In 2017 Jordan Peele redefined the horror/thriller. GET OUT was not just a great, edge of your seat story it also had messages about race, equality and oppression. Peele won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for his vision. Now Ryan Coogler tries his hand at a similar formula with SINNERS. It’s close yet completely different and is equally powerful.
Coogler has made a film that is about so many things. Blues music. The Jim Crow south. Racism. The duality of our personalities. Vampires. Christianity. Good vs. evil. That seems like a lot. Like, isn’t that too much for one movie, for one story? Maybe. But Coogler is an expert filmmaker. We’ve seen hints of it in his previous films. Fruitvale Station, Black Panther, Creed and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. He’s been able to express his vision even though he has been working in the world of intellectual property. This is his first truly original movie, one that he wrote and directed. Not based on an existing story or previously told story. He has not been wasting his time; all his movies are well crafted with his signature gifts. But Coogler’s talent is on full display here. He has taken all those disparate elements and made a truly powerful movie that uses humor and horror to get its message across.
The movie stars Michael B. Jordan as twin brothers who return to their Mississippi Delta roots to open a Juke joint. Smoke and Stack are very much alike and different in important ways. They are both jaded by fighting in World War I and by working for Al Capone in Chicago. When they return home in the early 1930’s they aren’t exactly conquering heroes, but they are respected for their success and their brutal toughness. Smoke is more of the enforcer type, letting his brutality talk for him. Stack is more the smooth talker given to letting his personality get the point across rather than a bullet or a knife.
They meet up with their cousin Sammy (newcomer Miles Caton) whose father is a preacher, but Sammy wants more than the Church. He wants to be a blues singer/guitar player. Smoke and Stack also recruit a Charlie Patton-like blues musician played by Delroy Lindo. The local Chinese grocers help with the food. Wunmi Mosaku is Smoke’s former girl who is also some kind of local priestess (maybe Voodoo, but definitely a non-Christian form of belief). Hailee Steinfeld is Stack’s abandoned girlfriend who tangles with him but also cannot seem to abandon him. They all come together at the Juke joint for the opening, a night filled with music, dancing, food and sex. But something evil is lurking.
About half-way through the film a white man shows up with his skin on fire. He approaches a shack with a husband and wife who appear to be clan members. Remmick (Jack O’Connell) says he’s running from some Indians. They take him in, but the Indians show up and warn the couple he is not what he seems to be. The couple should have listened.
The three show up at the Juke and try to get in but are turned away. They hang around and that’s when the movie goes from a drama to a vampire horror thriller. It seems like it would be like grinding the gears when a driver throws his car in reverse. But Coogler handles it expertly. The rest of the film is built around that Vampire story. Think of Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk ‘til Dawn and you’d be on the right track.
The story is fun, funny and a lesson in what Blues music really is about. There is one incredible scene where Sammy gets up on stage and his gift is so powerful it conjures the entire history and future of black music. It also seems to summon the Vampires. Academy Award winner Ludwig Göransson does a remarkable job bringing it all together musically and Coogler stages it perfectly. It’s an incredibly powerful sequence.
Coogler sprinkles his themes throughout. It’s a deft touch, not a cudgel. Here is some of what’s on his mind. Whether Christianity was the only path forward for these people and could it really save your soul. What is the true nature of a man’s personality. Does he have a darker side that’s just below the surface. The one that really hit me in the heart was the idea that the only way to overcome oppression is by siding with evil. It made me think about politics in this country. Should we succumb to playing the same game of division and hate or should we rely on our better angels to incite change. The Vampires argue these Black people will never overcome the oppression that has been put upon them, but they can by siding with evil. The messages seemed clear to me and made me think. Good job Mr. Coogler.
The cinematography by Autumn Durald Arkapaw is stunning. Many frames are just paintings. The sound design is amazing. The digital effects are seamless, making us believe there really are two people playing the brothers. Göransson is just immensely talented when it comes to scoring a film. In a movie that relies so heavily on music, you need the best and Göransson is that… the best.
There is not a weak link in the cast. This may be Jordan’s best work. The skill to portray subtle differences between Smoke and Stack cannot be overlooked. They are the same buy very different. Caton is a great find and promising newcomer. Steinfeld is sultry and sexy… just what the part calls for. Mosaku is just incredible. Her empathy and power are rare. Lindo is Lindo. One of the best around. O’Connell is simply amazing as the Vampire Remmick. He is smooth and menacing. It’s an all-time Vampire portrayal.
It's early in the year but that is no longer a barrier to entry for an Oscar nomination. Jordan, Mosaku, O’Connell and Lindo could be in the conversation. Coogler for screenplay and Director. Göransson for score. Yes, there are a lot of promising films coming from some of the best directors around. Paul Thomas Anderson, The Safdie Brothers, Wes Anderson, etc. And maybe it’s too early to say SINNERS will be one of the 10 Best Picture nominees. I would have thought CHALLENGERS and CIVIL WAR were shoe-ins last year, but alas no. SINNERS is just an amazing piece of art. And Ryan Coogler should be recognized for making what is the best movie I’ve seen in 2025.