One Scene In Sinners Reminded Me Why I Fell In Love With Movies In The First Place

Certain movies come every once in a while that blow you away, but for me, that hasn’t really happened in a long time.

Sure, I do love movies. It’s why I literally work as a movie and TV journalist. But, there haven’t been that many recent movies that have utterly left me breathless and staring at the screen. I did enjoy all the 2025 Best Picture nominees, and I can admit that I want a great action flick now and again and look forward to upcoming Marvel movies just as much as the next. Very few, however, remind me of why I fell in love with movies in the first place.

Sinners was the first in a long time to do that. But not because of the movie overall. One scene in particular slammed me in the face like I was hit by a truck, leading to an overwhelming wave of feelings that I have to talk about.

I Originally Wasn’t Going To See Sinners, But I Was Convinced By The Box Office

So, I’m going to be honest and say I wasn’t even planning on seeing Sinners in a theater, and there were a couple of reasons why.

The 2025 movie schedule is already filled to the brim with highly anticipated new releases this year, and truthfully, because of that, I was saving a lot of my time for the later releases. Life has been hectic, and I thought that taking the time to go see a vampire movie was something that I didn’t have the energy to do.

That’s another thing – I’m not a big vampire person. I don’t necessarily enjoy the best vampire movies because even if I do love fantasy, there’s just something about these mythical beings that always rubs me the wrong way. I’ve viewed all the Twilight movies and seen some scary flicks, too, but none ever really sat well with me.

However, my opinion was altered when I began to notice the box office numbers coming in for this drama. It is so rare for a movie that’s not a franchise to end up becoming a major hit nowadays – you can see that just from the 2024 top box office alone how many were sequels. When Sinners began to make waves as an R-rated movie, it earned my interest.

Of course, it was critically praised—which makes sense. Anything that Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan touch is usually gold, so I wasn’t expecting any less. But as the box office grew (Sinners had an astonishing second weekend), and social media began to buzz over this film, I knew I was missing out.

On a Tuesday night, I drove to Regal and decided to sit down and watch the movie, expecting the theater to be mostly empty. It was not. I would say it was about 80% filled – on a Tuesday night. This never happens nowadays, so I knew I was in for a good ride.

The Movie Itself Was Great – But That One Dance Scene With The Multiple Different Styles Of Music Blew Me Away

I’ll be brief with my praise of the movie because you’ve heard it all – Sinners is honestly one of the best pictures I have seen this year so far. I’m not sure another one is going to beat it until the slew of Oscar-worthy flicks that come later in the year. It’s that good.

The acting, the story itself, the cinematography – everything is done so incredibly well that I literally have no notes. This is filmmaking at its finest.

The one scene I’m here to talk about is when Sammie starts to play. His music is so good; it’s transcendent, and it lures in spirits of the past and future to join in with his performance.

This scene altered something in my brain because even after I left the movie theater and walked to my car, all I could think about was this moment. The music in this film is another aspect I could yap about for hours – I can’t tell you how often I’ve been listening to “Rocky Road to Dublin” and “Pale, Pale Moon.” But, this moment was utterly captivating…and I still think about it rent-free.

I Just Sat There In Awe, Staring At The Screen As It Went From Style To Style

There have been a few moments in movies where I am in awe of how it was filmed. This is one where I just sat there in my seat, staring up at the screen in wonder.

Let’s break it down bit by bit. As I said, the music is wonderful. There’s no denying it. This moment, where Sammy’s song transitioned between different kinds of music over and over again while among the spirits, was so smooth.

We go from style to style, from past to future, to kinds of music that I didn’t even know existed, and somehow, it’s all blended so effortlessly into one single score that I felt as if I was being transported out of my movie theater seat. Forget the popcorn; I’m eating up this scene.

But then there’s also the camera work. My god. I’m not sure if this scene was filmed in one shot. They could have edited it to make it look that way, but holy hell, it was this constantly moving centerpiece. We’d center on Sammie and then watch as all the spirits of the past and future begin to join in on the dance. The scene also features so many of the other characters and how they’re tied into what's happening.

And then, that final shot of the vampires watching them beyond the walls, all the spirits and the attendees of the opening night celebrating together – woo, that sent chills down my spine. That is how to create a scene.

The Utter Love Poured Into The Scene And The Skill Reminded Me Of Why I Love Movies

You know that moment in one of the best Pixar movies, Ratatouille, when Ego is transported back to his youth because of a dish his mother used to make? That’s how it felt for me to watch this film. I felt as if I was a little girl, sitting in the movie theater for the first time, watching a scene from a movie that had my heart racing, my eyes widened, and my butt on the edge of my seat.

You might wonder why, but it’s because of the utter wonder I felt watching this. There are so many movies nowadays that feel so soulless. But this? This has a soul. This has heart, passion, and adoration poured into every damn frame of this film, and I love it. I can feel it.

I wanted to see this movie again, literally right after the first viewing – and I haven’t had that urge in a long time.

This is the kind of movie where you can tell everyone involved cared so deeply about creating a piece of art that they did everything they could to achieve that. They created a masterpiece of cinema, one that I genuinely hope will be looked at in years to come as not only one of the best films of 2025, but also one of the best of this decade.

Future filmmakers should study this scene because it’s the kind that makes movie lovers like me want to keep going back to the theater.

If you haven’t seen Sinners, I highly suggest checking it out. If you have, well, go see it again, like I will.