Sinners is a surprise take away for me as I was half thinking it’s going to be a good movie, or either bad one. Director Ryan Coogler is an admired director who has done remarkable work throughout his work, but Black Panther: Wakanda Forever kind of set back his work in my opinion as finally it went well but audience wise not as great response as it gets from critics.
Sinners (2025) Review Scores
| Review Platform | Rating Score |
| MovieSharp | 8.5/10 |
| IMDB | 7.6/10 |
| Rotten Tomatoes | 97% |
| Metacritic | 84% |
Review scores are based on publicly available data collected on December 20, 2025
Sinners was an original script, not based on another movie. Which I also heard rumors that it was originally written for Blade 3 back in the day (some costumes from that cancelled Blade project actually ended up in Sinners, which is wild), but since it was scrapped by Marvel, the script was changed in certain ways and Sinners was born as its own thing.
In Sinners we can see many familiar faces. Michael B. Jordan plays twin brothers Smoke and Stack which is an iconic act, Hailee Steinfeld as Mary the love figure of Stack. Story was simple enough on paper, twin brothers in 1932 Mississippi, trying to open a juke joint on their own after seven years in Chicago working for Al Capone, but it gets flooded with Irish vampires.
Yeah that’s it but the story execution was absolutely masterful.
Ryan was always good for slow burn but powerful building movies, same style here as well. First half of the movie was a bit slow but it’s a vital point for the second half when you start getting emotionally attached to these characters and understand the world they’re living in. The atmosphere, the music, the way Coogler builds the dread underneath everything happening on screen.
The Irish vampire gang who starts the plague, feels symbolical of destroying home people for their own towns and taking over, historically similar to what happened with Native Americans being pushed out by colonizers. The vampire leader Remmick (Jack O’Connell) pretends to be from North Carolina but he’s actually Irish, and there’s this whole thing about Irish immigrants, African Americans, and the Choctaw people all being connected in this region historically which Coogler weaves into the horror.
Music and Audio
Love it absolutely, it created goosebumps throughout, adds so much atmosphere to everything. Ludwig Göransson’s score is phenomenal and the blues performances were actually recorded live on set which you can feel the raw energy coming through. Miles Caton who plays cousin Sammie (this is his first movie ever, he’s actually a real musician, grandson of a preacher) does this one performance that literally connects past and future through music, you see African drummers, you see glimpses of what’s coming, all tied together.
That scene alone makes the whole movie worth it honestly.
Hailee Steinfeld even wrote and recorded an original song “Dangerous” for the film which plays during certain scenes.
Box Office and Critical Response
Box office wise, Sinners made like $48 million opening weekend which beat all predictions by a lot actually. It currently sits around $367 million worldwide which is absolutely wild and unexpected for an R rated original horror movie with estimated $90–100 million budget. That’s the highest grossing original film of the entire 2020s so far, beating even Jordan Peele’s Us from 2019.
Critics loved it too, sitting at 98% on Rotten Tomatoes with 97% audience score as well. Movie even got 17 Critics Choice nominations which is insane for a horror film!
Some publications tried to downplay the success talking about profitability and Coogler’s salary, but fans and people like Ben Stiller called them out for that. By September 2025, Variety reported film was expected to make around $60 million theatrical profit which is great.
The Technical Stuff
Coogler shot this entire thing on 65mm IMAX cameras (both IMAX 15-perf and Ultra Panavision 70) which switches between 1.43:1 and 2.76:1 aspect ratios throughout the film. It’s ambitious as hell for a horror movie and the cinematography by Autumn Durald Arkapaw is absolutely stunning. You can see every detail, every drop of sweat.
They even did 10 IMAX 70mm prints and 5 standard 70mm prints for theatrical release. Coogler and the cast have been doing special 70mm screenings and apparently the difference is massive compared to regular digital.
The production code name was “Grilled Cheese” which is kind of hilarious for a vampire movie.
Cast Performances
Michael B. Jordan playing both twins is technically impressive but I gotta say honestly, you can tell it’s the same actor sometimes. There’s something slightly missing when he’s interacting with himself compared to two actual different actors, you know? Percy Bell was his body double and they had this crazy driving sequence that apparently almost made Coogler lose his mind trying to film it properly.
But the rest of the cast? Absolutely crushes it. Hailee Steinfeld is excellent as Mary (finally getting a real substantial mature role after years of playing teenagers and doing voice work). Wunmi Mosaku as Annie deserves all the awards, she brings this nuanced grief mixed with humor that shouldn’t work together but does perfectly. Delroy Lindo as Delta Slim is phenomenal bringing that gravitas he always does.
And Miles Caton as Sammie is the breakout star honestly, even though Jordan’s twins are technically the main characters, Sammie is the heart and soul of the film with his musical abilities tied to spiritual history.
The Horror Elements
The horror in this is brutal and visceral, like genuinely disturbing in parts. This isn’t your typical jump scare horror movie at all. This is more “I’m gonna be thinking about that specific scene for literal weeks afterward” type of horror that stays with you and makes you uncomfortable.
The Black Spot Massacre sequence (if you know the Stephen King IT reference from his novel Salem’s Lot which was a major influence on Coogler, you definitely know) is absolutely relentless and unforgiving. I actually had to look away twice which doesn’t really happen to me often with horror films, it’s that intense.
Coogler cited influences like Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk Till Dawn, John Carpenter’s The Thing, Coen Brothers films, and even The Twilight Zone episode “The Last Rites of Jeff Myrtlebank” as inspirations.
Final Thoughts: Sinners 2025 Movie Review
As a horror movie fan, I would absolutely recommend this without any hesitation. The movie definitely has some issues and problems though. The second half is noticeably different tonally from the first half (like two completely different directors made each half, that’s how jarring the shift feels), some characters manage to survive things that feel straight up impossible, and there are definitely moments where dialogue gets a little cliché or predictable in places.
But when Sinners actually works and fires on all cylinders properly, it really REALLY works effectively and powerfully.
The atmosphere is incredible and immersive throughout, performances are stellar across the board from everyone, and Coogler managed to create something genuinely original and fresh in the horror genre that usually just constantly recycles exact same ideas repeatedly.
If you’re into horror films genuinely, if you appreciate ambitious filmmaking that takes creative risks, if you want to see something bold that mostly succeeds in what it’s attempting to do, yeah definitely check this out. Preferably in IMAX format if you can find a theater showing it that way.
It’s not a perfect film by any means whatsoever. But it’s bold in its vision, it’s brutal in execution, and it’s one of those specific movies that reminds you exactly why original storytelling still genuinely matters in an era completely dominated by endless sequels and superhero films pumped out constantly by studios.
For more movies like this, check out MovieSharp.
Watch the official trailer: