Movie Review: Sin City
By Purple
Stepping into 'Sin City' is a dark and twisted journey filled with stark black white and red scenes that will scar and haunt your memory weeks after you exit the theater. 'Sin City' is definitely not for the timid. But if you crave pulp detective stories about hardened criminals on the seedier side of the streets, then a trip to 'Sin City' might just be the cinematic vacation for you.
The movie features three storylines pulled from the pages of the 'Sin City' comic books, which woke up readers over a decade ago. The super stylized blue screen special effects approach as seen in last years Sky Captain, clicks remarkably well in 'Sin City'. And whereas the World of Tomorrow cast never seem connected to their surroundings, the stars of 'Sin City' appear deeply rooted and belong no matter how extreme the scenes may be.
The cast list for 'Sin City' reads like a Hollywood who's who, but mainstream audiences should be careful to not be mislead by 'Sin City''s star power. Any unsuspecting moviegoer expecting to see some wholesome fun from the likes of Bruce Willis, Benicia Del Toro, Josh Harnett, Elijah Wood, and Jessica Alba, are going to be in for quite a shock with the gruesome creepiness that oozes out of 'Sin City'. Of course this grittiness provides the perfect comeback vehicle for down and out actor Mickey Rourke whose crazed personality bleeds through the thick heavy make up of his character Marv.
'Sin City' is a triumph for creator-controlled storytelling. It's the truest comic book adaptation to date and shows how compelling a film can be when the original authors are kept involved. 'Sin City' is the second movie this year based on characters created by comic legend, Frank Miller, and as opposed to the sterilized Elektra story that had little to do with Millers vision, 'Sin City' brings his graphic novel to life, with panel by panel accuracy.
But keeping Millers artistic vision in focus came at a price. The ever-independent Robert Rodriguez had to sacrifice his involvement with the Directors Guild so that he could list Miller in the 'Sin City' credits, who apparently doesn't qualify for the co-director title in the Guilds eyes. At least people like Quentin Tarantino billed as special guest director didn't have to struggle with Guild politics to be recognized as a major contributor to the 'Sin City' film.
Waiting for a cold and rainy night to see 'Sin City' again, for Movie Magazine this is Purple.
The movie features three storylines pulled from the pages of the 'Sin City' comic books, which woke up readers over a decade ago. The super stylized blue screen special effects approach as seen in last years Sky Captain, clicks remarkably well in 'Sin City'. And whereas the World of Tomorrow cast never seem connected to their surroundings, the stars of 'Sin City' appear deeply rooted and belong no matter how extreme the scenes may be.
The cast list for 'Sin City' reads like a Hollywood who's who, but mainstream audiences should be careful to not be mislead by 'Sin City''s star power. Any unsuspecting moviegoer expecting to see some wholesome fun from the likes of Bruce Willis, Benicia Del Toro, Josh Harnett, Elijah Wood, and Jessica Alba, are going to be in for quite a shock with the gruesome creepiness that oozes out of 'Sin City'. Of course this grittiness provides the perfect comeback vehicle for down and out actor Mickey Rourke whose crazed personality bleeds through the thick heavy make up of his character Marv.
'Sin City' is a triumph for creator-controlled storytelling. It's the truest comic book adaptation to date and shows how compelling a film can be when the original authors are kept involved. 'Sin City' is the second movie this year based on characters created by comic legend, Frank Miller, and as opposed to the sterilized Elektra story that had little to do with Millers vision, 'Sin City' brings his graphic novel to life, with panel by panel accuracy.
But keeping Millers artistic vision in focus came at a price. The ever-independent Robert Rodriguez had to sacrifice his involvement with the Directors Guild so that he could list Miller in the 'Sin City' credits, who apparently doesn't qualify for the co-director title in the Guilds eyes. At least people like Quentin Tarantino billed as special guest director didn't have to struggle with Guild politics to be recognized as a major contributor to the 'Sin City' film.
Waiting for a cold and rainy night to see 'Sin City' again, for Movie Magazine this is Purple.
© 2005 - Purple - Air Date: 3/30/05
More Information:
Sin City
USA - 2005
