When menaced by vampires

With some 16 Oscar nominations, I decided to watch Ryan Coogler’s much-touted horror film, Sinners.  My conclusion in a word:  don’t bother.  Okay: two words.

Mind you, the production values are excellent: brilliant acting, especially from Michael B Jordon, who plays twin gangsters, both of them, who  return to their hometown in the Mississippi delta to open a blues club.   

There’s some great music, such when the chief vampire with two back-up vampires beautifully sing: Wild Mountain Thyme. Yes, it’s that kind of film, with its fair share of blood, sex and profanity. 

To borrow from Jimmy Greaves, it’s very much a film of two parts.  The first half is interesting as a commentary on the Black culture in the 1930s South, but rather slow. We have to wait for a full hour before the first vampire sinks his teeth into his victim. 

Here it helps to have a working knowledge of vampire lore, something which has somehow passed me by.  What you do need to know is this; when a vampire knocks at your front door, you don’t have to say “Do come in!”  If you do – as the folk in the film discover – you’ll soon be one of them. 

The film may be set in 1932 but the values it expresses are of the Hollywood of today.  This is especially in its understanding of evil, even supernatural evil.  Sinners makes this abundantly clear: if the devil is stalking you, you have no defence.

For the Hollywood of 2025 not even Christian symbols have any power – signs of the cross, holy water, open bible, whatever. Remarkably the Lord’s prayer is recited during one vampire attack but to no avail. 

In fact, the film is framed at the beginning and at the end with a service in a simple rural church where the congregations sings “This little light of mine.”  You may sing: “Let it shine!” but in this film the darkness wins anyway.  As one of the characters says: “You keep dancing with the devil... one day he's gonna follow you home.”

As a society we’re not sure how to think about evil.  As Fleming Rutledge points out: “The fundamental modern error is the belief that evil is not really real.”  And yet in Sinners, evil is very real indeed - active, invasive, predatory. It doesn’t merely tempt or persuade; it comes for you.

The reality is, as the apostle Paul explains: “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)

For this much-bruised disciple the enemy isn’t just hostile crowds or Roman rulers, the real enemy – all too real – is out of sight, even transcendent evil.

The victory won by Jesus on the cross gives us a choice, not to choose sides -  but as C S Lewis explains, to change sides. As the apostle John explains:  “The Son of God was revealed for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.”  (1 John 3:8). And we may walk in his victory.

The battle may be won - but the fighting continues.  And in spiritual warfare, we need spiritual weapons.  “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world’ writes Paul. “On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” (2 Corinthians 10:4).

Here they are, as Paul lists: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith along with the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:13-17)  

Above all the power of prayer.  As hymn writer, William Cowper rejoices: “Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees.”

However, where Sinners does get it dangerously wrong is that the devil would, given the opporunity, gatecrash the unsuspecting, 

Some years back a family in our congregation suffered one terrible blow after another, to the extent that I began to think that there was some form of satanic influence.  So somewhat hesitantly I asked the father, a working scientist. “I know that this must sound strange – and please don’t be offended:  has anyone in your family been involved in the occult?”  To my shock he told me he had been involved in various séances and Ouija boards. 

However, a simple prayer in Jesus name was all that was needed – no long incantation or religious ceremony.  As the puritan John Owen proclaims: “There is no other name that can calm the conscience, heal the broken heart, or drive away the power of the enemy.”

In complete contrast, Jesus stands at our door and knocks, waiting for our invitation to enter.  (Revelation 3:20)

Sinners recognises evil’s reality yet empties the world of hope. In complete contrast, our Gospel  - the good news for all sinners - refuses that bleak verdict. Are we to be afraid?

“NO, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”(Romans 8:37)