VERSUS: Sinners (2025) VS. Until Dawn (2025) - Film Review

In the tradition of this year's odd Versus matchups on this site, here's one more for you to sink into. We have writer-director Ryan Coogler's vampire racial drama hybrid "Sinners" against "Until Dawn", the latest video game to be adapted into film. As hard as it may be for you to believe, I've never gotten around to playing the game of which the latter is based upon. Keep that in mind as we match these two up. Both are rooted in the horror genre, albeit with each having their own differences in approach. We'll see how they fare in the usual categories.

Round 1) Presentation

The good news for both films is that neither one is a slouch in their presentation. That being said, the clear winner for me has got to be "Sinners" on account of having more visual variety and ambition in its execution. There are at least a handful of shots that take place for more than a minute easily without cutting away. One takes place in a town with the camera following characters around in real-time similarly to the recent Netflix series "Adolescence". Another is an elaborate dance taking place at the juke joint where most of the story takes place.

Come to think of it, both films are largely set in one area, but do find opportunities to branch out on occasion. Both films get bloody. Given the central plots for both, it's no surprise that it should be expected. With "Until Dawn" specifically, I didn't expect as much gore as we ended up getting. The only thing more surprising is how many wacky ways the characters end up blowing up or get killed off. I won't spoil it obviously, but I don't recall the actual game being anything like this. No laziness in either title, but "Sinners" feels more complete overall.

Round 1 Winner) Sinners

Round 2) Audio

The gap in quality is a tad more evident in this category. Not for any one film doing something egregiously wrong, but rather for one film excelling with what it provides. Let's not beat it around the bush here. I can't recall another time I saw a film about vampires where the vampires jammed out to an Irish folksong. And yet that's exactly what "Sinners " was able to inject into the final cut.

It takes advantage of its setting at the juke joint and utilizes to great effect with creative ideas such as the one I just described. "Until Dawn" by comparison offers a fairly basic setup to its audio. It's quiet when it needs to be before the inevitable jump scare. No missing sound effects as far as I can recall. In the end, the winner is once again "Sinners" for the overall value it provides.

Round 2 Winner) Sinners

Round 3) Content

This round has a crystal clear winner where I'm concerned. Going into "Until Dawn", I expected something much more promising since the premise had potential under its hood. This is basically the horror equivalent of "Groundhog Day" in many respects, with the teens dying repeatedly until they outwit their captor. That's the basic idea anyway. The grim reality is that this is another stock forgettable horror flick just like the 1,000+ others like it. The script is filled with cliched lines of dialogue that have been stale ever since the turn of the century.

"Sinners" conversely reminded me of "Get Out" in some respects. Both films blend horror and the all too real issue of racism together in a surprisingly cohesive piece. I'll admit it feels disjointed at the start, which I can only presume is due to establishing the buildup for what will unfold. The cast all around is effective in their roles. It's not just the top billed Michael B. Jordan (in dual roles) and Hailee Steinfeld that stand out either. "Sinners" has a solid supporting cast to back them up, namely Jack O'Connell, Li Jun Li, Saul Williams, and Delroy Lindo.

Each cast member I listed off has at least one memorable scene or more to help elevate this film further. Any good cast member should have that under their belt in the film they're in. With "Until Dawn", I only saw it last Friday and it's evaporated from my memory. That's how little the film resonated with me. It felt by the numbers at every moment, even in the more surprising bits. There's a better film trying to come out that's prohibited from doing so for random reasoning. A distinction that doesn't apply to "Sinners" with its underlying ambition.

It's been awhile since a film about vampires has grabbed my attention in some shape or form. While I won't act like this film will sway naysayers of the genre completely, I feel like "Sinners" opens up more avenues for what filmmakers can explore and get away with within this genre. "Until Dawn" isn't the worst example of its genre I've seen, but I can safely predict that this will be buried in the past 20 years from now. There isn't a single thing that stands out that I haven't already seen done better in other films of its ilk. No contest here.

Round 3 Winner) Sinners

Final Verdict: Sinners: 8.5/10

Until Dawn: 4.5/10

WINNER) SINNERS