Podcast: ‘Sinners’ Gets Uncertified

Considering how much time we spend arguing about movies online, it is a rare and beautiful thing when a movie can achieve both popular and critical success. Ryan Coogler's Sinners is one such film. Beloved by critics and general audiences alike, Coogler's film combines ethnomusicology and horror to create a wildly entertaining piece of historical art. And that's the kind of runaway success that warrants Sinners it's own episode of Uncertified.

Years after brushing the dust off their Mississippi hometown, the Smokestack Twins are back. Brothers Smoke and Stack (both Michael B. Jordan) are newly flush and ready to give the local Black community a juke joint of their very own. But navigating the relationships of the people they left behind proves almost more than the two men can handle – and that’s before a trio of vampire musicians show up at their front door, demanding that the duo turn over their cousin Sammie (Miles Caton), whose skill with a guitar proves to be a siren song for the undead.

In this short excerpt from the podcast, Matthew Monagle explains why the thematic depth of Sinners is what makes it one of the most compelling movies of the year:

I don't think you need to read Sammie's character as overtly magical in any way. I think music is magical. And I think that scene is the "Wise Up" scene from Magnolia: it's a filmmaker who is being too brash, too confident in creating this perfect musical moment in a film. Because music is magical, and it unites us and it defines us and it brings sotries and emotions across generations.

The Sinners episode of the Certified Forgotten podcast is now available to stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, or the podcast platform of your choice.