Sin City, Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez's film adaptation from the comic book series of the same name, is a visually striking and thematically intense rejuvenation of the film noir genre made popular in the 1940s and 50s. The freshness of the style, the performance of an all-star cast and the delivery of the plot is where the enjoyment of the movie lies rather than in the plot itself.
Structurally, the movie is splintered into six separate story lines that weave into and out of each others paths in such a way that the viewer gets acclimated to the character of Basin City rather than the characters themselves. Basin City is portrayed as a filthy, dirty festering ground for corruption and despair - a place where the cops are as twisted as (and in some cases they themselves are) the criminals. We are given 3 main characters who share similar characteristics and personalities, and who deal with their specific missions in similar ways despite the missions themselves being quite different. John Hartigan (Bruce Willis) is a late 50s cop with a failing heart and a fierce determination to protect little 11 year old, and later a more voluptuous 19 year old, Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba). Marv (Mickey Rourke) is a hulking behemoth of a man who sets his mind to not rest until he avenges the death of a favorite prostitute of his, Goldie (Jaime King). Dwight (Clive Owen) is Shellie's (Brittany Murphy) new boyfriend who vows to stop her drunk ex-boyfriend Jackie Boy (Benicio Del Toro) from doing any more harm than he already has. Each of these main characters shares a general feeling of self denigration, commenting regularly about low self worth (which helps contribute to the helpless, hopeless nature of Basin City). Hartigan attempts to motivate himself saying, "Get up old man. Prove you're not completely useless," while Marv mentions that he doesn't understand why a beautiful woman like Goldie would waste her time with him, but he's not complaining. Dwight mentions offhand that he doesn't blame Shellie for choosing lousy boyfriends, because he understands that he is one of them. Another trait our main characters share is the idea that they are pursuing justice, on a mission to protect and serve...even if it means killing alot of people, innocent or not, along the way. Hartigan is the only main character on the proper side of the law, but even he has committed cold blooded murder by the end of his story. In this reviewer's opinion, Dwight fares the worst in his story, starting out defending his new girlfriend Shellie from ex-boyfriend Jackie Boy and ending up in the middle of an Old Town turf war between the cops and the prostitutes and apparently leaving Shellie (with no resolution) for old flame Gail (Rosario Dawson).
The individual stories themselves are, as I mentioned before, not the reason to visit Sin City. There are several holes left unplugged in the plots and, of course, questions to be answered in future installments. There are precious few surprises during the ride here, strictly as far as plot is concerned, after an hour and a half the violence (while at first bold and daring) just gets disgusting, and the film noir style begins to wear a little thin. But also as I mentioned before, the freshness of the delivery is what makes Sin City such an enjoyable film. Great care was taken to translate (not adapt) Frank Miller's graphic novel series, and the results are without a doubt the most faithful comic book movie thus far. The movie is dripping with style, from almost entirely digital set design, to the sparse and careful use of color, and into the delivery of dialogue - much of it coming to us through narration from the main characters. Mystery surrounds nearly everything in Basin City, and while the plot eventually uncovered might not be the most magical ever conceived, the mystery itself is worth coming back for more.
The actors themselves are simply fabulous. Each performer was chosen carefully and each one fits into this corrupt, nasty world very nicely. Lines are delivered oozing with that film-noir gravity, and the acting itself is a joy to watch. Especially when considering that almost the entire movie was shot on a green screen, with actors reacting to little or nothing, the performances are especially impressive.
8/10
Sin City
Directed by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller
Special Guest Director - Quentin Tarantino
Produced by Elizabeth Avellan, Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller
Written by Frank Miller
Starring: Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Jessica Alba, Brittany Murphy, Nick Stahl, Benicio Del Toro, Elijah Wood, Rosario Dawson, Jaime King, Michael Clarke Duncan, Alexis Bledel, Powers Boothe, Michael Madsen, Josh Hartnett, Devon Aoki, Carla Gugino, Rutger Hauer, Marley Shelton
Rated R for sustained strong stylized violence, nudity and sexual content including dialogue.
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