Sin City: A Dame to Kill ForThey say that if you walk down the right alley in Sin City, you can find anything. In the case of the sequel/prequel to the 2005 film, Sin City--called Sin City: A Dame to Kill For--that holds true for both a mix of memory and nostalgia. The first Sin City was itself adapted from the (very) graphic novel by Frank Miller, and recalled the kind of intensity and hard-boiled drama of the film noir era of Hollywood, as well as the cocktail mix of sex and violence that accompanied "grindhouse" films in later years. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is another walk down that alley...grimy, bold, explosive, and wildly imaginative.
|
|
"Shot and cut" by Robert Rodriguez--love the wordplay--Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is a vignette film like its predecessor, and concerns itself with stories both before and after the events of the last film. But the opening prologue of this film sets the tone for the piece in more ways than one. For those familiar with the story of Marv (Mickey Rourke) from the first film--the titan of a bruiser with a medical condition that gives him both memory loss and a predilection toward ultra-violence--was executed by the electric chair; and yet, here he is, stomping around and avenging the unfortunates of Sin City from the over-privileged, donning in his favorite Bernini leather jacket. Just as Marv points out that he has a problem "remembering things", the audience no doubt would find themselves disoriented at the sequence of events. Maybe this is one of those "before" sequences, taking place prior to his execution; maybe it is better that Marv lives, because what fun would Sin City be without Marv? Not as much, one imagines, as Marv is like the avatar of the city, its brutal spirit strident in bloody fury. Maybe it's all a dream. In a way, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For feels like a dream of Sin City, a mirror reflection of its legacy from years past. Rumors held that a sequel was in the works after the success of the first film, which I for one doubted. I enjoyed Sin City immensely, and relished the chance to revisit that ultra-stylized world. As in the first film, there are numerous homages to classic moments of film noir. Returning character Dwight--with Josh Brolin picking up where Clive Owen left off--tries to forget his dark history by making some money on the side, photographing philanderers in bed with gold-digging vixens. But when he is approached by the great seductress from his past, Ava Lord (Eva Green), he is pulled down in her undertow, and she manipulates him with the effortless grace of a succubus. The scenario involving Dwight and Ava is the most overt homage to those classics of the silver screen, especially those like Out of the Past and Double Indemnity. Ava carries herself with the cool precision of an apex predator, devoid of scruples, and confident in her sexuality; men are putty in her hands. Many familiar faces from the first film reappear in this prequel story, crossing paths with Dwight, including his on-again/off-again lover, Gail (Rosario Dawson).
Perennially at the crux of the worst and most heinous crimes in Sin City is the Roark family, survived by the most devious of the batch, Senator Roark (Powers Boothe). His shadow stains the entire film, the "big bad guy" of the town. He frequents Kadie's bar to indulge in backroom games of high-stakes poker, coins laid out in a way that unmistakably resemble the high-rise of Basin City's skyscrapers. One night, in walks a stranger named Johnny (Joseph Gordon Levitt), whose confidence and lucky streak take him on a beeline right into the lion's den. He schools Roark in poker, a tactically unsound choice, which invariably leads to the senator teaching him a painful lesson about his interpretation of "power". But Johnny has a score to settle with the corrupt politician, and pulls himself back up, forfeiting the last of his money--and even his fancy shoes--to a back alley doctor (Christopher Lloyd), who resets his broken poker hand. The generosity of a kind waitress (Lady Gaga) over the matter of one dollar gives him the seed money to show Roark what his brand of power is. The last part of the triptych concerns Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba), still grieving over the loss of her savior and only love, John Hartigan (Bruce Willis), who still appears to her as her conscience and voice of reason, one which grows fainter as she sinks into the bottle. Nancy continues to dance at Kadie's but her despair shows in her performance. At one point, she strides on stage with a bottle of liquor in one hand, and a revolver in the other, desperately trying to build up the nerve to execute Senator Roark in-between his poker games. Hatred and loathing has wormed its way into Nancy, a poison which Hartigan could not protect her from, and which she even attributes to his abandonment of her. Nancy's transformation marks the most fascinating part of Sin City: A Dame to Kill For; from the bubbly and innocent go-go dancer from the first movie, she has deteriorated into a bitter, self-destructive wreck, but one for whom her transformation is key in her liberation. Always on display, always ogled by the patrons at Kadie's, she begins to comprehend the stink of her situation, and rebels against it by means of destroying that which others have expected from her. Nancy attacks the hold which men have had over her in her life by sacrificing her beauty to give herself the steely temperament of a lethal avenger, even recruiting Marv to aid her in her brutal pursuit. The final sequence where Nancy and Marv storm Roark's compound by force is bloody and over the top--in true Sin City fashion--and also feels vaguely surreal and familiar, which is unsurprising given the frequency with which Roark compounds are stormed in the Sin City movies. It feels like a walk through a dream--a dream of Sin City, and a walk down that long, dark, stylish alley once more.
Recommended for: Fans of the original Sin City; like that film, the highly stylized greenscreen backdrops and special effects evoke classic cinema and also feels like the comic book springing to life on the screen. The film is also a great showcase for talented actors to play to the style of the content in a way which can only work in a movie like this.
Perennially at the crux of the worst and most heinous crimes in Sin City is the Roark family, survived by the most devious of the batch, Senator Roark (Powers Boothe). His shadow stains the entire film, the "big bad guy" of the town. He frequents Kadie's bar to indulge in backroom games of high-stakes poker, coins laid out in a way that unmistakably resemble the high-rise of Basin City's skyscrapers. One night, in walks a stranger named Johnny (Joseph Gordon Levitt), whose confidence and lucky streak take him on a beeline right into the lion's den. He schools Roark in poker, a tactically unsound choice, which invariably leads to the senator teaching him a painful lesson about his interpretation of "power". But Johnny has a score to settle with the corrupt politician, and pulls himself back up, forfeiting the last of his money--and even his fancy shoes--to a back alley doctor (Christopher Lloyd), who resets his broken poker hand. The generosity of a kind waitress (Lady Gaga) over the matter of one dollar gives him the seed money to show Roark what his brand of power is. The last part of the triptych concerns Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba), still grieving over the loss of her savior and only love, John Hartigan (Bruce Willis), who still appears to her as her conscience and voice of reason, one which grows fainter as she sinks into the bottle. Nancy continues to dance at Kadie's but her despair shows in her performance. At one point, she strides on stage with a bottle of liquor in one hand, and a revolver in the other, desperately trying to build up the nerve to execute Senator Roark in-between his poker games. Hatred and loathing has wormed its way into Nancy, a poison which Hartigan could not protect her from, and which she even attributes to his abandonment of her. Nancy's transformation marks the most fascinating part of Sin City: A Dame to Kill For; from the bubbly and innocent go-go dancer from the first movie, she has deteriorated into a bitter, self-destructive wreck, but one for whom her transformation is key in her liberation. Always on display, always ogled by the patrons at Kadie's, she begins to comprehend the stink of her situation, and rebels against it by means of destroying that which others have expected from her. Nancy attacks the hold which men have had over her in her life by sacrificing her beauty to give herself the steely temperament of a lethal avenger, even recruiting Marv to aid her in her brutal pursuit. The final sequence where Nancy and Marv storm Roark's compound by force is bloody and over the top--in true Sin City fashion--and also feels vaguely surreal and familiar, which is unsurprising given the frequency with which Roark compounds are stormed in the Sin City movies. It feels like a walk through a dream--a dream of Sin City, and a walk down that long, dark, stylish alley once more.
Recommended for: Fans of the original Sin City; like that film, the highly stylized greenscreen backdrops and special effects evoke classic cinema and also feels like the comic book springing to life on the screen. The film is also a great showcase for talented actors to play to the style of the content in a way which can only work in a movie like this.