Essay about sin city (Franck Miller & Robert Rodriguez)

Résumé du document

I am going to talk about Sin city, an action, detective and all in all fantastic film released in 2005, directed by Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, and Quentin Tarantino (but only for the sequence in Dwight's car, in which he talks with the policeman Jackie, while he (Jackie) is dead). Sin city was originally a comic, which was adapted to cinema. It shows a dangerous and a corrupt city. The movie is divided into four or rather in three independent stories: each story corresponds to one of the three main characters, who are, Hartigan (played by Bruce Willis) who is wrongly accused of the rape of a little girl whom he protects, Marv (played by Mickey Rourke) who wants to avenge Goldie, a prostitute who has been mysteriously killed, while she was sleeping with him and Dwight (played by Clive Owen) who protects a battered woman (Shelly) and the “old town” (the prostitutes). We will see Sin City's originality, and why we can say that this film is completely different from what we have seen in cinema until now. First, we will study the context and the aesthetics (the mise-en-scène, the form), and then, the unusual conception of things (the subject).

As I said in the introduction, Sin city was originally a comic (written and drawn by Frank Miller), which has been transposed – and not adapted – for cinema. Indeed, the film is very faithful to the comic.

Extraits

[...] Though, murder is forbidden in Religion (the Ten Commandments). We also can remark that the Church is not respected; Marv kills a priest without any reason, and he also kills the cardinal. So, there is a discrepancy, a difference with the moral code of course, but also with most films, in which it doesn't happen like that. In fact, we have the feeling that directors want to lay stress on the dark and secret side of institutions, since in reality, sometimes, the police punch people, and Religion, sects, and extremist people reject things (for example, the Pope John Paul II did not accept abortion, in a particular sect, it is forbidden to give one's blood, and extremist people kill people, and consider that it is a normal and a righteous thing). [...]

[...] So, Sin City is a dark violent and cynical film (and comics of course). In addition, we can note that in December, a long version of Sin City, in which the fourth story (with Josh Hartnett and Marley Shelton) has been developed. Moreover, soon, Sin City 2 will be released too. After Sin City, another comics has been transposed onto the screen: it is Renaissance (directed by Christian Volckman), which is aesthetically faithful to the comics as it is the case for Sin City, but in Renaissance, there are not real actors. [...]

[...] So, we can deduce that the numerical practice, this special use of it, and the computer-generated images are being developed more and more, and improved. [...]

[...] Sin City is about a dangereous and a dark city, in which Evil reigns. In most films, we have Good on the one hand and Evil on the other hand Evil being marginalized. However, in Basin City (the name of the city), everybody even the clergymen - is corrupt and is sinful. In fact, we can not say that there is Good or Evil; it is the law of the jungle: the strongest wins and survives, and the weakest loses and dies. [...]

[...] They are dependent on men and need them. So, we have the feeling that we go back in the past; we can see weak women, almost, women unable to think for themselves or act alone. Indeed, when they do something alone, they do it badly. For example, at a given moment, the prostitutes kill a policeman (Jackie) without knowing that, and Lucille is killed by the police because she doesn't accept Marv's “decision” (28:17-28:45) . So, even if we could think that the prostitutes really reject male authority, domination and manipulation (unlike Shelly), and are shown as real warlikes, armed to the teeth, and ready to kill in view of danger, in fact, they are nothing without Dwight. [...]