SILVER TONGUED SILVER SCREEN: SIN CITY ~ A DAME TO KILL FOR

It has been 9 years since the previous Sin City came out in theaters. August 22, 2014 we are finally offered the sequel. But still, 9 years is a long time to wait for part 2. A lot has happened in 9 years. A lot has changed. Actors have passed on, sadly both young and old. For Sin City that means actors like Britney Murphy and Michael Clark Duncan. A lot has happened for comic book movies as a genre too. There have been at least 4 or more comic book related films every year since 2005 when Sin City first came out, both good ones and bad ones. That's at least 36 films conservatively. This year alone we've seen 6 comic book related films released already with more still to come before the year is out. Needless to say we're out of the experimental phase of the comic book film genre and we know what works. What does all this mean for Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame To Kill For?

Once again we are ushered 3 interweaving stories occurring at various points in time. The iconic Sin City character and fan favorite Marv (once again played incredibly by Mickey Rourke) is present throughout 2 of the 3 but this time isn't the lead in either, yet still a big part of them. We mainly follow Clive Owen's character Dwight delving further into his sordid past with a woman named Eva, the dame to kill for. We meet Michael Clark Duncan's character Manute again and see him before he loses an eye. We learn why Dwight has a "new face" in the original Sin City and we learn a lesson in how powerful and deadly beauty can be.

Next we follow Senator Roark (Powers Boothe reprising his role) who connects our other two stories. In the first story Roark is confronted by a sly young card shark named Johnny (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who's only goal is to spread word of how he beat Senator Roark not once but twice in cards. And he's willing to risk it all to do it. Happening in tandem with this story we once again enter the life of Nancy Callahan and watch as she spirals downward after Hartigan's death. Her depression turns into self-destruction, substance abuse, bodily mutilation, murder, and revenge. She wants the man who ruined her's and Hartigan's lives: Senator Roark. She and Marv storm the Roark fortresss in a bloody final showdown.

Most of the original actors, the ones still with us, have returned to reprise their roles with a few exceptions, most notably Clive Owen as Dwight now being played by Josh Brolin. Jamie Chung takes over as Miho (whom I prefer to Devon Aoki). Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson return as well. Manute is played by Dennis Haysbert who does a wonderful job standing in for Michael Clarke Duncan. It feels good in a sequel when you've got just about everybody from the original back. Solidifies continuity between films and rewards returning audience members.

The unique style that made the original Sin City so special is also intact and rendered beautifully here. The films, despite being 9 years apart, can be viewed back to back with no extreme jarring differences. My hats off to Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller proving once again how talented they are. I do have to remind myself too that it was Sin City that kept Robert Rodriguez out of the Director's Guild. The guild refused to acknowledge Frank Miller's role as Director so Rodriguez dropped out of the guild in order to give Frank Miller a directing credit. Once again Frank Miller is credited with directing too.

So why is the movie bombing? Here is where the 9 years separation comes into play. The novelty that made the first Sin City such a unique and visceral experience has been played out. Films like 300, The Spirit, Watchmen, and others have approached the genre in similar ways and in just as graphic if not moreso violent ways. The genre has been fine tuned since 2005. Earlier this year we received another long awaited comic book sequel too, 300: Rise of An Empire, an 8 year difference. What Sin City 2 is doing has already been done this year (both with Eva Green as the female lead!). And also certain rated R films have lost some of their audience due to families. You shouldn't be taking your 5 and 6 year olds or even 9 year olds to Sin City. Also the film received a very lax marketing campaign. I don't think many people realized the movie was coming out.

In summary, the film is quite good but the elements of the film that made the original so special don't feel as special anymore. Nothing has dropped off between the two films. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is a worthy sequel. But it should have been released in 2006 or 2007. As an R-Rated film it goes all the way (a big THANK YOU! goes out to Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller). So few movies have the balls to do that anymore.

Overall Ranking: 6 out of 10
Nude-O-Meter: 7 out of 10

Watch the trailer HERE!