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Last Wednesday I attended the Dark Horse premiere of Sin City. Though the old time movie house lacked the proper sound system to adequately and properly show a modern movie, it gave all the more reason to see this movie again in the theaters when it’s released nationally. I really enjoyed this movie, in part because it is the truest comicbook to film adaptation I’ve ever seen, and it was the best kind of eye candy.

I know I’ve enjoyed a movie when the following day I am still thinking about it and replaying little pieces of scenes in my head. Sin City is one of those movies where I walk out of the theater and can honestly say that I’m glad that they can make movies like this.

Some problems I had with the film were that some of Miller’s hard boiled dialog came across as corny. I also don’t the think the white Elmer’s Glue style blood worked at all. I know it was supposed to look like it does in the comic, but it didn’t work in live action. In most scenes where it was used, it diluted the horrific nature of what was happening (say an arm being blown off) and just made me think of the Predator being shot by Danny Glover. The film also had that sense of self-awareness, like the Kill Bill movies. What I mean by that is that the film makers knew how cool their film was going to be, so they really ratcheted up the slowmotion walking I’m-the-ubercool-bad-ass-character shots. I also didn’t understand why there was the Pulp Fiction style disjointed time line in the story telling. The my biggest criticism, however, is that of the city itself. The movie is called Sin City. I think the city itself should’ve been a bigger character in the story. All we ever see of it is brick walls and its skyline as cars race away from it. The voiceovers talk about some of its politics, but I think the city should’ve somehow been brought more into the forefront, instead of just being a place whose badness is defined ONLY by these handful of seedy characters we are introduced to.

I thought that Mickey Rourke’s portrayal of Marv was spot on and that his segment (The Hard Goodbye) was the best in the film. I am also glad the because it is true to the source material, the film didn’t have the need to bring anyone up to speed, like explain why supporting characters have funky facial tattoos or artificial eyes. And the musical score was excellent.

All in all, I recommend this movie to those who enjoy noir and pulp entertainment, people who liked Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, and fans of the Predator movies.