Sin City 2: A Dame to Kill For (2014)

 

The first 'Sin City' is a wonderfully stylish film that managed to capture the hardcore essence of the Frank Miller comics and was just a damn good time, with interwoven plots and a memorable cast of characters. 

The sequel, however, fails to live up to the first one's high standards. It's not as if they didn't try, but this one just falls flat on its stylish face and never gets up, despite several characters from the first one reappearing. Maybe that is what's wrong with this one: it's riding too much on familiarity of the first instead of being its own thing, thus becoming quite pale in comparison. 

Being pale in monochrome isn't easy, I can assure you. 

Apart from a new storyline starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as an illegitimate son of sneator Roarke (once again a gleefully evil Powers Boothe), we get a prequel of sorts with Dwight (now played by Josh Brolin) who runs in to an old flame of his named Ava (Eva Green). He knows she is bad news, but falls for her yet again. He is right to distrust her, as she is a manipulative femme fatale. That term suits her a bit too literal. And this is one of those things that doesn't work: it's laid on too thick that she is bad news, whereas a more dubious approach would have suited the character more. 

Anyway...

It's the lead-up to why Dwight had facial surgery, to which is alluded in the previous film. It's okay, but nothing special. There's also the wrap-up with Nancy (Jessica Alba) who has become bitter after the suicide of John Hartigan and who now goes after Roarke with the help of returning fan favourite Marv (Mickey Rourke)

This film is a mess. Yes, it has the same setup as the first one, with separate stories, but where they felt somehow linked in the previous one, here they don't mesh well together. Maybe it's the time skipping, as most tales take place after the events of the first one, except for Dwight's tale. What really feels weird is that Marv is back, even if it seemed as though his execution in the first one took place at around roughly the same time as the other tales. It just feels off. And to make matters worse, the characters are just not that interesting or memorable. They seemed to know it, why else bring back Marv? And in every single story this time? 

Also, Mickey Rourke's makeup looks awful this time around. He feels off somehow. Yes, he is supposed to have his facial features exaggerated, but here it doesn't fit and his hair looks cheap and tacked on. It's all just mostly more boobshots and less fun stories of violence. 

I mean: sure, there is still quite a lot of violence here, but it doesn't come across as gritty as previously, only more cartoonish and the impact is severely lessened. 

It's such a shame that this one feels more like a cheap cashgrab instead of a worthy follow-up, especially considering both Frank Miller ànd Robert Rodriguez and a large chunk of the cast return, completed with some excellent new faces, but the overall film just doesn't work. The mystery is gone, and we get something that feels rather sleazy and shoddily thrown together. 

Too bad.