Sinners (2025)

Coogler brings us an original and completely engaging vampire story. Shot with a lush, dripping sensuality, Sinners feels visceral. He lingers over his set up, creating characters and relationships in a way that makes his central community feel real. This raises the stakes when the inevitable carnage begins it has gravity and weight. Once he gets there he doesn't hold back; things move at a rapid pace. The film pulls you up like a rollercoaster with a large climb to start, and once you crest the thrill ride moves fast and furious. 

The thing about vampire films is that the monsters always represent something. They've been used in media for all sorts of purposes since Dracula was first brought to the big screen. Sinners has a lot to say about its people and their time, but its approach to the nosferatu is different than most. His monsters are more like thinking zombies, turned and brought to evil while retaining their connection to who they were but filled only with hate to consume and, well... assimilate. Coogler's take felt fresh, forcing his characters to confront something different than we are used to seeing. 

But at the heart of this story is the idea of how music is healing, empowering, dare we say holy. The film explores how most human institutions are no match for evil, including the church, but the creation of music is all powerful. Sinners makes us question a lot of the tropes of these films and turns the tables on what we can expect from vampire stories. Coogler doesn't focus on scaring us although there are tense moments; the horror here is more existential. And he doesn't revel in the gore. Oh there is blood but not buckets. It's not an attempt to gross us out. It is unnerving because of what we see happen to people. 

Sinners is a beautiful film that focuses first and foremost on the humanity of the characters, their sexualities, their relationships, their struggles, and then makes them confront something terrible. The sheer beauty of creation is what this film is celebrating, the creation of art, music is what can save us. 

Sinners

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jack O'Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller, Li Jun Li, Delroy Lindo, Yao 

Writer/Director: Ryan Coogler