The first Sin City is the definition of modern film noir. It
was gritty, violent and gruelling, with a touch of class. And the atmosphere,
the look of the film was unlike anything else we had seen before. Every single
shot just looked like a piece of art, crafted with the finest detail in terms
of colour and style. It was all just stunning. Nine years on and finally a
sequel has come out. This might come as a surprise to many because even though
Sin City is a series of comics the first one really felt like a standalone
film. There wasn’t that much to suggest that a sequel was necessary, and now
that we’ve got one, what should we think of it.
Similarly to the first Sin City, it’s made up of several
stories of killers, queens (not the royal sort), losers and hookers. Marv is
now targeting the richer citizens of the city, Dwight struggles with the woman
he can’t get over, Nancy wants vengeance and a gambler is on a mission. So what
can you expect, it keeps the same basic formula as the first film, the same
dark style and gritty storylines. The visuals are stretched up a bit more,
firstly due to the advance in technology but especially the fact that audiences
know what to expect, they can admire more of the added details now rather than
having to focus on the entire film, as I said before it was completely unexpected
at the time.
These visuals have made the film as impressive as ever. CGI
rain, cars being coloured and huge outstanding shadows all help to make it
visually stunning. The acting is not ignored either, this is quite an ensemble
cast, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Josh Brolin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce
Willis. It’s all very impressive isn’t it, and they all give great
performances, old faces have no difficulty settling back into their roles and
new one’s force their way onto the scene and don’t give a s**t who stands in
their way.
The story is partly adapted from the second Sin city novel,
with two original stories thrown in, The Fat Loss and the Long Bad Night. They
both feel slightly out of place, only very slightly, perhaps a different
writing style and different characterisations. But then again, it could just be
due to the fact that I’m more familiar with the original series, but anyway I’m
probably nit picking. To the untrained eye they probably feel identical to
every other story. And they do mostly feel like it, they are welcome additions
to the film and it would be hard to imagine A Dame To Kill For without them.
But there is the problem of, what else? Let me explain,
sequels have to tell something new and offer something new. They’re not simple
process, every element should be taken up a peg and more elements should be
introduced after that. The sequels that have fared best over time have all done
this. A Dame To Kill For has done this visually, but that’s about it. It’s not
even a huge difference either, it’s all good but it feels like there should be…
more. As a result you end the film rather dissatisfied. It might not look like a big problem compared
to all the good stuff, but it makes all the good elements feel, not as good.
They seem more dated and simpler now. I think that they’ve
been so focussed on recreating to feel of the first film nine years later that
they’ve just created a carbon copy of it. Obviously the star factor is bigger
and the effects are more dazzling. But the story, the action and the vibe can’t
distact us from the flaws as much as they did last time. There were flaws in
the first film, but we didn’t notice. The women are treated horribly, and the
guys don’t come out looking any better, apart from Rourke, who just looks,
well, regular, sorry Mickey.
The dialogue is still rather generic and despite the fact
that individually they are all great actors, the main characters don’t interact
that well either. Some have been very critical of this film, but I have to
admit I really am stumped, in one sense I do want to be critical because it is
essentially the first film with a different title and story. But on the other
hand the same reason makes it look brilliant. To capture the essence so well,
just short of a decade on is admirable.
If you liked the first one, and just want to see more Sin
City action, then by all means check this film out. If you want to see new
heights and boundaries being pushed even further into darkness and violence,
then you may have to wait for another instalment.
Result: 6/10
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