You keep dancing with the devil, one day he’s gonna follow you home

Ryan Coogler (Creed, Black Panther, Fruitvale Station) returns with an elevated period supernatural horror film about a pair of WWI veteran and Chicago gangland twin brothers Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordon) who leave their messy lives and unresolved trauma behind to return to Clarksville, their Mississippi hometown and reunite with people they haven’t seen in years. Jim Crow attitudes and segregation are ubiquitous and begrudgingly accepted. Sinners slide stars Jack O’Connell, Andrene Ward-Hammond, Hailee Steinfeld, and Saul Williams.

Some townsfolk have changed, some not, some are happy to see them, others not so much; while others have unfinished business to resolve.

Ryan Coogler

The community is richly textured with sharecroppers (free farm rent in exchange for a portion of the crops which was common in the era). There’s a small town charm steeped in folklore, superstitions, and customs such as a mojo bag thought to bring protection and luck.

The town is full of otherworldly inhabitants, many following the Hoodoo religion. Wunim Mosaku plays Annie, is a trusted Hoodoo conjurer, spiritual leader, and healer. She’s also Smoke’s one true love.

With a truck full of liquor and blues songs in their hearts, Smoke and Stack open Club Juke – a blues juke joint to rebuild their lives and reset their fortunes. Everything leads to the big opening night where they have unwelcome visitors of the vampire kind.

The Inspiration Behind Sinners

The concept of Sinners began in the cinema for Coogler as did his love of the horror genre.

Watching a film in darkened room with strangers, sharing the collective fear of the action on screen really motivated him. This experience was seminal in cultivating Coogler’s fertile imagination. It’s the type of experience that leaves a lasting imprint on audiences and their consciousness. One that extends far beyond the closing credits and leaves a lingering hair-raising chill across generations.

Ironically, it wasn’t a traditional horror film that made Coogler fall in love with the genre. It’s scary moments, scenes, and images that spur him. In this case, it was the dinosaurs chasing speeding cars in Jurassic Park. Coog describes Jurassic Park as a “stealth horror movie.” It’s visceral and works at the gut level.

Naturally he’s also drawn to the works of other horror masters such as John Carpenter’s The Thing, Jordan Peele’s Get Out and Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining to inform his work.

Sammie Moore (Miles Caton) Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

A cinematic experience alone, isn’t enough impetus to create a horror film. So Coogler gave Sinners enough time to ruminate. Not only did Sinners need to be a gorefest, it needed to be dramatic art filled with soulful and colorful characters that typified the time and place.

Sinners was deeply inspired by the passing of his uncle James during the filming of Creed. He had intimate knowledge of the 1930s Mississippi blues scene which formed the basis of many scenes in Ryan’s film. He also knew much about Southern culture. Ryan also felt guilty for not being around when several other family members passed away while he was building his Hollywood career. Sinners was a way to honor their lives and their legacies.

Apart from the background, Coogler still didn’t have a complete story. He eventually decided on centering his film on identical twins which are revered in Yoruba culture as a gateway to divine ancestry.

Identical twins have appeared in numerous horror movies to great creepy effect such as the Grady twins in The Shining. But for Sinners, it was more about establishing the unique relationship of twin brothers. They were bound by a similar upbringing, but they are individuals in their own right, each capable of independent thought.

Vampire Blues

Sinners has multiple storylines threaded together to add texture to the vampire plot. It’s populated with intriguing characters like Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), who has unfinished business with Stack and Smoke, but now married into wealth, their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton) the blues guitarist who plays on opening night, and Remmick (Jack O’Connell), the stranger who divides allegiances in the town. He’s also a vampire.

Remmick is a thousand years old and has a unique perspective on life and death. He’s trying to kill the revellers and devour their blood, but he’s also trying to offer them eternal life and a promise of enlightenment. He’s not your average vampire either. He doesn’t opportunistically drain someone of their lifeblood only when he gets hungry. He has morals and empathy – a peculiar tightrope to walk.

Remmick (Jack O’Connell) Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Sinners makes a wild creative musical swing by effortlessly incorporating traditional Irish folk music into the film’s eclectic soundtrack. The Rocky Road to Dublin is sung by Remmick and other vampires. It becomes a bit of a knees up in the drunken blues bar.

Blues music brings the town together. It’s a time for people to forget their troubles and avoid being bitten. Pearline (Jayme Lawson) for instance, attend opening night to escape her oppressive marriage. She finds hope and possibility in the juke joint. She comes alive.

The music tells their stories. It understands them. It guides them. It knows their struggles and reminds them that better days are ahead.