Sinners

This movie has been at the top of my watchlist, and I've been kicking myself for not watching it in theaters when it came out. And I am so glad to have finally watch it to prep for the Oscars. This movie was phenomenal. Everyone in this cast was fantastic. I loved every single character, and the actors who played the vampires in the beginning did a very good job at hating them. Even the scenes were amazing. The "I Lied To You" scene was probably one of the best things I have seen in a movie in a long time. I just loved the way it's filmed and how it's integral to the plot. I also loved the final battle against the vampires. So many kills just replay in my head, like Grace killing Bo and they're both on fire, and when Smoke kills Annie before she turns into a vampire. There was two ways that I interpreted the meaning of the movie. The first meaning was that it's definitely about cultural appropriation. Throughout the movie, you see black culture and just the way black people living in the 1930s, and the juke joint was their way of relaxing and needing an escape after working in the fields all day. When Remmick and the KKK vampires arrive, they play their own music, which the more they played it, the more you could hear Sammie's influence. Even Remmick really wanted Sammie for his music skills. They basically want to "suck" the culture out the people in the juke joint and want to use it as their own. My second interpretation of the movie was that it symbolizes Christianity. Sammie's father is a pastor who desperately wanted Sammie to quit playing music and to stop being a "sinner." You hear a lot in the dialogue about his music attracting the devil, and in a way, his music attracts the vampires. Also during the "I Lied To You" scene, you see the imagery of the juke joint going down in flames, like it was burning in Hell. Usually, Christianity is used as one of a vampire's weaknesses, but when Sammie does the Lord's Prayer in front of Remmick, it doesn't phase him and the other vampires join in on the prayer. Remmick also dunks Sammie in the water like it's a baptism. Both Remmick and Sammie's dad want Sammie to give up music, but for different reasons. Sammie is a great character because he doesn't give up his pursuance of music and ends up becoming a successful blues musician. I loved this movie so much and this probably one of my favorite movies that I've seen this year. This is definitely going to be one of those movies that I will be thinking about nonstop.