Sinners By:Ryan Coogler

My little sister and I left the theater, walked straight to the customer service counter, and asked when the next showing was…
That’s how good this movie was to us.

Spoiler Warning!

I’ll watch anything with Michael B. Jordan in it. I think he’s so handsome, and I love seeing him on the silver screen. I walked into Sinners nearly blind—all I knew was that it was about vampires, and my man was in it. Two things I can get behind.

The opening sequence—Sammy driving up to the church, covered in blood, face slashed—was such a jarring, unforgettable way to start. The contrast between his grim appearance and the pearly-white church immediately set the tone. That moment told me everything I needed to know about the film.

Showing us the ending before the rest of the story unfolded was a bold choice—and it paid off in a powerful way. When the vampires attack the juke joint, we know Sammy survives. But we know nothing else, so the comfort of seeing him at the church quickly vanishes. The danger still feels real.

My favorite moment comes during the post-credit scene. An aging Sammy asks an immortal Stack if he remembers that night at the juke as fondly as he does. We’re then given a montage of joy before the tragedy: Stack seeing the sun for the last time, reuniting with his brother under a fading sunset, everyone dancing, laughing, living. The beauty that exists beyond pain. It was such a powerful, cathartic moment—one I’ll be reliving forever.

Lets talk about my 2 favorite characters

Sammy

I felt a strange kinship with Sammy from the moment he walked into the church. I, too, am a preacher’s kid. I understand the heavy sense of responsibility he carried. At no point in the film does Sammy reject God—he just also loves the blues. His father warned him what music would bring, that the devil would come for him if he didn’t stay in the church. But Sammy wanted to sing.

Me sobbing while Sammy prays

In his song “I Lied to You,” he sings about loving the blues and apologizes to his father for choosing music over ministry. Then, in the creek, facing Remmick in what he believes are his final moments… he prays. He opens his mouth and recites the Lord’s Prayer. I cried instantly. Before I could read, before I could tie my shoes, before I knew the color of my eyes—I knew the Lord’s Prayer. I know that in my last moments, I too would ask God to forgive me for my tresspasses , to deliver me from evil.

Sammy is a young man torn in a thousand directions. He wants what he thinks he isn’t allowed to have. He wants the “devil.” He wants music. To me, Sammy represents all the young people raised in church now trying to find their place in the world. The kids who go out partying and pray on the uber ride there. Sammy is the kid at HBCUs across the nation going to Sunday service before homecoming week starts. The girls that come back from the club and pray that as they lay down to sleep their souls the Lord will keep

Sammy is that crossroad where faith and flesh meet. We are Sammy.

Smoke

I am in love with Smoke. As the older twin, we see him making heavy choices that shape the world around him. He’s strong, consistent, and a man of his word. He wants a peaceful life for the people he loves. He wants the juke to be a sanctuary. He loves his brother, Annie, and Sammy—and he just wants to protect them.

Smoke played by Michael B. Jordan

We see how deeply Smoke works to keep his people safe when we learn about what we can only assume is his first kill. His own father. Smoke kills his father after he abuses his brother Stack. That act of protection shows us who Smoke really is. Not a villain. Not a monster. Just a product of pain, trying to shield those he loves.

In his final scene, as he’s dying, he sees Annie holding their deceased child. She says, “I’ll let you hold him if you put out that cigarette. I don’t want all that smoke to get on him.” She isn’t just talking about the cigarette. She’s talking about him. The man he’s become—the liar, the killer. She doesn’t want Smoke to get on their baby. She uses his given name (and is the only person in the movie to do so) because she does not want Smoke. She wants Elijah. The boy that loved so deeply he killed his flesh and blood to protect his brother. 

Having Smoke die at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan was a devastating but brilliant creative choice. After surviving an abusive father, World War I, the German and Italian mob, and literal vampires, it was white supremacy that killed him. Smoke was never going to get his peace. He was always going to die. But for it to happen at the hands of the KKK was a huge blow. Even in the midst of the literal devil, the greatest evil of all was a white man.

Love and Vampires

This show was literally insane how did it get greenlit?

After the film, I browsed social media and saw a lot of people say how “freaked out” it was. And listen—I can’t even argue. Smoke, Stack, Sammy, and Bo Chow were some freaky frogs. It’s got me wondering—why is vampire media always tied up in sex and love? From Twilight (say what you want about Stephenie Meyer, she made people want Edward to watch them sleep) to The Vampire Diaries (those Salvatore brothers had everyone in a chokehold), someone is always sexy. Is it the submission—offering your throat to someone else? The dream of eternal life with your lover? Why does Western media find vampires so hot? Is consuming someone the ultimate act of love?

In Conclusion

All in all, this is the movie of the year. I want a full Oscars sweep—ASAP. Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan are a creative team I pray never separates. And I cannot wait to see more from Miles Canton.

Let me know what I should review next!