Sinners is a very intentional film that perfectly captured the differences not only within African American society, but also within African American spirituality and religion. As we know, Christianity has played a major role in black culture, but before Christianity, there were other spiritual practices such as Hoodoo.
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Hoodoo is defined as “a body of practices of sympathetic magic traditional especially among African Americans in the southern U.S.” Ironically, Hoodoo is often viewed as demonic or ungodly within the Christian community. Samuel Gichohi, a Langston student, said, “I think it brought a different aspect, especially about Christianity … our history can be wrong. And it’s unique how they portrayed that.” Ryan Coogler, the producer of Sinners, conveyed this cultural tension clearly and unapologetically throughout the film.
Sammie, also known as ‘Preacher Boy’, is a gifted blues musician and is at the heart of this conflict. Although he was incredibly talented, his father disapproved of his music, and he warned Sammie by saying, “You keep dancing with the devil, and one day it’s gonna follow you home.” At first, that line might come off as a warning about how self-expression is often judged when it doesn’t align with the church’s idea of holiness; but to me, it meant something deeper. It spoke to the way people can get addicted to things like greed, power, and sin, chasing them so long that eventually, those same things come back to consume them.
The vampires in the film were drawn to Sammie not just for his blood, but for his music, passion, and his pain. In one powerful moment, his guitar conjured a lineage of musicians from across all cultures and genres. It was a stunning visual that showed how deep and spiritual music truly is. As Tyyuan Broils, a junior agribusiness major at Langston University, said, “He did a very good job just portraying that … music has always been us, by us. A large majority of music has come from blues and older style music.”
Music has a way of bringing people of all backgrounds together. It captures memories and emotions and stores them away until the right melody unlocks them again. Sammie’s connection to the blues, a genre born out of black struggle and soul, felt raw and real.
Though set in the 1920s, Sinners felt both historical and current. The film didn’t portray us as caricatures (stereotypes) or tropes, it respected our complexity and showed us as full, nuanced people with layered struggles, beliefs, and emotions.
Kaycie Washington
Kaycie Washington is a junior broadcast journalism major.
