Sinners Movie Review (2025)

Believe the hype. This isn't just a great horror movie, it's a great movie, period.

The film takes its time getting to the horror, but it holds your interest as it introduces the main characters: twin gangsters "Smoke" and "Stack" (Michael B. Jordan), their guitar prodigy cousin "Preacher Boy" (Miles Caton), Stack's ex Mary (Hailee Stanfield), and Smoke's wife Annie (Wummi Mosaku). It also establishes the premise that the twins have bought an old building to run as a juke joint.

Opening night seems to be going well, but then the vampires show up and the film kicks into high gear.

Every aspect of this movie is perfect. Writer/director Ryan Coogler manages to deliver an awful lot of background about his characters and setting without it ever feeling like dull exposition, and he's just as adept at crafting impactful action sequences. The film also just looks great courtesy of cinematographer Autumn Cheyenne Durald Arkapaw. And the blues influenced score by Ludwig Göransson sets just the right tone.

Jordan has the showier performance in a dual role, and he's excellent. But it's newcomer Caton who is the heart and soul of the film. And Jack O'Connell as Remick, leader of the vampires, manages to be frightening while at the same time making a compelling case that the protagonists would be better off as bloodsuckers themselves.

The film is undeniably entertaining, but it also has thematic heft in the way it deals with issues of race. Coogler handles this deftly, but no doubt some folks will complain that the movie is too "woke". Whatever.

It's still early in the year but given my preference for films that balance entertainment with substance and how well 'Sinners' does just that, I expect this to at least make my top 10 for the year, and it won't surprise me if it's at the very top of my list.