There has been so much buzz surrounding this movie since it came out. And for good reason. It's a well made movie with incredible performances and strong messaging.
To get it out of the way, it's a vampire movie and somewhat of a musical. I know these things have taken some people aback if they went in blind.
It follows the SmokeStack twins, both played by Michael B Jordan, as they return to their Mississippi hometown in 1932 after spending years in Chicago. They purchase property intending to turn it into a juke joint for the local Black community. They're joined by their younger cousin Sammie, who dreams of playing Blues music in spite of his pastor father's objections.
The begining of the movie has them going around enlisting old friends for various roles at their juke joint to try and ensure the success. During the opening night, Sammie performs and unknowingly summoning spirits and kicking off the second part of the movie.
Michael B Jordan shines as the twins. Each is distinctive and has his own personality and style. I have a feeling this awards season will be disappointing and Jordan won't get the recognition deserved for playing 2+ characters. He truly gives some of the best performances in this movie, you often forget it's the same actor.
Miles Caton makes his film debut as Sammie. He's an incredible performer. He has a background as a vocalist, even touring with H.E.R. in 2023. For the movie, he learned Blues guitar, but watching, you'd think he's been playing his whole life.
Another major standout for me was Wunmi Mosaku as Annie, Smoke's wife. Annie is strong and is a grounding point for Smoke. Mosaku keeps up with Jordan in terms of performance.
The film does a great job at blending horror and vampire folklore with historical accuracy of 1930s in the South. It touches on Black, Irish, Chinese, and Choctaw cultures at the time and the connections they shared. Longtime Ryan Coogler-soundtrack-collaborator Ludwig Göransson did a lot of obvious research in working on the score of the movie as well.
Even if you're not a horror fan, I feel like there's something you can get from watching the movie. There is some gore, which is expected with vampires, but there is so much focus on characters, music, and history.
