Sin City (2005)

[Scott]

SIN CITY (2005) - Not sure were to start, but I'll start by saying I really liked the big dude in action, his dialogue, and that nerdy cannibal was really strange.



The rest of the film I couldn't get into that much. The action was good yes and the characters were kinda interesting. It's definately a new look for moviemaking. I thought they could have done more with Rosario Dawson. Maybe I'm missing something. Overall a unique new type of film.

[Ash]

You know Scott, I really couldn't get into it either...that is until I watched it a 2nd time and it blew me away.

This is definitely one of those films that requires two viewings.

And the Marv sequence was by far the best in the entire film.
The scene where he's speeding down the road dragging that guy's face on the pavement was priceless.
"I don't know about you, but I'm havin' a ball!"



Post Edited (09-08-05 21:18)

[Scott]

Yea, he was a great character. Couldn't understand why he had to die in this film because I thought he was the film.

I'll take your word for it ASHTHECAT and try it again one day.

[dean]

I loved every aspect of it, and yes, the Marv sequence was the most fun.  Unfortunately as a Noir-type tale, pretty much everybody ends up dying, it just seems to be the formula, and although it was annoying, especially if you like the characters, I don't think it was out of place in the overall mood of the film.

Besides, they could bring Marv back if needed, a story of him in an earlier part of life would work ok, done properly of course!

This is by far one of the more unique and great movies of this year: it took a risk and that is what Hollywood needs more of, otherwise we'll be stuck with movies like 'Stealth' over and over again...

[daveblackeye15]

I saw first time I saw this I thought it was just plain 'kick ass'

I read the books before I saw the movie so I wonder if that counts as 'needing to see it twice'.

I'm constactly debates with myself who is my favorite main character.

*Slight spoilers*

Marv: Huge tough guy with a heart of gold, and is a bit of romantice.

Dwight: Double pistol action! He's a bit unsure of himself but still cares about everyone else while still being really cool (of course)

Hartigan: Honorable and by the book.  He doesn't care about the consecquences he's ready to take down scum bags.  He's old but doesn't give in.

All three remind me of myself in some way.

This is easly one of the best comic book adaptions and I am thankful that they didn't royally screw it up.

And Scott, Kevin is most definatly NOT a nerd! He kicks ass and he could beat us all up with his crazy moves and claws.

*end of minor spoilers*

In one word: Fan-****ing-tastic!

[Neville]

After seing it twice, I found it more interesting, beacuse of how loyal it stays to the comic books, than enjoyable. As I see it, it is that fanatic loyalty to the comic that ends up sinking it; you just can't copy the comic vignette by vignette and expect it to work as well on cinema. There are differences, like it or not, and it is not a perfect translation. The voiceover, for instance, was way too much, and it sohuld have needed to be trimmed.

Don't take me wrong, I though it was enjoyable enough, and the cast is great, but I could feel the comic underneath the frames trying to break free and not being able to.

[Mr_Vindictive]

For me, this film is absolutely perfect.  From the very beginning when Michael Masden tells Willis that he has "a bum ticker", I knew I was in for something good.

I saw it at the theater and have to say that it was the most enjoyable film I've ever seen in a theater.  The place was packed and everyone really got into the groove of the film.

More recently, I've watched it on DVD and it still causes an elation unlike most other films.  The closest thing I can compare it to is seeing Jurassic Park at the theater when I was about ten years old.  It's just a fun experience and every second of it is enjoyable.

Neville mentioned the VO in the film.  I'm one of the people that absolutely loves VO in flicks.  Fight Club, Memento, Blade Runner (j/k), etc.  I think it works especially well for Marv and Dwight in the film.

Which brings me to the characters.  I felt that Marv was without a doubt the best thing about the film.  Rourke brought him to life and he's exactly as I imagined he would have been from the comic.  

And then there is Kevin.  It was really weird to see Elijah Wood as Kevin but it worked perfectly.  I can't imagine a character in the last decade as creepy as Kevin.  Silent, never speaking but deadly with his claws.  

Dwight is also a great character.  Although cliched, he's a hell of a lot of fun to watch.  It seems that Dwight will be back in Sin City 2 as Robert Rodriguez plans to cover Dwight's back story.

I didn't much care for Hartigan.  The story does seem to drag on a bit, but what makes it worthwhile for me is The Yellow Bastard.  Completely vile and evil, he's the highlight of the last third of the film.  And watching his demise is extremely entertaining.

Like I said, I loved Sin City.  I was absolutely infatuated with it from beginning to end, and I can't wait to see what Rodriguez and Miller have in store for the sequel.

[odinn7]

I've said it before, I'll say it again...this movie was awesome. I don't have the vocabulary to describe what I thought of this film. It translated from a Frank Miller comic the way it should have. I hadn't read any of these before the movie came out but I have read plenty of Frank Miller comics and you could see it in this film.

[Scottie]

I seem to notice a trend from people's responses to Sin City. They only care about the three or five main characters and omit the rest of the cast. Now, there are two possible reasons for this omission: it could be that the supporting cast is weak and unworthy of the audience's eye, or it could be that the main characters are so glamorized that their performances outshadow the remaining cast and push them into the background. It's a little bit of both. The movie and graphic novel features interacting characters that are so flat and one dimensional, we can't help but to look past them. While it may be a directional technique by Rodriguez and Miller, I don't believe it makes for a balanced cache of characters. The forefront characters like Marv, Hartigan, Dwight, and Nancy have roles that are so over the top, they have trouble acting up to them. Marv not as much because Rourke played the part so well, but Bruce Willis' Hartigan just fell flat on his face in my opinion. Voice overs were mentioned before, and I believe they played a mixed role; some actors were able to hit their lines with remarkable accuracy to denote both the scene's gravity and humor, but others made the scene seem like a poorly written serious attempt at noir. Again Bruce Willis being my example. Those actors who played their part with a muted tenacity were able to personify their character best. Marv was great, as was Wood's character Kevin, while Del Toro's Jackie Boy outacted everyone on screen with the exception of the eerie exchange of dialogue between Clive Owen and 'pez dispenser' Benicio Del Toro. Visually the movie is unsurpassed. I have no beef with how the movie was shot as the combination of negatives, positives, shadow, and color all flicker beautifully on screen. However the problem I discovered after my second viewing was that once the inital shock of ultra violence was over and the visuals became the landscape of the movie, all that was left was the subpar acting. I wanted to walk out because I was so disgusted with how these people were acting. I don't know. Maybe I'm just old and bitter. 20 has been a rough year for films and I. I liked it the first time I saw it, but I just couldn't stand it the second time. I'm getting to the point where I want a perfect movie and am having trouble appreciating a movie for the few things it does right. Old and bitter. You can hate me if you want.

[Scott]

The movie kinda lost my interest after the execution of the big guy. I just had the whole film explained to me today by a big fan of the movie and still I wasn't impressed. Great stylistic film with some great characters and a number of memorable moments like the toilet scene. I might give it a second chance one day.

As for the nerdy cannibal comment I made it wasn't meant to be a negative. I thought that character was very interesting. I only used the word "nerdy" to identify him as I forgot the characters name.

[BeyondTheGrave]

I loved this movie but I also was a fan of the comic before, So my input for it is bias. My favorite story is actually the Hartigan story rather than the Marv.

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Most of all I hate dancing then work, exercise, people,stupid people

[peter johnson]

You have all read, of course, that Marv (Mickey Rourke) IS coming back again in the sequel?
Oh, by the by, please put me down in the column that absolutely adores this thing . . .
peter johnson/denny crane

[Jim H]

I enjoyed the film, but I felt they were too literal.  The film feels jarring when it transitions from scene-to-scene, since it's so accurate to the comic source.  The jarring nature isn't really noticed when you read the comic, since you can take as much time as you want in a comic to read it and admire the art, but in a film things just progress too fast for that style.  It wouldn't have taken much tweaking to improve this, either, which is probably why it frustrated me as much as it did.  

That said, I loved Marv in his comic and I loved him in the film.

Overal, I'd give the film a 7/10, bordering on an 8..