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Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

Dutiful but second-string sequel to the entertaining original

Most filmgoers, myself included, really dug 2005’s Sin City, a graphic novel adaptation by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller that looked like one, replete with sexy babes and severely noir vernacular and violence, all wrapped up in a highly stylized, entertaining package. So, despite the fact that a decade is a mighty long time to bring out a sequel, here we are back in the city of sin, with some of the original characters (Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Powers Boothe) and a few new ones (Josh Brolin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Eva Green), and more of the same. A lot more. Of the same. If that’s what you’re looking for, you will not be disappointed. But after a while, I found it repetitive and even banal. There’s nothing fresh or innovative on offer unless you count the pointless 3-D. Most of what the film has going for it is due to the dynamic Eva Green as the title murder-justifying dame, who alone seems to recognize how super campy all this stuff is, and appears, by the way, more often than not without clothing. Bottom line: dutiful retread, but second-string, mostly leftover material listlessly presented. But viva Eva! Japanese title: Sin City: Fukushu no Megami. (102 min)