TikTok and other social media platforms seriously hyped up Ryan Coogler’s movie Sinners (2025). So, going into the theaters, I was expecting a steamy, action-packed, supernatural movie. And while that is what I got, there was so much more than what was being covered in the reviews I saw in my social media feed.
Set in the 1930s, the movie focuses on a set of identical twins, both played by Michael B. Jordan, who open up a Mississippi Delta juke joint. Over the course of one night, the film takes a dark turn, and the brothers end up battling for their lives to make it to sunrise.
Jordan delivered an excellent performance, encapsulating both characters well. It is not often that one actor can successfully take on the role of two very different characters in the same film.
Because of the excessive build-up, the entire time I was watching the movie, it felt like I was waiting for the big “A-HA!” moment that never came. I felt it lacked a true climax, and I left the theatre feeling less satisfied than when I walked in.
Initially, this disappointed me. But as with most movies, I sat down and thought about the deeper meaning.
What I failed to realize was that Sinners was not just a movie about vampires, but that the subplot was all about race and colorism in America.
It’s interesting to note that the majority of the cast is black, while the only white actors are those who play the vampires. In the film, the vampires serve as much more than just antagonists. They are symbols of generational trauma and inherited violence that continue to come back and haunt black Americans.
While the movie does show elements of resilience and persistence in American Black culture, exemplified in the brothers’ juke joint, the grim message of the movie is clear: White culture in America continues to repress and suck the life out of Black culture as it has done for centuries.
In an incredibly polarized country where a lot of people can’t seem to agree on anything, I think it’s fascinating that one of the top trending movies is all about the one topic Americans seem to avoid talking about most: race.
Instead, everyone seemed to be drooling over the good-looking cast. It’s time that America starts looking at the subplot, going beyond the superficial, and truly think about the direction our country has started heading in. Let Sinners be a reminder of what could happen if we don’t act now.