elicopperman

As much as the vampire subgenre has been overdone over the last few decades, there's still fresh and new stories to take it. One such example is Ryan Coogler's newest directorial endeavor, Sinners, which focuses on twin brothers returning to their hometown to start over again. With this premise in tact, one might not even know that the Moore brothers would soon be encountering supernatural forces. It should be safe to say that this movie eases you into the horror seamlessly rather than throwing you under the curveball immediately.

Much of Sinners is carried by Michael B. Jordan in the dual roles of Smoke and Stack, giving each brother their own distinct personality that contrast them uniquely from one another. Seeing each brother run business their own way, be it making deals downtown or finding methods to run their juke joint, allows for the right amount of time to get to know them through and through. Seeing Jordan bouncing off of his dual role so naturally makes it hard to believe that it wasn't only him playing both characters. Some of their most earnest scenes come from their interactions with their cousin Sammie, an aspiring musician who ends up playing a big role in the movie's central role of music bringing people together harmoniously. In addition, Hailee Steinfeld is well cast as Stack's white passing ex-girlfriend Mary, along with Delroy Lindo as the elderly yet stubborn pianist Delta Slim, Wunmi Mosaku as Smoke's hoodoo pro wife Annie, and more. The entire cast match each role they play so well within this narrative, and seeing their characters go down differing paths ups the suspense that much more.

Going beyond the cast, the actual horror showcased here is a solid blending of traditional vampire myth with some modern twists. Alongside vampire's weakness to garlic, getting killed by wooden stakes or needing to be invited inside, the lead vampire's own motivation to turn everyone, including African Americans, is quite fascinating given the film's early '30s time period. One could feel a sense of dread and wonderment with said vampire's purpose to consume that could actually be plausible if these blood sucking souls existed back in 1930s Clarksdale, Mississippi. And even beyond the horror elements, Sinners is a surprisingly well crafted musical, which features numerous blues genres performed by various musicians and the cast. Along with the gospel oldie This Little Light of Mine being used as a musical motif throughout the picture, various other songs fit the characters within their environments and also pay tribute to various black musicals throughout the decades. Along with Ludwig Goransson's triumphant score, the soundtrack of Sinners slaps harder than one might think on first impact.

By blending the horror and musical genres seamlessly in a creative manner, Ryan Coogler's Sinners is a truly delightful surprise of the year. It's rare to see films like this that are as invested in the genre storytelling it's tackling as its many individual characters and impeccable time period. This is a feature worth going out of your way to see regardless of your personal opinions on period pieces or vampire lore, and a stealthy reminder that Coogler is one of the finest directors working today.

Although UPA was largely known for their theatrical short films, they did briefly delve into the feature market with their own take on the One Thousand and One Nights stories. The end result was a weird adaptation of the Aladdin folk tale with the studio's star character Mr. Magoo as Aladdin's uncle, Abdul Azziz Magoo. Back when this film came out, it flopped commercially and UPA ended up being sold out to other ventures. Looking at the film today, as weird as its mere existence seems, it has just enough charm to maintain some likability.

Now with the main Aladdin story in tact, Magoo is established in wanting his titular nephew to find someone to wed. If Magoo's nearsighted schtick gets old after a while, at least Jim Backus carries his naive mannerisms delicately and humorously. That said, the Aladdin narrative itself isn't all that interesting as Aladdin and the royal Princess Yasminda are kinda flat and dull, although one cute romantic sequence does shine thanks mostly to the artistry and music alone. However, on top of Magoo's sentimental charm garnering a decent amount of laughs, the villainous Wicked Wazir nearly steals the show thanks to his hysterical greedy demeanor andHans Conreid's delectable performance. The character just boasts radiant sliminess in nearly every scene, complete with dynamic gestures, his adorable collection of vermin and reptiles, and his impatient sardonic behavior. Even if Mr. Magoo himself isn't everyone's cup of tea, this whole movie is easily worth at least one watch just for the Wicked Wazir alone.

Beyond all of that, the art and animation direction is quite stylized and colorful for a UPA production. While the studio utilized limited animation to create their own distinct artistic aesthetic to the masses, director Jack Kinney and the crew managed to recreate a graphitized Arabian world within the film's story. A lot of the characters are appealing on the eyes while also feeling like they came straight out of a children's book, and it's easy to see how Magoo blends within this fairly cartoony looking feature seamlessly enough. In addition, the middle eastern soundtrack courtesy of George Duning compliments the lighthearted comical tone throughout, along with some nice jazz touches for good measure. I will admit that the least memorable aspects of the feature are the very few songs that pop up, though that could be because the film didn't exactly commit to being a full on musical, which I think could have benefited it just a little bit.

While far from a fully well crafted feature, UPA's 1001 Arabian Nights remains modestly delightful from near start to finish. It's really a shame that this film didn't exactly take off in spite of Mr. Magoo's popularity at the time, though it's hard to say what the future of UPA would have been had this film been a hit. If you're able to at least tolerate Magoo's antics to a reasonable degree, then this feature will offer a little more than just that: witty dialogue, cute character designs, spot on voice acting and gorgeous production design. As far as old school family affairs go, this one hit the spot just enough.