‘Sinners’ Review: One Night in a Barn, A Cinematic Bloodbath

2025 has been off to a rough, slow start for cinema. With many viewers shifting their focus to the rising heights of television, film has unfortunately taken a backseat. Black Bag and Mickey 17 were just not enough of a statement to convince people to go to the theatres to watch immediately. But maybe those doubts on the year’s lack of quality can finally be put to rest with the release of Sinners, proving to defy expectations and delivering the year’s biggest revelation yet. 

Ryan Coogler follows up his foray in the Marvel franchise by returning to his roots. It hasn’t been since Fruitvale Station which started his collaboration with Michael and gave him a name as a promising auteur 12 years ago. By opting for an entirely personal story built on history, arts and culture, Ryan has chosen to remind audiences why he earned his reputation as a contemporary filmmaker valued as part of the culture.

But why now? What has changed to start from scratch and look back to the past. Perhaps as a person of colour in the film industry, there comes an innate responsibility to tell not only your own story that you have been wanting to on your own terms, but come to terms with your family, culture and history. Not longing for days gone past but to reflect and pursue a deeper understanding of the soul and your place in this universe. Sinners is a measure of self-reflection that poignantly reckons with Ryan’s soul.

Set in 1932 Mississippi, a pair of twin brothers dually played by Michael B. Jordan return to their hometown from Chicago, setting their sights on a fresh start and leaving their past life behind. Smoke and Stack buy a barn from a white man, threatening him and any of his people that if they lay a step on their territory and property, it would result in bodies being dropped. That interaction alone is enough to tell you what kind of brothers these twins are, ones not to be messed with as they urgently seek a new path. They, alongside their little cousin brother Sammie (Miles Caton), attempt to recruit a bunch of town folk in the hopes of celebrating their first night back, refurbishing their recently bought property as a juke joint. 

But one night in a barn is all Ryan Coogler needs to make a bold statement of his intentions. As the word of mouth reaches far and wide and many old faces reenter Smoke and Stack’s lives, including none other than their respective former lovers Mary (Hailee Steinfeld) and Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), there’s a different breeze in the air as the sun beautifully sets and hope for a better future is renewed. At least that’s what the Smokestack twins like to think. Little do they know Mississippi has other ideas. 

Mary’s insistence on being a part of Smokestacks’s lives again leads to conflict but she does mean well and any grieving person would want to be surrounded by company, especially their loved ones. It shows an important distinction in how men chose to live their lives back then. Deciding to distance themselves entirely from their lover in the hopes of keeping them safe from a threat that seemingly doesn’t exist beyond overthought. But what Mary and Annie suggest is that the twins are running from their past yet long for remnants of it as a keepsake. Unwilling to embrace and confront their history, removing themselves of any emotions entirely by absolving themselves of sin rather than repenting. An unhealthy attitude all too commonly adopted as a toxic way of rejecting grief and regrets. 

Vampire stories are a tale as old as time, just recently we’ve gotten a spin with Egger’s Nosferatu to much success. It’s a tired genre that can easily create unrest from an outsider’s perspective. How can you make a story about blood-sucking hounds scared of garlic and the sunrise feel fresh again? Ryan’s answer seems to be music. And what better place to tap into the art of music than to dive into the Blues music that originated in the late 1800s, famously tied to African-American history as a defining part of their rhythmic culture. Sammie himself has a knack or two for such music with his confidently strung guitar, but if the opening suggests anything where he crashes into a church and confronts Father, holding a broken instrument and marks on his face, even music itself seems to be at threat. What could lead to this moment?

As the night goes on and the celebration begins, Ryan takes the viewers on a journey to remember, without music there is no party. With Sammie and the recently acquainted drunk Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo) playing guitar and piano, one after another, the film takes shape and beautiful sounds are heard. The blues voice is rekindled and as the twin saw firsthand while driving how talented Sammie truly is, so does everyone at the barn, completely transfixed on Sammie’s singing and playing. 

Ryan Coogler has always been dedicated to cultural specificity and harnessing the beauty and power of embracing one’s roots and past, but this sequence in particular singlehandedly transforms your perception of what he is capable of. With the blues music in full swing, the film goes from just an ordinary western to a cinematic work of art spanning different generations of musicians and how music itself is an art that has ephemerally changed in form but has stayed in permanence throughout time. Both visual and sound are perfectly synchronised in harmony. It’s the exact type of craftsmanship to remind you of your love for the movies. 

While the vampires lay siege to three white people, ironically Ku Klux Klan members, the warning seems clear: the juke joint currently celebrated as a mark of new beginnings may be the end of the people as we know it. As they enter the twins’ territory and attempt to invite themselves into the party, entry is denied and the twins are called upon alongside the rest of the family to witness such a disturbance.

But Remmick (Jack O’Connell) and his bloodsucking family reckon that they are being discriminated against for their white skin colour (ironic jab) and that they deserve a place in the barn celebrating African-American culture, even questioning how Mary can get away with being inside despite not appearing as a black woman. But as Annie proudly defends, she is their family and accepted wholeheartedly and that is the difference between her and the vampire trio. They were never invited and haven’t given a proper reason or earned the trust of the twins and hometown to be included. 

With the eventual intrusion of vampires systematically destroying one soul after another, starting from Mary, it is clear that Ryan is creating an allegory of a larger theme. The exploitation of art and corruption of culture from the outside. Showing how easily people step on other people’s music and try to lay claim over it. A common human experience that unfortunately has challenged the survival of art over and over. But if there’s one thing that is undeniable, music endures. Even if it changes with time and the power of lyricism, motivation, and instrument reinvents itself, the core remains and the art of human expression outlives its oppressors. Ludwig Goransson, Autumn Durald and Ryan’s collaboration is a testament to this ability to recapture the magic of another era onto the biggest screen. 

2025 has been quite familiar with several films having the lead actor play dual roles. Mickey 17, The Alto Knights and even TV shows like Severance highlight this trope. Perhaps it is the mark of our inner selves fighting against our outer layers. Michael B. Jordan demonstrates his physical and emotional capabilities to display 2 different but nuanced characters, alike enough to know they’re family but distinct enough to tell who is on screen even without the different hats. That’s the mark of a great performance.

Hailee Steinfeld is a classy delight and shows her talents aren’t just for voice acting, while Wunmi Mosaku and Delroy Lindo show maturity, grace, or humour that speaks of a lived in experience. But it is Miles Caton who yields the biggest surprise with a terrific debut, showcasing his talents as a musician who wholly understands and loves the blues culture but also performs with strength and compassion that leaves a lasting impression.  One small detail that’s appreciated is the inclusion of Chinese Americans who are often ignored from these periods, and with Li Jun Li and Yao being great additions, the cast feels whole.

The film doesn’t shy away from its cultural sensibilities, and there is certainly no lack of violence, blood or edge-of-your-seat moments as a horror thriller. The moments when the screen changes aspect ratio to 1.43:1 are gorgeous to behold and instill complete awe upon the viewer. Ludwig is on a winning run lately with his recent Oscar trophy for Oppenheimer, and Sinners continues that exceptional form with poignant and epically charged music amplifying the atmosphere and feeling like a swan song. By the time dawn is near, you are taken on an unforgettable evening, thankful that movies can still feel original and cinematic in the way they are intended to be.

Overall, Sinners is a modern cinematic achievement in the horror genre that avoids traditional tropes with vampire fiction to convey a beautiful visual poem of love, loss, and yearning for the arts that derive from culture. It is undoubtedly Ryan Coogler’s crowning achievement as a filmmaker and stands head and shoulders as the best film released this year. As the only film released this year to shoot entirely in IMAX 70mm, it fully deserves the badge of honour.

Sinners stars Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Buddy Guy, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Omar Benson Miller, and Delroy Lindo. The film released on April 18th, and is currently in theaters worldwide.

If you’re wondering about what format to watch the film in, director Ryan Coogler has a fantastic video that may help.

Thanks for reading. If you liked this Sinners review, read more reviews here at Feature First.