Sinners

In the newborn stage means “first watches” are very rare, because I’m not going to be 100% locked into the TV and that’d be a disservice to whatever movie I want to care about. So, it’s rewatch era. In watching this film for the sixth (!!) time… I realized I have slightly underrated just good it is and how much it means to be. It was #5 of all time for me on first watch, and that first watch will forever be my favorite theater experience (shoutout the Chattanooga Aquarium IMAX, shoutout watching a movie called Sinners on Easter Sunday, and shoutout Jonathan). It’s up to #3 behind The Apartment and Past Lives. I am VERY much a drama type of person. It doesn’t take much to make me care about your characters and your world if you do it well. Thats my favorite part of Sinners. I care about Sammie. I care about Smoke and Stack and their chase of other things to compensate for simpler ones. I care about Annie, and her heartbreaking past making her yearn to be with Elijah and her baby. I care about Delta Slim, and his life’s work cultivating in his performances that night. I care about the Chows, and how much they value family. Etc etc. Oh, and then you favor in Ludwig Goranson turning in one of my favorite scores of all time. Every single note composed for this film elicits a reaction out of me. The soundtrack, too, has been in my head for 8 months. Miles Caton has several performances (musically, not just acting) that justifiably place him in all-world debut territory. This movie is genuinely hilarious. It never felt out of place, either, inside of a film riddled with emotional stakes, killer vampire, musical grandiosities, etc. the comedy was a perfectly written reprieve, even for moments. You pair these things with an overarching kickass vampire/action theme with THE defining scene of the 2020s of “I Lied to You” in the juke joint and you’re sitting there thinking “alright, this is awesome, but how could Coogler possibly land the plane?” And the final scene of a cathartic shootout from Smoke of the KKK leading to Annie there with Elijah and their baby hits every correct note emotionally. But wait, you’re not done — because the mid credits scene punches you right in the heart and gut in just the right places, sending you home feeling like you experienced that day with them, too. Sinners is one of my favorites — ever. It might be my favorite. It is unquestionably one of the best films of the century. The Academy won’t do it. But give them every Oscar.