Stylish And Eye-Poppingly Sleazy Crime-Filled Comic-Book Anthology Thriller

Rating: 6/10 (13 January 2008)

In the lawless metropolis of Basin City, also known as Sin City, three tragic tales unfold; a grizzled cop on his last case to save a kidnapped girl, a disfigured avenger seeking out who killed a hooker that befriended him, and a full-scale war between the authorities and the not-to-be-messed-with working girls of Old Town ...
Based on a series of graphic novels by Frank Miller, Sin City wins all sorts of points for originality - it goes for an almost completely black-and-white look with animation-style layout backgrounds, film-noir photography and lots of frenetic comic-book action - and it is a dynamic visual piece of work. However, I couldn't help but feel, probably because it's all done digitally (arguably the first feature to do so) and it combines so many influences that it's a little bit soulless, a little bit flat. Rodriguez is so gifted in his techniques and so well-versed in his graphic art that he forgets some basic good practice; some of the movie is jumbled and confusing, and the visuals occasionally distract from the plot, rather than enhancing it. Compare it with Creepshow, my favourite comic-book adaptation, which goes in totally the opposite direction both colour-wise and stylistically, and is a much richer picture. There's lots to enjoy here however; of the three tales, my favourite is the middle one (The Hard Goodbye), with Rourke terrific as the deformed, self-deprecating, enemy-smashing, man-machine Marv. The rest of the wild cast are good (I liked Wood best as Kevin, the silent, enigmatic, cannibal killer who meets a sticky end) with a high quotient of the eye-pleasing Rodriguez/Tarantino Dangerous Dames stock troupe present, notably Dawson and Gugino, and Miller himself appears as the padre who gets whacked in the confessional. Good gruesome fun throughout, with plenty of nice oddball ideas - the band of Irish mercenaries, the eloquently bickering henchman, the moment in the bar when the protagonists of all three stories suddenly come together - but not quite as imaginative or enjoyable as some of Rodriguez' other work (From Dusk Till Dawn, Spy Kids). I wish he would make a quieter, less pyrotechnic ally-charged movie, and see what he can really do. Anyhow, this is still terrific entertainment by anyone's standards and a highly original piece of work. Quentin Tarantino is credited as Special Guest Director, whatever that means.