In an age of constant superhero movies, B-grade action flicks and dystopian zombie films, there is one thing Hollywood has seen more often than anything: vampires. These monsters have been ingrained in our popular culture since the beginning of the 21st century, starting with the hot boy craze that was the ‘’Twilight’’ series and even more recently, the 2024 gothic horror “Nosferatu.” Audiences have witnessed sexy vampires, snaggle-toothed vampires and even cartoon vampires running hotels. But, they’ve never seen vampires with real historical and societal context, that is, until “Sinners.” 

From the director of the Academy Award-winning Marvel movie, “Black Panther,” Ryan Coogler’s latest film enters the monster-action-horror zeitgeist. “Sinners,” a period piece action-horror taking place deep in 1930s segregationist Mississippi, stars Michael B. Jordan in a dual role as twins Smoke and Stack. 

These twins have returned to the Mississippi Delta after years in Chicago, with the hopes of starting a juke joint to spread their music to the many Black people in their racially divided hometown,no matter who they have to lie to and steal from to do it. But they, regrettably, fail to understand that more supernatural elements are at play, and as night falls, they must work to defeat the monsters at their door. 

“Sinners” is truly a film with two clean points, each with their own themes: narratives and goals. The first half of the film focuses on Smoke and Stack’s return to Clarksdale, where viewers are transported to the segregated South, using phenomenal realism for immersion. 

Everyone’s accents, uniforms and the settings are extremely well researched, and we follow the twins as they go around their town, setting up for their juke joint, leading up to a climactic show with everyone meeting for the massive party. The first half is extremely fascinating to watch, with audiences able to see the true struggles of the people of the time. 

The second half takes a much more supernatural center, with a larger focus being placed on the actual joint and the subsequent battles between the humans and the vampires. We see how the guests at the joint slowly begin to understand that there are dark and evil elements outside the bar. We see how the party parishioners shift from happiness to pure horror, which helps to make the audience fall into a similar mindset. This turns the second act of the film into a tense battle, without any true hint of who will survive. There is even a special end-credits scene that ties up the film quite beautifully, delivering even more emotional storytelling after the credits have begun rolling. 

A key element in this film is its historical setting. Taking place during the Jim-Crow era in the Deep South, it manages to tackle many historical ideas with references to several key elements like the Ku Klux Klan and their hidden regimes, the interconnected histories of early African Americans and Asian Americans, as well as the early fights between African religion and musical creativity. These elements all add together to create an extremely realistic period piece with so much more for audiences to learn about after leaving the theater. 

A standout performance in this film was Mile Caton as Sammie “Preacher Boy” Moore, the cousin (and budding musician) of Smoke and Stack, whose prowess is so amazing that supernatural forces want it for themselves. In just his first acting role, Caton explodes on screen, playing the young musician torn between his family and his music with a level of emotion rarely even seen in established actors. Every scene of his in this movie is well-acted and filled with passion, making his future in the industry an exciting one. 

The film is also elevated by the stellar soundtrack by Ludwig Göransson. The Swedish composer masterfully combines historically accurate blues music with several genres and styles throughout history, including guitar rock and electronic synths. The soundtrack and score are extremely ambitious, combining beautiful musical instruments into never-before-seen contemporary compositions. Being a film focused on music, and it’s great power, the sound in this music was extremely important, and Gorransson delivered amazingly. 

A pivotal moment in the film is when Sammie plays a song at the juke, and manages to sing so well that he pierces a supernatural veil and begins to bring in music from his past and future, creating these amazing duets with Sammie’s guitar and instruments from all times. The scene is also elevated by a single, moving camera, which moves across the entire dancing floor, and ends with a stunning tribute to African musical roots, bringing the film to a height of amazement rarely achieved. 

“Sinners” is truly something new because it doesn’t try to be anything seen before. The film combines history, action, comedy, music and horror in a film that would simply have been too chaotic for anyone else to direct. Coogler and Jordan managed to create a stellar story that tackles real-world problems without ever really losing steam. The world they created is filled with well-built settings and deeply developed characters, making every moment rich and filled with deeper subtexts. Films like “Sinners” will always be needed (and welcomed) in the theaters.