How does Sin City hold up 15 years after its release?
Trying to adapt a comic book into another medium can be a bit of a challenge, especially when the story and characters are incredibly unique.
When a comic book deviates from the superhero norms, translating it can get a little weird. It takes a strong hand at the helm of the project to make it work. That was certainly true of Sin City – an unexpectedly successful movie based on an unexpectedly successful comic book.
This neo-noir crime anthology was a hit with fans and critics thanks to its throwback style. Released in 2005, the film still holds up more than 15 years later. It remains a solid palette cleanser to the current era of superhero dominance.
Frank Miller goes noir
Becoming a comic book legend is no easy task but Frank Miller did it with style. Throughout the 1980s, Miller made a name for himself by writing stories featuring iconic characters like Batman and Daredevil that are still influencing comics today.
Miller’s narrative style always had neo-noir elements to it but he went all-in with Sin City. The first story appeared in Dark Horse Presents Fifth Anniversary Special. It was a 1991 special edition of the publisher’s long-running anthology series.
Parts of Sin City were published over 13 serialized stories featured in Dark Horse Presents. After that, the story continued in a variety of forms and lengths. The most common ways people read them now are through the collected editions that feature the complete stories.
Over the years, different parts of Sin City have won multiple Harvey and Eisner awards. Much like his work with Marvel and DC, this comic has proven to be timeless. That’s why a movie adaptation was released in 2005.
Sin City hits the silver screen
The story of Basin City became a feature film directed by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller. Like the comics, it was an anthology that told three of the comic stories. Specifically, The Hard Goodbye, The Big Fat Kill and That Yellow Bastard were used.
While the ensemble cast was epic, to say the least, it’s hard to ignore three actors in particular. Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke, and Bruce Willis were the leads of their respective stories. In particular, Mickey Rourke as Marv absolutely stole the show.
Elijah Wood as Kevin in Marv’s story was also an interesting character. Wood was coming off the huge success of The Lord of the Rings films and took a role where he never said a word. He played the part of a silent killing machine to perfection.
The movie was a hit with both fans and critics. Its well-executed noir style definitely appealed to cinephiles while the relatively faithful adaptation satisfied people who read the comics. Sin City was an early success for the oncoming era of comic book films.
It’s still a great movie
Everything that worked in Sin City still works today. The quality of the ensemble certainly hasn’t changed, nor has the neo-noir style. Oddly enough, making it feel like a modernized version of an old-school film genre created a timeless quality.
It’s important to give credit to Robert Rodriguez. He may have been the perfect director to bring into this project. Much of his work has always had a noir-esque, pulp feel to it. Not surprisingly, Quentin Tarantino was also involved in the movie and actually directed one scene.
Keeping in mind that Sin City is by no means perfect, it’s still a solid movie to go back to. Fans are getting a lot of superhero content in theaters and on streaming services. Films like this are a refreshing palate cleanser, especially when they’re done well.
It could have been incredibly easy for this movie to have gone awry. The 2014 sequel Sin City: A Dame to Kill For was evidence of that. But the 2005 movie worked and has certainly held up over the years since its release.
Have you seen Sin City? What did you think of it? Let us know in the comments below!