How Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ raises the bar for the horror genre

Set in 1932, Clarksdale, Mississippi, the film takes us to the tail end of the Prohibition Era. The set design, dialogue and diction of the characters immerse the audience in the world that director Coogler built. Despite being set over 30 years after the end of the Old West era, the film somehow watches like a Western—peculiar but welcome. Sinners takes its time with its worldbuilding. For a movie about vampires, it takes about 50 minutes for one to appear on screen, easing audiences in without feeling dragged.

When we’re introduced to the first vampire, Remmick (played by Jack O’Connell), he’s being hunted by a band of Choctaw vampire hunters. Their brief scene time commanded the screen and showed us that the threat is serious and real, which makes it disappointing that they were never seen again. It would’ve been great to see how the experts would deal with a vampire threat, but their lack of involvement in the plot is understandable to avoid the ‘knight in shining armour’ cliché.

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The film’s greatest strength is its music, composed by Ludwig Göransson. From the blues to country and even Irish melodies, each song was skillfully performed by the cast. Two scenes come to mind where the music was at its most powerful are Miles Caton’s I Lied to You and O’Connell’s Rocky Road to Dublin. The former is perhaps the film’s most iconic scene, which is ironic as it didn’t contain any vampires. Shot in one take, this scene gave audiences a look at Sammie’s musical gift to summon their ancestors. African ancestors and modern DJs filled the room as the juke bar’s customers jived to his song—blending ancient instruments with the familiar scratching of turntables to the blues. The latter is a mesmerising yet eerie foil to Caton’s song. Rocky Road to Dublin was performed in an open field outside the sawmill by the vampires, who seemed like they were chanting demonically. O’Connell’s performance was perfect, unsettling the audience without the need for jump scares and grotesque visuals. While present, the vampires preferred to charm their way in rather than with force—showing us true horror.

The whole cast’s performance was perfect, capturing their characters’ little nuances. Playing dual roles as the twin brothers, Smoke and Stack, Jordan made them feel like two separate people—making it easy for the audience to tell who’s who. Hailee Steinfeld and Wunmi Mosaku, who played the brothers’ love interests, Mary and Annie, complemented their lovers—adding depth to their characters. Mary and Stack were exes who had difficulty being together due to the racial inequalities of the time, while Smoke and Annie had a foundation of love and support.

“I really found this whole experience of working with Michael quite magical. When it was Smoke and Annie, our relationship on the set, as Wunmi and Michael, was so easy and our shorthand was so in sync… His energy was so different that I could tell with my back turned who was walking onto the set—if it was Stack or Smoke. No question. I didn’t even have to look. It was so obvious to me. It was so nuanced and fine-tuned. The vibration was so clear. I could tell without a shadow of a doubt if it was Stack or Smoke,” says Mosaku.

Towards the end, when the dust has settled from the vampire attack of last night, the film circles back and shows us Sammie’s fate. Once the credits roll, make sure to stay in your seat as there is an additional scene that provides closure and a happy ending for the remaining characters. Coogler’s Sinners is by far the best film of 2025 so far and deserves all the praise it gets—hopefully setting new standards for the genre as a whole.

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