by Abel Horwitz
Daily Lobo
"Sin City" is a knock-down, drag-out, two-hour brawl of a movie.
It's even hard to call it a movie. The way "Sin City" is shot and the way the actors talk make this more of a live-action comic book than a film. You watch this story, and you walk out a changed person.
"Sin City" originated as a graphic novel written and drawn by Frank Miller, who invented what has been labeled comic noir, harkening back to the film noir movies of the '40s. In those films, everything's dark. The characters are sinister, the storyline is evil, and there is no happy ending.
The "Sin City" graphic novels follow these rules. In each black-and-white, highly stylized page, the comics deal with hookers, crooked cops and men who act as barbarians in modern-day clothes.
The film is no different. Co-directed by Miller and Robert Rodriguez - director of the "El Mariachi" and "Spy Kids" movies - with a little help from Quentin Tarantino, the trio went to work trying to match Miller's unique comics and translate them onto the big screen.
The result is an intense mix of some of Hollywood's brightest stars set in a computer-animated city. The directors did such a good job, you'd be hard-pressed to tell what's real and what's fake.
"Sin City" weaves together three of Miller's books. The plot almost feels nonessential, as there's no strong story to follow. Instead, you focus on the style of the film and the action at hand.
The action at hand, by the way, consists of nonstop fights, murders and other dark subjects. Not everyone will be able to stomach "Sin City." After the first 10 minutes, I watched a couple walk out of the theater. And honestly, it's understandable.
By that time, we'd witnessed several gruesome deaths and were about to learn if an 11-year-old girl had just been raped.
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Many stars, such as Jessica Alba, Brittany Murphy, Clive Owen and Bruce Willis take on the sinister roles "Sin City" offers. Oh, and a note to any of you who fell in love with Elijah Wood in "Lord of the Rings," you might want to hide your Frodo Baggins lunch boxes for the next few months. He plays a character so creepy you'll get chills.
The gore and violence doesn't bring the movie down. It's fantastic. "Sin City" is as risky and daring as cinema comes. It shows just how revolutionary computer graphics can be in telling a story.
Before you watch this movie, find a copy of the books and see how accurate this film is. There is no realism in "Sin City." Instead, it acts more as an art film, showcasing the dark brilliance of Miller's comics.
If you like your movies bold and daring, "Sin City" is the film to see. It's gruesome and evil, but it's cinema that opens a door to a whole new genre. Now that's something to rage about.
