coogler intended. And in today’s day n’ age of spoilers and leaks, you owe it to yourself to experience a movie the way it was meant to be seen, and I can think of no greater candidate at the moment for such a treatment than this. What are you waiting for? Go to the movies. This is what they’re about.