(Non-Spoiler Review)
Forgive me fellow blog readers, for I have sinned. I have borne witness to bodies and blood, bodies and bullets, bodies and beatings, and to bodies and…Bruce! April 1st found me with my eight dollar and fifty cent offering in hand attending the opening night of Frank Miller’s Sin City. (Actually it was a slightly higher offering as I treated the guys to a night of Sin!)
Get a sitter for the kids, lock your baby sister in the closet, and for heaven’s sake don’t tell your mother where you are going because this one earns its R rating with its violent content and its obvious appreciation of the female form.
Now, lest you get the wrong idea from my opening statements let me set the record straight….I really enjoyed this movie!
Sin City is the creation of comic book legend Frank Miller. I have not read the Sin City comic series but over the years I have seen a great deal of the artwork and was intrigued from the very first trailer as it appeared that they were endeavoring to capture the exact look of Miller’s art. Their endeavors were entirely fruitful because Sin City looks amazing. From the opening shot you realize that this movie is different and is going to be unlike anything you’ve seen before. Directors Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez work masterfully together to create a gorgeous black and white canvas, with spare use of color, upon which to paint the violence and degredation that is Sin City. Quentin Tarantino is a guest director on this project as well and if you’ve seen his work, especially the Kill Bill movies, its entertaining to pick out his handiwork on Sin City. Its really hard to describe the stunning visuals and the trailer, though very cool, doesn’t do this landscape justice. Like Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Sin City is a movie that can be appreciated just for the way it looks on the big screen, regardless of the story behind it. Thankfully there is a very entertaining story to back up the the amazing visuals.
This movie tells a rough and violent tale exploring the darker side of a city apply named Sin. The story is presented in several vignettes that are tied together seamlessly. Sin City is told in voice-over narration reminiscent of old private detective shows, of Mickey Spillane, and (if you’re a PC gamer) of the Max Payne series. It is a dark and turbulent tale that is filmed in such a way that much of the violence is more intense because of what they don’t show you. Don’t dismay, however…if you’ve seen Robert Rodriquez’s other movies, particularly Once Upon a Time in Mexico, then you’ll know that there is plenty of violence to witness as well. In the midst of Miller’s shadowy tale are several instances of a gritty sense of humor that keep the story from becoming too bleak. The plot was intriguing from start to finish and the choice of actors was brilliant.
I generally love ensemble casts and this one was no exception: Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Mickey Roarke, Elijah Wood, Michael Clarke Duncan, Clive Owen, Michael Madsen, Benicio Del Toro, Brittany Murphy, Jaime King, Josh Hartnett, Carla Gugino, Rutger Hauer, Alexis Bledel. The cast is a who’s who of today’s hottest young stars and seasoned film veterans. Frank Miller himself makes a brief appearance in the movie. The entire cast did a marvelous job. Even the lesser known actors/actresses were great. It is safe to say that Elijah Wood will make you forget all about Frodo and the Shire and Carla Gugino is definitely not the mother of two children that she plays in Rodriquez’s Spy Kids! 😉 I have to believe that the cast had an absolute blast filming this project.
If you are a Frank Miller fan or a comic book fan in any capacity, you must see this movie. If you like watching movies that stretch the boundaries of how a film traditionally looks then you must see this movie. And if you want to watch a great cast playing interesting characters in a world unlike any you’ve ever seen on the big screen then you must see this movie. I’m looking forward to its future release on DVD just to watch the extras that will undoubtedly be on the disk.
Also, check out the Sin City website. It is one of the best movie websites that I’ve seen in a long while. It is graphically very cool and has a section in which you can take various elements and create your own desktop images. I used it to create the picture at the top of this post. The screen savers are awesome as well. There are also two fantastic trailers and a host of other things.
If you’ve seen Sin City, want to see it, or don’t want to see it, feel free to leave your comments. Please be kind to those who haven’t seen the film by putting the word “Spoilers” at the top of your comment if you intend to reveal anything specific about the movie that may ruin it for others. Thanks! And happy movie viewing!
