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| Title: | Sin City 2: A Dame To Kill For |
| Genre: | Crime/Thriller |
| Starring: | Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Josh Brolin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Powers Boothe, Eva green, Rosario Dawson, Bruce Willis |
| Certificate: | US: R UK: 18 |
| Picture: | 1080p 3D 1.85:1 |
| Audio Format: | DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 |
| Subtitles: | English |
| Runtime: | 1 Hours 37 mins |
| Extras: | Featurettes |
| Studio: | Lionsgate |
| Release Date: | USA: November 18 2014 UK: December 15 2014 |
| See If You Like: | Sin City |
Robert Rodriguez (Machete) and renowned comic-book writer/creator Frank Miller wrote, directed, edited, and released Sin City way back in 2005 and since then the uber stylised adaptation of Miller’s own series of graphic novels has not only become something of a cult hit, but now spawned an official sequel; Sin City 2: A Dame To Kill For; which is sure to please any fan of the original movie.
Once more featuring a stunning cast; including returning stars Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke, Powers Boothe, and Rosario Dawson, as well as franchise newcomers Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Don Jon), Josh Brolin (MiB 3), Eva Green (Casino Royale), Dennis Haysbert (24), Ray Liotta (Goodfellas), Christopher Meloni (Man of Steel), Jeremy Piven (Entourage), and Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future); Sin City: A Dame To Kill For is again based on three separate Sin City stories (the titular A Dame To Kill For, Just Another Saturday Night, and the unpublished tale The Long Bad Night), and uses its runtime to tell entirely separate tales (connected only by certain characters or locations), but unlike the first Sin City movie the tales aren’t exhibited as a series of shorts, but all run concurrently, playing out almost at the same time.
The new format is much more conducive to regular filmgoers than that of the original (who’s jarring title cards and end credits sequences were a shock first time out), but the visual style which gave Sin City its distinctive look and feel is more prevalent than ever, and if you couldn’t get on with the highly stylised black-and-white (with flashes of colour) visuals which look like they’re lifted directly from Miller’s comics then you’ll have trouble settling into Sin City 2. If you’ve not seen the first however, and aren’t sure about the look and feel of the movie, rest assured it’s not only visually stunning, utterly spectacular, and perfectly fitting, but is the single best example (visually) of transferring a comic onto the big seen, as the visuals used by Rodriguez and Miller make it look as if Miller’s pages have been directly supplanted into the film; it’s the finest example of a moving comic you’re ever likely to see, fits the dark dreary underworld of Sin City perfectly, and looks fantastic (especially with the highlighted aspects of colour; like blood red, fire, and bright blonde hair; starkly contrasting with the generally colourless palette).
Story wise, unsurprisingly, Sin City delivers another Frank Miller tale; a dank underworld filled with corruption, cancerous individuals, big blokes with guns, and bondage-wearing women wielding guns; and while it’s overly masculine delivery, simplified characters, and somewhat cheesy attempts at mimicking the classic noir format make it clearly geared towards a male audience, it’s never dull, comes with its fair share of surprises, and uses an array of brilliantly devised, utterly unforgettable, characters to great effect; making it interesting, engaging, and most of all fun throughout.
Once again stealing the show as the loveable giant, killer, and all-round psychopath with a heart of gold Mickey Rourke puts in another solid performance as Marv, being a central character in more than one of the new tales. Powers Boothe is exceptional as the ruthless, vindictive, corrupt, and morally bankrupt Senator Roark (perfectly embodying every loathsome trait held by the man in charge of Basin City, and exuding power with every wryly delivered word), and despite the fact nine years have passed since the release of the original film Jessica Alba still knows how to work a pole as the stripper Nancy Callahan, and performs well as she’s even given more of a chance to show off her acting ability and carry a story herself (with Nancy descending into alcoholism and obsessive depression following the events of the first film).
Josh Brolin is also as strong and watchable as ever taking on the role of the gruff anti-hero Dwight (previously embodied by Clive Owen), and, ignoring the fact she’s almost constantly naked, Eva Green is completely believable as the manipulative Ava, but it’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt who’s not only the most memorable, but best, of the new crowd; putting in an engaging and infinitely watchable turn as the slick poker-player Johnny; who wins against the wrong opponent, and finds himself on the wrong side of the vile senator.
Music is simple, yet engaging (much like the film itself), the cast is fantastic, and while the plots may be rather simple, overly masculine, and clearly targeting a male audience, Sin City 2: A Dame To Kill For is visually mesmerising; you’ve never seen anything like a Sin City movie, and it’s unique style, format, and unique undeniable visual flair make it well worth a watch. It looks gorgeous, it’s fun, engaging, and littered with stunning visuals and impressive acting talent, so despite it’s issues (and the fact some people may be not only confused with it’s timeline, as some stories take place pre-Sin City, and some post, but find it difficult to get to grips with the unique style), there’s no reason not to check out an film as interesting, engaging, and refreshingly different as Sin City: A Dame To Kill For.
Picture:
In a word, the video quality of Sin City: A Dame To Kill For is perfect. You expect stunning visuals with a Sin City movie, and Robert Rodriguez at the helm, but every inch of the filmmakers eye for detail and crafting an impressive shot translates perfectly onto Blu-ray; thanks to a transfer which brings exceptional fine details, endless blacks, striking contrast, and a presentation which is dazzlingly clean and crisp throughout. Delineation is excellent, textures are well resolved, and as it’s thankfully free of any and all anomalies (there are no compression issues, no banding, no noise, and not a single issue to complain about), the Sin City 2 Blu-ray really is a stunning visual feast.
3D is also the way A Dame To Kill For should be seen, it doesn’t feel gimmicky, forced, or unnecessary at all; Sin City is what 3D was made for; perfectly suiting the unique visual style encapsulated by the franchise, and easily becoming one of the most immersive, and well presented, examples of 3D on the market today. There are one or two gimmicky shots, but they all work surprisingly well, with glass shards, gun barrels, and swords all spilling out of the screen and into your living room (with one such example of a silhouette crossing the foreground and being so convincing it warranted a pause just to make sure no-one else was in the room), whilst the cityscapes, poker tables, and night roads of the Rodriguez/Miller world sweep back into the void thanks to impressive depth; creating a stunning overall presentation which will satisfy any videophile.
Audio:
Similarly strong is the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack awarded to the Sin City: A Dame To Kill For Blu-ray release; a robust track which oozes clarity throughout, has consistently well levelled and always intelligible dialogue, excellent dynamics, weighty, appropriate, and often present bass, and a great deal of action emanating from the rear channels. It’s an all-round, all-encompassing track, with effortless pans and transitions, plenty of ambient effects, and a somewhat aggressive, but beautifully fitting delivery which proves to be thoroughly engaging, wholly immersive, and very satisfying.
Extras:
Sadly we don’t see the same level of care and detail within the disc’s special features, as while we do get a number of character profiles (consisting of cast and crew interviews examining various characters), some of the most major and memorable characters are missing from the list (including Senator Roark, Maute, and even Marv), and featurettes examining both the stuntwork and the makeup involved with Sin City 2 (both of which are perfectly acceptable, worth a watch, and do provide a decent look at some of the work which going into producing a movie such as Sin City), as well as a pure EPK featurette (called Behind the Sin) which gives us a look at one of the press conferences for A Dame To Kill For, some cast and crew interviews, and snippets of behind the scenes footage, which does contain nuggets of exceptionally interesting information, but may have worked better spliced into a more traditional, and lengthy, making-of featurette.
So while there, is some great information held within the bonus materials here, and the features included are definitely worth exploring, it not only feels like there are a few unfortunately glaring errors (how can you have character profiles yet ignore Marv? the most liked, and memorable, Sin City character), but there’s a sense we’re getting less information here than we gained from the features on the original movie.
The Bottom Line:
If you didn’t like the first film, then you’re probably not going to get on with Sin City 2: A Dame To Kill For. Having said that, if you enjoyed the first Sin City, love action, noir, graphic novels, or simply enjoy watching something that’s different, then you’ll love A Dame To Kill For; the most accurate and true-to-source comic-to-film adaptation available today (even counting Scott Pilgrim). It’s big, it’s bold, it’s graphic, and utterly unique. It’s also a spectacular visual feast for the eyes (especially in 3D), features a cast to die for, and some truly memorable characters, and although it has its issues (what film doesn’t?), and is a little lacking in the special features department, the fact this film comes to Blu-ray with practically perfect video and audio, mean Sin City 2: A Dame To Kill For comes highly recommended (especially in 3D).
Matt Wheeldon – @TheMattWheeldon.
