Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.

‘Sinners’, Ryan Coogler’s latest movie, is a horror thriller starring his regular collaborator Michael B. Jordan in dual roles as twin brothers who return to their hometown in Mississippi after years away working for Al Capone in Chicago. Coming back sharp suited with more money than they left with, they purchase an old sawmill from a racist landowner, with the aim of turning it into a ‘juke joint’ for the local black community. Building up to the opening night, the twins recruit their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton), despite his pastor father warning him that blues music is supernatural, alongside a series of other individuals who will undertake roles as musicians, cooks, bartenders and doormen to ensure the night goes to plan.

As the twins are working through their address book, there’s an undercurrent of tension in the air which crystalizes when Jack O’Connell’s Irish immigrant Remmick is introduced fleeing from Choctaw Native Americans, and we’ll see more of him later. Coogler does a good job of establishing the dynamics between the different characters, with Delroy Lindo, Wunmi Mosaku and Hailee Steinfeld all shining in particular. The obvious touchpoint for ‘Sinners’ is Robert Rodriguez’s ‘From Dusk Till Dawn’, although this doesn’t play the presence of vampires as secretive as that movie does until the reveal, and once they appear in earnest the movie really does take off. Thematically there is a lot going on here and I can’t pretend to know how to unpack it all, but it is undoubtedly thrilling to watch the confidence of Coogler play out in front of you.

In terms of its lesser points, I felt the dual characters thing is fairly unnecessary despite Jordan being very good, and I wanted more time with the vampires, finding the final act to be a little rushed. To a degree that’s because there is so much time spent on the setup and I think slightly different pacing may have made it better for me, while still ensuring time for the establishment of the key character relationships. I’ve not mentioned Ludwig Göransson’s score yet, which is brilliant and intrinsic to the success of the movie, conveying original sounds that feel drawn from the past, and really complementing the action unfolding on screen. ‘Sinners’ is a very entertaining movie from Ryan Coogler with lots going on and I’m looking forward to reading more about it over the coming months.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: Ryan Coogler

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Miller and Delroy Lindo

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt31193180/