Movie Reviews

Sinners First Reviews: One of the Best Films of the Year

Published

11 months ago

April 10, 2025

Sinners First Reviews: One of the Best Films of the Year

After spending most of his career on the Creed and Black Panther franchises, filmmaker Ryan Coogler delivers his most original work yet with the vampire flick Sinners. According to the first reviews of the movie, it’s not only his best, but one of the best releases of the year so far. The highlights are Michael B. Jordan’s dual performance as twin brothers, the ambitious mix of genres and ideas, and the inventive use of music in the film.

Here’s what critics are saying about Sinners:

Is it one of the best movies of the year so far?

Sinners is a masterclass in filmmaking.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

It’s one of the best films of the year.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

The best movie I’ve seen in 2025 so far.
— Matt Singer, ScreenCrush

One of the most devilishly entertaining movies of the year.
— Karl Delossantos, Smash Cut Reviews

Sinners is a bloody, brilliant motion picture.
— William Bibbiani, The Wrap

I’m already prepared to hail Sinners as the movie of the year from this point onwards.
— Jeremy Mathai, Slashfilm

I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun, nor felt so reinvigorated by, a major studio genre movie.
— Alistair Ryder, The Film Stage

(Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

What makes it a must-see movie?

Sinners perfectly blends multiple genres to create a movie like you have never seen before.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

It works surprisingly well… due to Coogler’s very specific vision and his ability to deliver on it.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

The most impressive feat director-writer Ryan Coogler achieves is finding a balance between genre and meaning—and one begets the other.
— Karl Delossantos, Smash Cut Reviews

What sets Sinners apart is its thematic depth. The film’s exploration of duality is masterfully layered.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

Everything about Sinners is excellent, but where it fully shines is in its story, expertly brought to life by Coogler.
— Britany Murphy, Muses of Media

Sinners is the rare film that possesses you body and soul.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

We simply don’t get original blockbusters with this level of passion and on this scale anymore, at least outside of a Christopher Nolan or M. Night Shyamalan production.
— Jeremy Mathai, Slashfilm

Is it reminiscent of any other films?

In some ways, this is a black version of Robert Rodriguez’s ’90s head trip From Dusk Till Dawn.
— Peter Bradshaw, Guardian

Sinners gives Coogler an opportunity to delve further into genre along the lines of Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, but more films like Desperado, Machete, and their Grindhouse entries, than their vampire collab, From Dusk Till Dawn.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

Obvious comparisons will likely be drawn to From Dusk Till Dawn. But unlike that 1996 Robert Rodriguez-Quentin Tarantino joint, Sinners isn’t winking at the audience from behind grotesque violence and droll B-movie tropes.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter

Sinners has films like John Carpenter’s The Thing in mind as well.
— Aaron Neuwirth, We Live Entertainment

I won’t be surprised if the first wave of critical reactions are similar to those which greeted Us, aiming to interpret the film as chasing a singular metaphor when it’s a messier beast with far more on its mind.
— Alistair Ryder, The Film Stage

Image from Sinners (2025) — (Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

How does it compare to Ryan Coogler’s other movies?

Ryan Coogler may have just given us his magnum opus… perhaps his masterpiece.
— Karl Delossantos, Smash Cut Reviews

This could be one of Ryan Coogler’s best films to date.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

His new work, Sinners, feels like a filmmaker liberated.
— Kambole Campbell, Little White Lies

Sinners is Coogler utterly unleashed… He’s unshackled from the comfort of IP or franchise fare.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

It’s his most impassioned, spiritually resonant work to date.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

Coogler solidifies himself as one of the best working today.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

With Sinners, he ascends to the next level.
— Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction

How is the action?

Sinners leads to a number of incredibly satisfying action set pieces, one that could garner audience reactions akin to Hitler’s assassination in Inglourious Basterds.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

[It has] tight action sequences that keep you emotionally and physically engaged.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

Its action is explosive.
— Siddhant Adlakha, Polygon

It’s a rip-roaring thrill ride.
— Jeremy Mathai, Slashfilm

How does it look?

Autumn Durald Arkapaw’s cinematography lends the carnage a strange elegance.
— Clarisse Loughrey, Independent

The movie is exquisitely shot, with Autumn Durald Arkapaw’s cinematography immersing us in the sunlit splendor and leafy ominousness of back-country Mississippi.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Once again, Arkapaw ignites the screen with her beautiful shots, giving viewers more than just the performances and music to get lost in.
— Britany Murphy, Muses of Media

From an aesthetic standpoint, the film is incredibly self-assured — much of which is owed to cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw and her use of celluloid contrast. It has the deepest shadows you’ve ever seen during daylight, injecting each scene with a sense of mystery.
— Siddhant Adlakha, Polygon

The cinematography is exceptional, filled with bold compositions.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

Does it do a good job of immersing the audience in its setting?

Coogler takes his time building out the world of Clarksdale, Mississippi, poring over the sights and sounds of the Jim Crow South… It crucially clues us in to who the Smokestack twins are, where they come from, and what they’re fighting for.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

The world-building, while a slow burn, is immersive and detailed in a way that is so enjoyable to explore.
— Karl Delossantos, Smash Cut Reviews

Michael B. Jordan in Sinners (2025) — (Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

How is Michael B. Jordan’s dual performance?

To no one’s surprise, Michael B. Jordan is incredible in this movie. He does a wonderful job of creating two very different characters for the twins.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

Michael B. Jordan’s performance in Sinners, particularly his portrayal of the enigmatic SmokeStack twins, is a standout in his career.
— Britany Murphy, Muses of Media

A career-best performance.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

It’s smart, intuitive work.
— Clarisse Loughrey, Independent

It’s wonderfully nuanced work.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence

Stellar work.
— Karl Delossantos, Smash Cut Reviews

I will freely admit that Jordan playing both twins did get a little confusing.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

Delroy Lindo in Sinners (2025) — (Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

Are there any other standouts in the cast?

Delroy Lindo has a standout moment in a deeply emotional monologue that quietly steals the spotlight.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

Lindo steals the show as Slim — but Caton’s Sammie is the true one to watch.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

The real star of the film is 20-year-old Miles Caton.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence

The real standout is Miles Caton, who is shockingly delivering his debut performance here as Sammie.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

Viewers are sure to be drawn in by newcomer Miles Caton as well. I was shocked to learn that this is his first feature film, as he holds his own in scenes with powerhouse actors.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

The real standout is Nigerian British actress Mosaku.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter

The entire ensemble assembled goes above and beyond to prove Coogler to very much be an actor’s director, getting top-notch performances.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

Peter Dreimanis, Jack O'Connell, Hailee Steinfeld, and Lola Kirke in Sinners (2025) — (Photo by Eli Ade/©Warner Bros.)

Is this heavier than the usual horror film?

It’s the rare studio production that engages your intellect while it scares you senseless.
— Matt Singer, ScreenCrush

Sinners is the rare mainstream horror film that’s about something weighty and soulful: the wages of sin in Black America.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety

Yes, it’s a vampire film, but it’s also got a lot more on its mind. Coogler uses the conceits of the genre to craft a haunting allegory about the virtues we inherit and the vices that fester in the dark.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

The result is a horror film that feels deeply cultural, resonant, and original, using the lens of music and ancestral trauma to reframe the vampire mythos into something hauntingly personal.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

It boasts a powerful message about society and how people can drag others down while offering up a terrifying vampire story.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky

While Sinners never makes light of the history of the South, it’s not at the cost of the fun that can be had with this crossover between blues players, drinkers, and vampires.
— Kambole Campbell, Little White Lies

Coogler doesn’t reinvent the vampire movie with Sinners, but in a current era of American cinema where messages are force-fed, a thoughtful social satire which gives viewers time to dissect––and never lets its loftier thematic aims get in the way of its junky thrills––is a breath of fresh air.
— Alistair Ryder, The Film Stage

How is its take on vampires?

Ryan Coogler has made a sexy and sweaty vampire flick unlike any other.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

The vampire design? Subtle, creepy, and just different enough to give Sinners its own unique place in the genre.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

It’s remarkable that Coogler has found a fresh angle on the tropes here. There’s a little bit of “the same but different” when it comes to the creature design.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence

Coogler shows as much interest in the metaphorical potential of the vampire as Robert Eggers did with Nosferatu earlier this year.
— Clarisse Loughrey, Independent

The film’s visual idea of the vampire is simple but fun, mostly normal in appearance other than an uncanny glint of light in their dark eyes – using this subtlety to stoke paranoia in the increasingly confined sawmill.
— Kambole Campbell, Little White Lies

Is there too much going on?

There’s a lot going on here… As much arthouse as grindhouse, it’s a blood-drenched mix tape that shouldn’t work. But it does.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter

The two halves sound strikingly different, but it never feels like a completely bifurcated film: you can’t have one without the other.
— Kambole Campbell, Little White Lies

The film is inevitably too much at times, and not always in full command of its many competing flavors, but that too muchness is also the greatest strength of a visionary studio product that sticks its fangs deep into an eternal struggle: how to assimilate without losing your soul.
— David Ehrlich, IndieWire

Miles Caton in Sinners (2025) — (Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

How is the music?

The eventual turn to its riotous second half is underlined by a typically inventive soundtrack from Ludwig Göransson.
— Kambole Campbell, Little White Lies

Composer Ludwig Göransson provides a sonic backdrop unlike any other.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

An even more important aspect of Sinners than vampires is its music… I expect this to be another hot and popular soundtrack.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

Music is as integral to Sinners as its bloodsuckers… It’s blues music that is the film’s lifeblood.
— Clarisse Loughrey, Independent

The music in Sinners is not just a background element, but a character in its own right, shaping the narrative and the characters’ experiences.
— Britany Murphy, Muses of Media

The film celebrates the power of music — its ability to transcend time, connect generations, and carry the weight of grief and joy alike, making it almost its own character in the film. Academy Award-winner Ludwig Göransson’s score is one of his best.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

Are there any problems with the movie?

For many, the movie could as well do without the supernatural element, and I admit I’m one of them.
— Peter Bradshaw, Guardian

The movie does feel like it goes on for a little too long, even with a pretty satisfying ending that appropriately ties up a few loose ends.
— Edward Douglas, The Weekend Warrior

If Sinners had one flaw, it could be in its pacing.
— Lyvie Scott, Inverse

The only real drawback is the pacing.
— Emmanuel Noisette, The Movie Blog

There are some oddities in a bold swing like Sinners, such as not one but two post-credit scenes that feel unnecessary, and the aforementioned pacing of the first half may lose some viewers before Coogler sinks his fangs deeper into the material.
— Matt Neglia, Next Best Picture

If the ending drags on somewhat indulgently (including both a mid- and post-credits scene, amazingly), well, Coogler more than earns the right.
— Jeremy Mathai, Slashfilm

Sinners opens in theaters on April 18, 2025.

Thumbnail image by ©Warner Bros.

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Movie Reviews

‘Project Hail Mary’ Review: Ryan Gosling and a Rock Make Sci-Fi Magic

Published

2 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

‘Project Hail Mary’ Review: Ryan Gosling and a Rock Make Sci-Fi Magic

In contrast to other sci-fi heroes, like Interstellar’s Cooper, who ventures into the unknown for the sake of humanity and discovery, knowing the sacrifice of giving up his family, Grace is externally a cynical coward. With no family to call his own, you’d think he’d have the will to go into space for the sake of the planet’s future. Nope, he’s got no courage because the man is a cowardly dog. However, Goddard’s script feels strikingly reflective of our moment. Grace has the tools to make a difference; the Earth flashbacks center on him working towards a solution to the antimatter issue, replete with occasionally confusing but never alienating dialogue. He initially lacks the conviction, embodying a cynicism and hopelessness that many people fall into today.

The film threads this idea effectively through flashbacks that reveal his reluctance, giving the story a tragic undercurrent. Yet, it also makes his relationship with Rocky, the first living thing he truly learns to care for, ever more beautiful.

When paired with Rocky, Gosling enters the rare “puppet scene partner” hall of fame alongside Michael Caine in The Muppet Christmas Carol, never letting the fact that he’s acting opposite a puppet disrupt the sincerity of his performance. His commitment to building a gradual, affectionate friendship with this animatronic creation feels completely natural, and the chemistry translates beautifully on screen. It stands as one of the stronger performances of his career.

Project Hail Mary is overly long, and while it can be deeply affecting, the film leans on a few emotional fake-outs that become repetitive in the latter half. By the third time it deploys the same sentimental beat, the effect begins to feel cloying, slightly dulling the powerful emotions it built earlier. The constant intercutting between past and present can also feel thematically uneven at times, occasionally undercutting the narrative momentum. At 2 hours and 36 minutes, the film feels like it’s stretching itself to meet a blockbuster runtime when a tighter cut might have served better.

FINAL STATEMENT

Project Hail Mary is a meticulously crafted, hopeful, and dazzling space epic that proves the most moving friendship in film this year might just be between Ryan Gosling and a rock.

Movie Reviews

Dan Webster reviews “WTO/99”

Published

14 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

DAN WEBSTER:

It may now seem like ancient history, especially to younger listeners, but it was only 26 years ago when the streets of Seattle were filled with protesters, police and—ultimately—scenes of what ended up looking like pure chaos.

It is those scenes—put together to form a portrait of what would become known as the “Battle of Seattle” —that documentary filmmaker Ian Bell captures in his powerful documentary feature WTO/99.

We’ve seen any number of documentaries over the decades that report on every kind of social and cultural event from rock concerts to war. And the majority of them follow a typical format: archival footage blended with interviews, both with participants and with experts who provide an informational, often intellectual, perspective.

WTO/99 is something different. Like The Perfect Neighbor, a 2026 Oscar-nominated documentary feature, Bell’s film consists of what could be called found footage. What he has done is amass a series of news reports and personal video recordings into an hour-and-42-minute collection of individual scenes, mostly focused on a several-block area of downtown Seattle.

That is where a meeting of the WTO, the World Trade Organization, was set to be held between Nov. 30 and Dec. 3, 1999. Delegates from around the world planned to negotiate trade agreements (what else?) at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center.

Months before the meeting, however, a loose coalition of groups—including NGOs, labor unions, student organizations and various others—began their own series of meetings. Their objective was to form ways to protest not just the WTO but, to some of them, the whole idea of a world order they saw as a threat to the economic independence of individual countries.

Bell’s film doesn’t provide much context for all this. What we mostly see are individuals arguing their points of view as they prepare to stop the delegates from even entering the convention center. Meanwhile, Seattle authorities such as then-Mayor Paul Schell and then-Police Chief Norm Stamper—with brief appearances by Gov. Gary Locke and King County Executive Ron Sims—discuss counter measures, with Schell eventually imposing a curfew.

That decision comes, though, after what Bell’s film shows is a peaceful protest evolving into a street fight between people parading and chanting, others chained together and splinter groups intent on smashing the storefronts of businesses owned by what they see as corporate criminals. One intense scene involves a young woman begging those breaking windows to stop and asking them why they’re resorting to violence. In response a lone voice yells their reasoning: “Self-defense.”

Even more intense, though, are the actions of the Seattle police. We see officers using pepper spray, tear gas, flash grenades and other “non-lethal” means such as firing rubber pellets into the crowd. In one scene, a uniformed guy—not identified as a police officer but definitely part of the security crowd, which included National Guardsmen—is shown kicking a guy in the crotch.

The media, too, can’t avoid criticism. Though we see broadcast reporters trying to capture what was happening—with some affected like everybody else by the tear gas that filled the streets like a winter fog—the reports they air seem sketchy, as if they’re doctors trying to diagnose a serious illness by focusing on individual cells. And the images they capture tend to highlight the violence over the well-meaning actions of the vast majority of protesters.

Reactions to what Bell has put on the screen are bound to vary, based on each viewer’s personal politics. Bell revels his own stance by choosing selectively from among thousands of hours of video coverage to form the narrative he feels best captures what happened those two decades-and-change ago.

If nothing else, WTO/99 does reveal a more comprehensive picture of what happened than we got at the time. And, too, it should prepare us for the future. The way this country is going, we’re bound to see a lot more of the same.

Call it the “Battle for America.”

For Spokane Public Radio, I’m Dan Webster.

——

Movies 101 host Dan Webster is the senior film critic for Spokane Public Radio.

Movie Reviews

Movie Review: ‘Scream 7’ – Catholic Review

Published

1 day ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Movie Review: ‘Scream 7’ – Catholic Review

NEW YORK (OSV News) – As its title suggests, “Scream 7” (Paramount) is the latest extension of a long-lived horror franchise, one that’s currently approaching its 30th anniversary on screen. Since each chapter of this slasher saga has been a bloodsoaked mess, the series’ longevity will strike moviegoers of sense as inexplicable.

Yet the slog continues. While the previous film in the sequence shifted the action from California to New York, this second installment, following a 2022 quasi-reboot, settles on a Midwestern locale and reintroduces us to the series’ original protagonist, Sidney Evans, nee Prescott (Neve Campbell).

Having aged out of the adolescent demographic on whom the various murderers who have donned the Ghostface mask that serves as these films’ dubious trademark over the years seem to prefer to prey, Sidney comes equipped with a teen daughter, Tatum (Isabel May). Will Tatum prove as resourceful in evading the unwanted attentions of Ghostface as Mom has?

On the way to answering that question, a clutch of colorless minor characters fall victim to the killer, who sometimes gets — according to his or her lights — creative. Thus one is quite literally made to spill her guts, while another ends up skewered on a barroom’s pointy beer tap.

Through it all, director Kevin Williamson and his co-writer Guy Busick try to peddle a theme of female empowerment in the face of mortal danger. They also take a stab, as it were, at constructing a plotline about intergenerational family tensions. When not jarring viewers with grisly images, however, they’re only likely to lull them into a stupor.

The film contains excessive gory violence, including disembowelment and impaling, underage drinking, mature topics, a couple of profanities, several milder oaths, pervasive rough and considerable crude language and occasional crass expressions. The OSV News classification is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.