“This movie is set in 1932”: People Continue to Miss the Point of Ryan Coogler’s Masterpiece
We’re a few weeks removed from the Oscars… but the debate surrounding one of its biggest films, Sinners, is still finding new and absurd ways to evolve.
This week, a tweet about Sinners from @DeIudedShaniqwa went viral on Twitter, with over 24 million views on the platform and counting. Retweeting a gif of part of the “I Lied To You” music number that occurs midway through the film, they argued: “This movie is set in 1932 and there’s a woman twerking in modern sportswear. How tf did this garbage get 16 oscar nominations?”
As many have been quick to point out, the “woman twerking in modern sportswear” makes sense within the context of Sinners, and the “I Lied to You” scene itself. The number is meant to illustrate the connectivity that Black music has had across generations of styles and genres… including, yes, modern music and dance. As one reply points out, Black culture has also included dances that resemble twerking for a lot longer than people realize.
Sure, suddenly seeing costumed dancers from different eras in the context of Sinners‘ 1930s juke joint briefly “breaks” basic reality and logic… but that’s part of what makes the sequence so magical in context. Plus, in a movie that already has fantastical elements like literal vampires, the surreal nature of the sequence isn’t as out of place.
This is not a Starbucks cup or water bottle hiding in the background of Game of Thrones, it’s a clear intentional choice for the music number, which this user is choosing to be selectively mad at. Given the fact that their Twitter description is “Satire” and their header image is a photo of controversial (and recently-deceased) Dilbert creator Scott Adams, there’s a chance they were just doing this to get a rise out of people online. Their response in the replies of the tweet: ““You clearly haven’t watched the movie. This scene represents the past, present and futu..” just sftu bro,” certainly helps the argument that this is probably just engagement bait.
Will There Be a Sinners Sequel?
Given the overwhelming popularity of Sinners, as well as the number of awards that it picked up, some have naturally wondered if some sort of sequel or follow-up is in the cards. In an interview with Ebony Magazine from last year, Coogler revealed that he has no plans to continue the world of Sinners into a sequel… in part to have a change of pace from his franchise-heavy work on things like Marvel’s Black Panther movies.
“I’ve been in a space of making franchise films for a bit, so I wanted to get away from that,” Coogler explained. “I was looking forward to working on a film that felt original and personal to me and had an appetite for delivering something to audiences that was original and unique.”
“I wanted the movie to feel like a full meal: your appetizers, starters, entrees and desserts, I wanted all of it there,” Coogler agged. “I wanted it to be a holistic and finished thing. That was how I was asked all about it. That was always my intention.”
(featured image: Warner Bros.)
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
