Not your usual Hollywood fare

Rating: Null/10 (13 June 2005)

I'm in two minds about Sin City. Parts of it were quite entertaining, yet there were moments when I felt that the whole thing had become more than a little over-pretentious. Overall though, this is not a bad film, but is certainly an acquired taste. It will appeal to comic book fans, but not being one myself I can't be sure what makes 'em tick! Anyway, the film is essentially a series of segments in which we follow one of the leading characters for say 20 or 30 minutes as they meander around Sin City. There's a good deal of violence, generally cleverly done, but action fans be warned, this gets a bit artsy at times. The way this is filmed evokes the film noir spirit, with splashes of colour thrown in to emphasise key themes et al. Sin City is certainly stylish. However, the drawback of following one leading character for so long is that when you chance upon one you dislike you're stick with them for too long. Bruce Willis was on fine form, but Clive Owen hardly sets the world alight with his performance. Mickey Rourke was strange, but does that make his scenes good? It's all down to your own film tastes I suppose. Red blooded male viewers will be pleased to see a dazzling array of scantily clad ladies throughout the film, a bonus when some of the dialogue gets a tad dull in particular. Elijah Wood makes an odd appearance and dies a rather inventive death in one of the film's highlights. Basically, Sin City has enough good moments to entertain, but in the middle I began to wish it would finish soon. Luckily it rallies somewhat towards the end, thanks especially to a good turn from Willis. Sin City won't appeal to everyone, but its worth a look.