Sinners review: Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan join forces again to deliver striking, surprising film

MOVIE REVIEW Sinners Starring Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Wunmi Mosaku, Miles Caton, Jack O’Connell, Delroy Lindo Rating MA15+ In Cinemas Now Review Derek Goforth Verdict 4/5 Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is a striking dive into the American south of the 1930s, weaving together vampire folklore, post-war reckoning and a deep love of music and memory. Bold and atmospheric, it doesn’t always go where you expect — or where it should — but it leaves a mark. The film takes place over a single sweltering day and night in Clarksdale, Mississippi, where twin brothers Smoke and Stack return to their roots. Played with impressive nuance by Michael B. Jordan, the twins are war veterans turned hustlers who’ve seen too much and carry it with style and swagger. Their mission: reopen a juke joint with nothing but charisma and crates of beer. Jordan’s performance is magnetic and the subtle distinction between the brothers is captivating. Coogler and Jordan have built a powerful creative partnership over the past decade, beginning with the raw, emotional Fruitvale Station, continuing through the cultural phenomenon of Black Panther, and the gritty reinvention of the Rocky universe, with the Creed films. Sinners feels like a bold evolution — stranger, riskier, and more experimental — but still grounded in their shared strength: complex characters navigating weighty moral terrain. Coogler populates this world with a rich tapestry of characters — sharecroppers still clinging to dignity, old friends with long memories and women the twins left in their wake. Hailee Steinfeld brings a quiet strength to Mary, while Wunmi Mosaku delivers a performance that burns with hurt and heat. Delroy Lindo’s Delta Slim is a soulful standout and newcomer Miles Caton as Preacher Boy nearly steals the film. It plays more like a Southern drama at first — intense, slow-burning, character-driven, soaked in tension and blues — until the supernatural creeps in. Jack O’Connell’s arrival as Remmick shifts the film’s energy entirely. He’s eerie, not in a flashy way, but with a quiet menace that turns the air cold. The vampires here are not elegant predators — they’re insidious, feeding off consent, corruption and the promise of power. O’Connell combines menace with a surreal charm — he’s mesmerising but uncomfortable to watch, all at the same time. When the horror takes full hold, Coogler leans into it with flair — hypnotic dance scenes, strange visuals and moments that feel like someone’s nightmares caught on camera. One extended shot across a wild dance floor merges the past and future of Black musical expression, creating something almost spiritual. It’s visually stunning and thematically rich. Beneath the fangs and fog, the film is wrestling with bigger ideas: what we inherit, what we escape, and whether music can save us or damn us. Sinners is certainly worth a watch but it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. My advice is to go in knowing very little (other than this review, of course), and you might be in for a pleasant — if slightly jarring — surprise. Messy, ambitious and full of soul, Sinners might not satisfy every viewer but it dares to do something different — and that alone makes it unforgettable.