A film that stars Michael B. Jordan and involves vampires was not on my 2025 Bingo card. Yet, “Sinners” is my favorite film I’ve seen this year.
“Sinners” follows the story of twin brothers, Smoke and Stack, who move back home to Mississippi in the 1930s during the Jim Crow era. Together, they create and start up a juke joint where their cousin, Sammie, is the star of opening night. But racism isn’t the only evil lurking around the corner. Deep into the night, vampires start infecting the shack’s attendees.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. How can this film successfully be executed?—especially considering the whole vampire element often comes across as childish.
This film works because it’s not about the vampires. This movie is like an onion—rich with layers and depth—exploring themes of the power of music, religious symbolism, familial ties and loss.
What I liked
My interpretation of “Sinners” is that it’s a film yearning for the audience to understand and connect with how music is life-changing.
There’s one scene where it’s one continuous shot, and the camera moves throughout the juke joint showing the past, present and future of Black music and dance. This scene gave me chills and communicated that music transcends time. And Miles Caton, who plays Sammie, has a deep, rich voice that helped bring this scene to life.
Not only is music empowerment a theme, but there’s exploration of family bonds, grief and loss. Toward the end of the film, we see Smoke connect with his child who died, and not only is that literal grief shown, but other losses are represented, like the final scene when a couple of characters reunite 60 years after the vampire incident. One of these characters, still a vampire, talks about how that night the juke joint opened was the last day he saw the sun and the last time he saw his family.
While there are real-world themes in this film, there’s a supernatural element with the vampires. What was interesting about these creatures is that they challenged the characters to really consider what it was they wanted.
The vampire leader even told Smoke that the man they bought the juke from was part of the KKK and was going to kill them in the morning. What kind of antagonist gives out key information like that?
Everything about this film was intriguing to watch, and I credit that to the fact that this is an original story and original screenplay. Director Ryan Coogler brought this film to life with his authentic storytelling.
In a world full of recreations and sequels, I can’t tell you how refreshing it was to sit in a theater and have zero idea of what I was about to watch.
I have been craving originality, and this film went above and beyond. I mean, it’s the kind of movie you have to sit in a theater to watch because it’s a cinematic masterpiece. You need the giant screen to feel the full effect of how this one night changed everyone’s lives.
What I didn’t like
I’m racking through my head trying to come up with at least one thing I didn’t like—and struggling to do so.
The one thing I’d have to explain is that if you’re an avid horror fan, this movie does not fit that mold. Yes, there are elements of horror with blood and gore, but that’s not the main point.
So, while that may be upsetting for some moviegoers, I appreciated that this had more than that and was filled with depth and layers of emotion, as well as human experiences and trials.
The verdict
This film isn’t meant to focus on the horror of vampires, but rather zero in on the lives of the characters in this small Mississippi town and what’s important to them—whether that’s music or brotherly love.
Because I can’t find one singular fault, I’m rating “Sinners” five out of five stars, and I’ve never felt more certain that a film deserves to be seen on the big screen.
