10 Best Neo-Noir Movies Of The 21st Century
4. Sin City
Sin City gets plenty of credit for reinvigorating the graphic novel-as-film genre, but it doesn't get nearly enough credit for how well it nails the classic noir elements. Fiery dames, boozed-up anti-heroes, sleazy mob criminals, shadowy back alleys, and more bloody violence than you could ever want or need.
Of course, the overall aesthetic of Sin City helps push that aura through the lens, as the stark, glossy black-and-white only gives way to a few spurts of color whenever there's blood in the mix. Again, this is a comic book convention, but it's also ripped straight from the summary of Double Indemnity.
Sin City might be the most vivid neo-noir to come out of the 21st century so far, and the star-studded cast embraces the grotesquery of Frank Miller's writing at every turn.
Miller's graphic novels are obviously influenced by the genre -- and a little bit by Hitchcock-ian horror movies, as well -- and in translating it to the screen, found a way to mesh Dick Tracy with Scarface and Serpico, darkening the edges of his protagonists until they almost fade into the sparsely-lit night sky.