ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies.

GRAPHIC NOVELS are an increasing source of inspiration for Hollywood blockbusters. The results have ranged from the muddled ‘League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ with Sean Connery to the electrifying new David Cronenberg thriller ‘A History Of Violence’.

Based on three novels by Frank Miller, ‘Sin City’ takes the viewer on a journey to a sprawling metropolis that is half Raymond Chandler and half hell-on-earth. A strong stomach is required for this visually stunning but excessively violent enterprise that is filled with hardboiled characters, bloodshed and despair.

Using cutting-edge digital technology, Miller and co-director Robert Rodriguez have created a film that duplicates the inky black and white oppression of the novels. Colour is used sparingly, but jumps out with a slash of red lipstick or a flash of green eyes.

Mickey Rourke’s hulking Marv is one of the key character in this mosaic of revenge and redemption. A beast whose heart is touched by the tenderness of Goldie (Jaime King), he thirsts for revenge when she is murdered.
  
Bruce Willis is the noble, Dirty Harry-style detective Hartigan. Benicio Del Toro is the sleazy cop Jackie Boy, and Clive Owen smoulders with charisma as tough guy Dwight. The women are equally formidable and include hooker Gail (Rosario Dawson) and martial arts expert Miko (Devon Aoki).

The grotesque nastiness of ‘Sin City’ eventually wears the viewer down, but it is a very stylish, muscular piece of comic-book filmmaking. Everyone concerned is already talking about making a sequel.
  
SIN CITY
Directors: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Mickey Rourke, Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, Benicio Del Toro, Rosario
Dawson
Screenwriter: Frank Miller based on his graphic novels
Certificate: 18
Running time: 124 mins
Country: USA
Year: 2005
 

© Allan Hunter, 2005