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| Eva Green |
Back in 2005, director Robert Rodriguez teamed up with Frank Miller to create an adaptation of Miller's comic book that was so faithful that its pulpy take on noir turned Sin City into one of the best films of the decade. With its nihilistic tendencies and selective color pallet, it created something wholly unique and invigorating in a genre that would soon become populated with grating Marvel world building and DC's attempt to be relevant. It was violent, erotic, and striking in all of the right ways to make its sleazy genre-film trappings work. Since, Miller has made a mediocre film (The Spirit) and Rodriguez continues to embrace the illogical aspects of grindhouse. It has been nine years since the two have stepped foot in Basin City, and a lot has changed, but surprisingly, it still works.
In terms of things that have changed, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For feels like the work of a bigger budget. Opening on a shot of Marv (Mickey Rourke) escaping a car crash, the audience quickly sees a new side of the city. From a cliff side, Marv overlooks the city which used to be flimsy silhouettes. Now it is rich with textures and even small signs that glow with colors. The details are stronger, thus making the translation of the minimalist imagery a little problematic this time around. Add in a bombastic score by Rodriguez and featuring a lackluster song by Steven Tyler ("Skin City"), and there is a sense that the Sin City universe heard the praise of the first one and has decided to throw some bells and whistles to make it look more welcoming, even if the people this time around are a little more despicable.
In traditional fashion, A Dame to Kill For doesn't follow a linear narrative. Instead, it focuses on a group of unrelated stories that feature all of the same aspects. There's the troubled protagonist, femme fatales, violent villains, and pulpy voice-over. The blood still spews like fountains of milk and the overlapping location is the familiar strip club. Marv still watches over Nancy (Jessica Alba) as she dances and develops a drinking problem. Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) gambles with corrupt former Senator Roark (Powers Boothe). Dwight (Josh Brolin) gets mixed up with Ava (Eva Green) and Manute (Dennis Haysbert). Those are the three central focuses and they all play out in the familiar Sin City pattern. It is a stylized world where gravity means nothing and the noir-fueled scenery has the right to get needlessly violent at a moment's notice.
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| Joseph Gordon-Levitt |
For those wanting something new from A Dame to Kill For, it likely won't be present. The visuals are more popping, but with a cast that doesn't quite live up to the first, it just feels like a continuation of stories. Maybe the moments aren't as kinetic, as they are more elaborate and play out in melodramatic fashions, but for those who adore the tone where comic nature and noir mix into something gracefully unbalanced, then this works. Rodriguez has developed into a very uneven director, often going too over the top (Machete Kills), but he never loses sight of the fun. Luckily, there is a sense of focus and the gritty energy flows through this with all of the same joy for those who enjoy spending time in one of the most corrupt cities out there. Yes, the legal system makes no sense, but Rodriguez's sense of pleasure overpowers the logic and creates something divisive.
Sure, there aren't that many performances that match up to Clive Owen, Benicio Del Toro, or Elijah Wood in the first film, but there are two stand out performances: Eva Green and Powers Boothe. Green plays the titular "Dame" as Ava, whose seductive style manages to wind a series of men into her violent trap. Her seductive curves and confidence is the closest that this film comes to a traditional femme fatale. It helps that Green gives a very sensuous performance that fits into the sleazy world of Sin City and more than doubles the rate of nudity in the first film. Still, she remains a powerful force that demands attention. Boothe, who reprises his role as Senator Roark, is more straightforward in his menacing nature. It helps though that his masculinity is a threat in the way that Ava's sexuality takes down men. This is a film all about how the image can corrupt the mind. They may not be as immediately accessible as That Yellow Bastard from the first, but they clearly are having a lot of fun with it.
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| Jamie Chung |
For people who only "liked" the first one, there is a good chance of being disappointed. It is more a continuation than something revolutionary. The colors still pop and the silhouettes still come arbitrarily. It has all of the ridiculous charm of the first one and isn't afraid to get needlessly violent. There isn't a whole lot of depth or characters to sympathize with. However, this is a film populated with pulpy joy and in the hands of Rodriguez and Miller, it feels faithful to creating something authentic. Like not all authentic things being great, there are moments that don't quite land here. Some of the dialogue is a little heavy handed when it comes to metaphors. However, its expansion on Sin City is excellent and delectable. Tonally, it fits with the first one.
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For may have somewhat of a cynical streak that will turn off people, but it still works as continuation. Populating the world with compelling performances, specifically by Boothe and Green, it continues to wallow in a strange, sleazy visual fun house that makes no sense. For those wanting deep, thought provoking cinema, look elsewhere. In a time where comic book films have become pretentiously intertwining, the storytelling here manages to do something interesting. They overlap, but rarely share significant plots. It may not be as accessible as Guardians of the Galaxy, but who cares. It's a crazy, delusional art project that works on a base level of enjoyment. For those into sleaziness and violence reimagined, there is a lot worse that can be done than this.
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