In this black-and-white city, the sun never rises, and blood and booze flow like water. In the world Frank Miller all men are murderers, lunatics or gangsters, and all women are promiscuous, deceitful and dangerous. Sex, violence, hard rock, gloomy internal monologues - in the continuation of "Sin City" there is almost everything that the first part was loved for. But for those who have not watched it, it will be much more difficult to feel the new film.

girls who killed

Genre: neo-noir crime thriller
Production: Troublemaker Studios, USA
Tagline:"There is no justice without sin"
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller
Screenwriter: Frank Miller
Cast: Mickey Rourke, Eva Green, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jessica Alba
World Premiere: August 21, 2014
Website: http://sincity-2.com
Similar films:"Pulp Fiction", "Kill Bill", "Cards, Money, Two Smoking Barrels"

In 2005, Sin City revolutionized comic book adaptations. The style of Frank Miller's graphic novels was embodied on the screen as accurately as possible: contrasting black and white contours, a background immersed in blackness, white as milk, blood, rare bursts of color where something needs to be emphasized. In this design, three directors ( Robert Rodriguez , Quentin Tarantino and Miller himself) served stories about gangsters, maniacs, corrupt cops and ordinary unfortunate people who ended up in the criminal capital of the world - the metropolis of Basin, nicknamed the City of Sins.

Short gloomy novels were intricately intertwined, complementing each other, like fragments of a single mosaic. What happened was most reminiscent of Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction", only witty dialogues and curious accidents gave way to philosophical monologues and hopelessness tragic endings, inherent in the genre noir.

It is for such visual finds that we love Sin City.

The second film, shot by Miller and Rodriguez without Tarantino, is clearly designed for those who are familiar with Sin City from films, and not from comics. Only one of the short stories that make up Sin City 2 is based on comics - the title "A Woman to Kill For", the rest of the stories Frank Miller composed from scratch. And basically the plots deal with the heroes and villains from the first film. In the second part, even those of them appear who should have been dead for a long time and irrevocably.

Don't be afraid, Miller, fortunately, did not stoop to miraculous resurrections. It's just that "Sin City 2" is both a prehistory and a continuation at the same time. This must be taken for granted, since it is very difficult to establish the order of events. Why is the bouncer Marv, who was roasted in the electric chair in the first film, alive again and sipping whiskey in the same bar? Why is Detective Hartigan still dead and a ghost? What was before, what was later? Don't try to guess, says Frank Miller. In a surreal world where it's night all day and night, and prostitutes fight with katanas, even time is running not the way it should be.

Senator Roark is still the main villain of Sin City, but no longer seems to be as insidious and omnipotent as before.

Of the four short stories that make up the film, only one ("The Long Terrible Night") tells about a new hero - a young gambler Johnny, who managed to win a poker game against the all-powerful Senator Roarke. The other three complement the stories of characters familiar to us from the first part. "Nancy's Last Dance" tells how the life of a stripper Nancy Callahan has changed, intent on taking revenge on the same Roarke. “A Dame to Kill For” is dedicated to the events after which the photographer Dwight underwent plastic surgery (which is why, by the way, he is played by another actor in the prequel - Josh Brolin instead of Clive Owen), and the black sadist Manute lost his eye.

But more often than others, Marv appears on the screen - a simple-minded thug with the dimensions of the Hulk and memory lapses, who is played almost unrecognizable under layers of makeup. Mickey Rourke . In the new film, Marv is not so much a character as part of the setting, an attribute of Sin City. His personal novel "Another Saturday Night" is the shortest, but he constantly participates in other people's stories. Frank Miller turned the guy almost into a superhero - Marv helps everyone in a row, applying heroic strength in the struggle for any cause that he considers right.

In Sin City 2, blood is no longer always white, but only when gushing fountains.

The return of familiar characters, it would seem, should please, but unexpectedly it becomes the main weakness of the film. The real hero of the first part was the city itself, dark and vicious. People with their stories served as nothing more than an illustration of his image - the city chewed on the unfortunate and let it go. Most of the stories ended in death, and this was the philosophy of the entire Frank Miller series. You can kill the villain, but after that you can’t go into the sunset towards new adventures. The world is cruel, victories over evil are pyrrhic, and you have to pay for them. Those who agreed to pay a high price for justice were the true heroes.

When the same characters appear in the second part, it immediately becomes obvious: they will live to see the finale, because their death on the screen has already taken place. And that means less real risk, more happy endings. Stories cease to be so tense and unpredictable, and the intervention of the mighty Marv completely kills the intrigue: where he is, there is victory. When the goon once again breaks into the mansion of some villain, it's hard not to feel a slight sense of deja vu and a prick of disappointment to boot. There are no more elegantly intertwined plots in this city, and there are no more “last cowboys” sacrificing themselves for the sake of the innocent. Heroes are driven only by temptation, stubbornness, a thirst for revenge, or simple boredom.

From a carefree girl, Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba) gradually turns into an avenger obsessed with hatred.

But, in spite of everything, watching these heroes is a pleasure. As in the first part, in "Sin City 2" all the actors play brilliantly, and veterans returning to their old roles, like Mickey Rourke and Jessica Alba , confidently outshine the newcomers. Joseph Gordon-Levitt played the role of self-confident and unflappable Johnny, a brilliant poker player who does not give up, even when the cursed city takes everything from him. A to Christopher Lloyd a couple of minutes on the screen was enough to make his episodic role one of the most memorable. Lloyd portrayed a parody of his famous image, Doc Brown from the Back to the Future trilogy. His new hero is also called “doc”, only in Sin City he is an unprincipled, rude and always drunk surgeon who hastily patches wounds, swears at patients and does not ask unnecessary questions.

Eva Green: too good for American TV.

If you choose the best job, the answer will be unambiguous - it's a job Eva Green . She excels as the cunning and deadly seductress Ava Lord, who deftly manipulates men. Her heroine herself constantly plays roles - for her own purposes, she reincarnates either as a frightened victim, or as a nymphomaniac distraught with passion, or as an inaccessible goddess. Ava is the same “A Woman to Kill For” from the subtitle, and the short story of the same name with her participation is the best in the film, the most intriguing and dramatic. It is more like the classic noir of the last century, from which Miller's comics grew. It is thanks to the story of Ava Lord that Sin City 2, although it loses to the first film in all respects, does it with honor.

The scenes with Green's participation turned out to be so frank that they caused a scandal - the US Film Association banned the poster with the actress for excessive sexuality, and ABC for the same reason refused to show the TV commercial "Sin City 2". It's funny that the guardians of morality were outraged by female nudity, and not by gouged out eyes and severed hands - American censorship still has double standards.

Bruce Willis was unlucky the most: his hero is dead, so he appears rarely and only in Nancy's visions.

In fact, accusing Sin City of promoting violence is just as stupid as considering a film about the crimes of the Third Reich as Nazi propaganda. The world of Frank Miller, embodied by him in comics and films, is a distorted mirror of our reality, a grotesque reflection of all the darkest, shocking and shamefully interesting that exists in society. Therefore, such a film simply cannot do without killers and prostitutes, without gloomy dramas and vile deceit, without corrupt policemen and sex maniacs. As Quentin Tarantino, an old comrade of Rodriguez and Miller, says on such occasions: If you're at a Metallica concert, don't ask the guys on stage to turn the music down.».

A worthy addition to the "Sin City", which can not be perceived as an independent film.

Sin City is a film with a release date set for 2005. Filmed, which brought in Frank Miller, the author of the graphic novels on which the film is based, as well as the director. The genre of the film belongs to crime thrillers in the noir style. This special style is visible in the photo and frames - a contrasting black and white picture with color accents, which can be, for example, Blue eyes heroines or blood spatter.

The plot of the film consists of five short stories, some of the characters and events in which intersect. The film was well-received by critics and audiences and was torn apart for quotes.

“I love assassins. Whatever you do with them, your conscience does not torment you, ”Marv believes.

Mickey Rourke (Marv)

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Marv is a street thug, a big man with a disfigured face and a dark reputation. At the same time, a person with a strong-willed character and a sense of duty. Experiences platonic love for Nancy Callahan, protects the heroine and patronizes her. The police want to "hang" him for the murder of a prostitute, and Marv begins to look for the real killers.

American film actor and screenwriter. He became famous after the release of the erotic melodrama Nine and a Half Weeks in 1986, where he played the main role - New York investor John Gray, who is having an affair with a divorced beauty from an art gallery, which he plays. Thanks to this role, Rourke received the title of sex symbol. One of the most famous roles of the actor was the image of the private detective Harry Angel, which Rourke created in the detective thriller "Angel Heart" directed by Alan Parker, released in 1987.

Jessica Alba (Nancy Callahan)

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Nancy Callahan almost became another victim of the Yellow Bastard, but Detective John Hartigan saved the girl. When a detective is behind bars, Nancy writes him letters every week. The grown-up Nancy is played by actress Jessica Alba.

The actress starred in the sci-fi television series Dark Angel, which aired from 2000-2002, and first became widely known for this role. In 2010, the thriller The Killer Inside Me was released, directed by Michael Winterbottom. Alba played the role of prostitute Joyce Lakeland in this film. One of latest films, where the actress starred in one of the main roles - the action-packed action movie "Mechanic: Resurrection", released in 2016.

Bruce Willis (John Hartigan)

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John Hartigan - honest detective, which prevents the maniac Roark Jr. from dealing with the last victim, the girl Nancy. Hartigan cripples the maniac, shooting off his ear, arm and genitals, and then goes to prison, because the only witness to the events is Nancy, whom the detective does not want to endanger, and therefore does not talk about her. When the Yellow Bastard starts hunting for the grown-up Nancy again, Hartigan kills him, and then himself, to cover his tracks and prevent the all-powerful Roarks from finding the girl.

Since the days of Sin City, he has managed to appear twice in the next sequels to Die Hard. And in 2019, viewers will see the actor again as Detective John McClane in Die Hard: Year One. In March 2018, the thriller "" will be released, where Bruce Willis will play the surgeon Paul Kersey. The hero takes the law into his own hands after his wife and daughter are brutally beaten and raped, and the police don't care.

Elijah Wood (Kevin)

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Kevin is a silent cannibal who has killed many prostitutes in the city.

Most viewers still associate with the role of Frodo Baggins, which the actor played in the trilogy "", released in 2001-2003. Since then, the actor has managed to work in many projects and pretty much change his role. The role of the cannibal Kevin in Sin City is an example of this. In 2012, the actor played a major role in the horror film Maniac. Wood's hero in this film is a quiet-looking owner of a mannequin restoration workshop, who, because of a prostitute mother, was psychologically traumatized and now women incite in him a thirst for murder instead of sexual desire. And in the 2013 Spanish film Grand Finale, Wood plays a renowned pianist who has developed stage fright.

Carla Gugino (Lucille)

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Lucille is a supervisory officer who looks after the Moor. He treats the ward in a friendly way and more than once helps him out. Protects the Mavr in the face of the law and, together with his beloved, heals the hero from a mental disorder.

In 2017, the actress appeared on the screens twice. The first was the sci-fi drama The Space Between Us, where Carla played a woman named Kendra. The heroine tries to give motherly care to the hero who was born on board spaceship, lost his biological mother in childbirth and grew up in a Martian colony. In the second film, the horror film "Gerald's Game", which was based on the novel of the same name and was released in September this year, Carla played a major role. A woman whose husband died during an erotic game and left her strapped to the bed.

Nick Stahl (Roark Jr., Yellow Bastard)

tmdb.org

The Yellow Bastard is the only son of Senator Roarke and a maniac who rapes and kills little girls. I'm sure he'll get away with it. First crippled and then killed by the honest cop Hartigan, who saved the last victim Yellow bastard, teenage girl Nancy.

American actor Nick became known mainly for his role as John Connor in the science fiction action movie Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, which was released in 2003. In 2010, the actor starred in the drama film Chameleon, where he played the role of a murderous stepbrother. And in 2008, he played the lead role in Bill Maher's drama Sleepwalking.

Alexis Bledel (Becky)

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Becky, a prostitute, becomes the unwitting cause of a confrontation that jeopardizes the truce between the police and Old Town prostitutes. In the epilogue, it is revealed that Becky managed to escape the Old City.

Prior to Sin City, the actress played mainly gentle and domestic girls. For filming in the film by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, the actress had to radically change her role. In 2017, the drama television series "" based on the writer's novel of the same name was released, where Bledel was in the main cast and played the role of the main character's companion.

The movie "Sin City" - official trailer (video):

Artists Steve Joyner, Jeanette Scott, David Hack

Do you know that

• The film is an adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novels from the Sin City series.
• Filming and most of the post-production took place at Robert Rodriguez's studio across from his home.
• The film's opening scene was filmed in 10 hours. Principal photography for the film began in January 2004.
• Robert Rodriguez invited Josh Hartnett and Marley Shelton and filmed a short segment called "The customer is always right." These shoots were made without the consent of the author of the graphic novel, Frank Miller, who flatly refused to sell the rights to it after Hollywood's failed attempts to bring the comics to the big screen. The finished result was shown to Frank Miller, after which he agreed to continue filming.
• Robert Rodriguez felt that his style and vision of the material differed from that of a graphic novel author. In this regard, he insisted that Frank Miller receive the same directing rights on the set as he did. But this fact was contrary to the rules of the Directors Guild of America. As a result, Rodriguez had to leave the guild.
• The film was shot entirely on a green screen background.
• Initially, Robert Rodriguez wanted to include in the film a chapter called "To Hell And Back", in which the main role was intended for Johnny Depp.
• Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Douglas and Kate Bosworth refused to participate in the project.
• The entire film is presented in black and white, while some details are tinted with bright colors. During filming, these parts were decorated in the color of the screen against which the filming was conducted.
• The music to which the heroine of Jessica Alba dances was superimposed already at the editing stage.
• All vehicles and weapons used on the set are real.
• Mickey Rourke and Jaime King were the first actor and actress to be approved for the project.
• Benicio Del Toro filmed the film in 4 days, Jamie King in 1.5 days, Brittany Murphy in 1 day, and Mickey Rourke filmed in the film in 2-2.5 weeks.
• According to Frank Miller, he understood exactly what the director's duties were only after he saw Quentin Tarantino at work, who filmed a short episode for the film. According to Miller, watching the work of Rodriguez, he did not have a clear understanding of what the director's job was, since Rodriguez did absolutely everything on the set.
• The novel "That Yellow Bastard" is specially divided into two parts. The scene with Hartigan was edited at the beginning of the film in order to introduce the viewer to all the characters in the first 45 minutes of the film.
• In the director's cut of the film, each novella is preceded by a caption with its name.
• Since the film was shot against a green screen background, the Yellow Bastard's chase scene for Hartigan and Nancy took only one day to film. Usually such surveys take several weeks.
• Special effects for different short stories were done at different studios.
• In one of the scenes, blood splatters on Miho's face, while she does not blink. To achieve this, Rodriguez shot Devon Aoki first with open eyes, and then with her eyes closed at the moment when fake blood is splashed on her. During editing, these shots were superimposed on each other.
• The color scheme for the scene in which Dwight and Jackie Boy are driving was taken from Suspiria (1977), directed by Dario Argento.
• The surname Callahan was borrowed by Frank Miller from Dirty Harry, as the author is a big fan of films about this character.
• Steve Buscemi was originally going to play the Yellow Bastard.
• Since the film was shot against a green screen, most of the actors who have common scenes never met on the set: Mickey Rourke and Jessica Alba, Mickey Rourke and Elijah Wood (fight scenes with their participation were filmed using understudies of one or the other actor), Bruce Willis and Brittany Murphy, Mickey Rourke and Rutger Hauer.
• The heroine Brittany Murphy walked in six-inch (15.24 centimeters) heels in all scenes.
• Vehicles used in film: '55 Porsche Spyder Convertible (Wendy's car), '59 Cadillac Convertible (Dwight's car), '55 Buick Convertible (Hartigan's car), '55 Chevy Police Car (police cars in the movie), '57 Chrysler Imperial (Jackie Boy's car), '41 Chevrolet (Dallas' car), '62 Jaguar XKE (Roark's car), '57 Ford Thunderbird (Dwight's body transport car), '57 Chevy Nomad (Nancy's car), 1937 Cadillac ( Yellow Bastard's car), 1990 Mercedes 420 SEL (the car that Marv took from the priest), 1968 Chevrolet Corvair (Marv's car), 1949 Chevrolet (taxi), '89 Ferrari (Schlabb's car).
• Adrien Brody auditioned for the role of Jackie Boy.
• The full version of the novels can be viewed in the director's cut of the film.
• In some scenes of the film, the cover of the novel "Booze, Broads, and Bullets" can be seen.
• In all the novels, with the exception of "Booze, Broads, and Bullets", one of the characters says the name of the novel.
• The role of Hartigan was offered to Michael Douglas.
• The role of Senator Roark was offered to Christopher Walken and Willem Dafoe.
• In the scene where Hartigan enters the bar, Chango beer can be seen. This is a fictional brand of beer seen in Rodriguez's other films Desperado (1995) and From Dusk Till Dawn (1995).
• The original script included scenes with Nancy completely naked. However, Jessica Alba flatly refused to be naked in front of the camera.
• In the graphic novel "That Yellow Bastard", Yellow Bastard drives an Atlantic '57C Bugatti. It turned out that for rent for 4 days you have to pay 230,000 thousand dollars. The car was eventually replaced with a 1936 Cadillac Limo.
• The number of the Yellow Bastard's car is TYB 069. The letters in the number repeat the capital letters of the title of the novel about the Yellow Bastard - "That Yellow Bastard".
• The director's cut of the film has a running time of 147 minutes.
• Hans Zimmer refused to write music for the film due to a mismatch in work schedules.
• The newspaper text seen in The Hard Goodbye is a retelling of the opening scene of the film and the novel. The author of the article is Frank Miller. According to this publication, the action takes place either in 1993 or 1999.
• Michael Madsen was considered for the role of Marv.
• Jessica Simpson auditioned for the role of Nancy Callahan.
• Anthony Michael Hall was considered for the role of Dwight.
• Devon Aoki's character uses the same sword as Uma Thurman's character in Kill Bill (2003).

More facts (+39)

Mistakes in the movie

• In one scene, Jack tells Shelly that she is wearing a man's shirt, but she is not, as the buttons are on the left side.
• When Nancy dances, her gloves disappear between planes and her gloves reappear.
• The blood on Marv's chin disappears and reappears during interrogation.
• During the fight between Kevin and Marv, Kevin's hair changes several times during the fight.
• When Marv is talking to the priest, between plans his gun is in his left hand, then in his right.

More bugs (+2)

Plot

Beware, the text may contain spoilers!

Night. Penthouse on the roof of a skyscraper. The man is talking to beautiful woman in a bright red dress, takes pity on her, hugs her and shoots at point-blank range with a silenced pistol. Beauty dies in his arms. A man is going to cash a check for murder in the morning.

Police officer Hartigan works his last shift before he retires. Together with his partner Bob, he goes to the docks, wanting to prevent a crime. The son of Senator (and Cardinal) Roark has a habit of raping underage girls. Now in his arms is eleven-year-old Nancy. Bob says to wait for reinforcements. Hartigan knocks down his partner and goes to the rescue of the girl. He neutralizes the guards, Roark Jr. tries to use the girl as a shield, but Hartigan shoots accurately and deprives the maniac of his ear. He then deprives him of his main weapon with a groin shot. But Bob, who has come to his senses, treacherously shoots Hartigan in the back. He speaks to his partner so that he does not have time to kill the girl before the police arrive. He succeeds.

A man of terrifying appearance named Marv falls asleep in the arms of the beautiful Goldie. He is shocked that the girl declared her love to him. Waking up, Marv discovers that Goldie is dead. He hears the sirens of police cars. Marv breaks through the police lines and arrives at Lucille's apartment. This lesbian is his police officer. Marv is released from prison on parole. Lucille reminds Marv that he needs to take regular medication to keep his temper tantrums under control. Marv begins to investigate. He tortures criminals, which allows him to unravel the criminal tangle, the thread of which leads him to Cardinal Roark. Marv shows up at Roark's manor. There he is met by Kevin, this killer has superhuman abilities, he is invincible in hand-to-hand combat. Kevin hits Marv in the head with a sledgehammer, and Marv wakes up in the basement of Roarke's estate. On the wall are the heads of murdered prostitutes. A naked Lucille trembles in the corner. She tells Marv that Kevin eats the bodies of the women he kills. He had already cut off and eaten her hand. She tried to investigate the death of Goldie, and therefore ended up in the basement with Roarke. Marv breaks the bars, he and Lucille can get out. The police squad arrives. Lucille stuns Marv and tries to turn herself in to the cops, who kill her. However, Marv again manages to break free.

Marv is captured by a woman who looks like Goldie like two peas in a pod. Around - armed prostitutes. The woman interrogates Marv, who is tied to a chair. This is Wendy, Goldie's twin sister. She thought Marv killed her sister. Marv clarifies the situation. Wendy and Marv drive to Roarke's estate. There he meets Kevin again. But this time, Marv wins. He feeds the immobilized Kevin alive to a ferocious wolf guarding the estate. Marv takes Kevin's head and meets with Roark. He admits that he and Kevin enjoyed the delights of cannibalistic gastronomy. Marv slowly and tastefully kills the villain. The police arrive. Marv is injured and taken to the hospital. After recovering, the police beat and threaten to harm Marv's mother, forcing him to sign a confession of guilt in the murder of the senator. Wendy visits Marv on death row and allows him to call herself by her late sister's name. Marv is executed in the electric chair on his second attempt. After the first electric shock, he laughs at the executioners.

Jackie Boy tries to break into Shell's apartment. His henchmen are with him. In the girl's apartment is her lover Dwight. Shell reproaches Jackie-Boy with beatings, which ended almost all of their dates. Jackie breaks into the apartment. He hits the girl in the face, goes to the toilet. Dwight is waiting for him there. He dunks the bespredelchik head into the toilet and asks not to disturb Shell again. Jackie Boy and his team leave the apartment. Dwight, believing that the offended bandit will try to get revenge on helpless prostitutes, goes to the quarter of selfish love to prevent possible excesses. But a squad of fighting whores, led by Dwight's former lover, the beautiful Gale, is ready not only for sexually oriented work, but also for armed defense. Jackie tries to shoot the beauty of Becky, she insults him, Jackie tries to use a revolver as a convincing argument, thereby provoking an attack by a prostitute ninja Miho. She stabs/cuts Jackie and all of his henchmen with a katana. A police ID was found on Jackie's body. Gale and Dwight realize that such an excess breaks the fragile truce that has been established in the quarter of sin between the Amazonian prostitutes, the mafia and the corrupt police.

Miho dismembers the corpses into transportable pieces, they are put in the trunk of a car, which Dwight undertakes to deliver to the swamp for the disposal of criminal waste. Jackie's corpse is placed in the passenger seat. The driver talks to him until he is stopped by a patrol cop. He manages to be convinced that a sober driver is taking home a spree buddy. But then Dwight is ambushed by bandits, they are trying to establish control over the quarter of combat prostitutes. Mafiosi get their hands on Jackie's head. Dwight manages to get to Gale's territory and warn the women of the danger. Mafiosi, led by Manute, are approaching the disputed territory. They capture Gale. Dwight offers a trade: Jackie's head in exchange for Gail. Manut agrees, the exchange is complete. Dwight, using a remote device, activates Jackie's head stuffed with explosives, prostitutes located on the roofs of the surrounding houses open fire on the aggressor's detachment. Becky is exposed as a snitch but manages to slip away.

Hartigan manages to survive. Senator Roark paid for his treatment. He wants his son's abuser to serve a life sentence in prison. In solitary confinement, Hartigan keeps letters from Nancy, they arrive every week. The girl sends them out in such a way that Roarke cannot figure out her whereabouts. After eight years of imprisonment, Hartigan stops receiving letters. But he is delivered a severed girl's finger. He thinks it's a piece of Nancy's body. Hartigan signs a confession to the crimes he is charged with. He is immediately released (such is the logic of American comics justice). He goes looking for Nancy and discovers her at a strip bar. Her erotic dancing shake the drunken imagination of visitors to the institution. Hartigan notices an ugly little man with a bright yellow appearance. He realizes that he was being used to locate Nancy, tries to leave the bar unnoticed, but Nancy manages to recognize him, jumps off the stage, hugs and passionately kisses Hartigan. They try to escape in a stolen car, the yellow bastard is chasing them. The chase results in an accident, but Hartigan fails to find a yellow body in the mangled car.

Nancy confesses her love to Hartigan, who also adores the girl. However, the yellow monster interrupts the idyll. He captures Nancy. Hartigan chases him, gets to the Roarks' estate. There he is captured. A naked Hartigan is hung from a noose. Roark Jr. (he became yellow after an operation to restore his reproductive function by the efforts of the doctors hired by the all-powerful father) can experience sexual satisfaction only when the victim lets out screams from the beatings inflicted on her. Roark Jr. whips Nancy with a whip, but she, following Hartigan's advice, is silent or reproaches the sadist for his impotence. Hartigan manages to free himself, he kills the guards of the estate, and then ingeniously destroys the yellow monster, having previously torn out his genitals. After Nancy leaves the basement, Hartigan commits suicide. Roark's supporters will no longer be able to trace the girl.

Becky is in the hospital where she has a splint placed on her broken arm. She, talking on the phone with her mother, gets into the elevator. Together with her, a man enters there, who at the beginning of the picture shot a sad beauty in red.

Furious and ruthless, with a "bad" reputation, Marv was known throughout Basin City. But his rough outer shell hid kind heart, inflamed with a thirst for revenge after the woman, the only love of his life, was taken from him.

Most people think that Marv is just crazy. I think otherwise: he was just unlucky to be born at the wrong time. He is a man of another era. If he had been born into the world, when blood flowed in rivers on the battlefields, and axes rapaciously bit into the bodies of their enemies, then this would be his home. Or the arena of the Roman amphitheater, where, taking a sword in his hand, he would become a real hero of the public, and women, such as Nancy, would be thrown at his feet.

Dwight McCarthy

Biography

Origin

Marv was born and spent his childhood in the suburbs of Basin City - a dirty, poor and dangerous area where either those who had nothing to live on, or who no longer had anything to live, lived. Little Marv was raised and brought up by his mother, his father left them, and little boy not even fleeting memories of him survived. When it was time to go to school, the mother chose the only option worthy in her opinion, and sent Marv to a Catholic school, deciding for herself that such an institution would be able to raise a worthy member of society. There the boy met the first person whom he could no doubt call his friend - the same as him, a boy from the outskirts, named Chuck (Chuck). He was mentally retarded and always "looked" Marv in the mouth, and together they spoiled the blood of the nuns of the school a lot with their pranks, for which their friends often fell for nuts. Especially among the nuns, one stood out, who, with her harshness towards juvenile hooligans, forever sunk into the memory of Marv. Her name was Gladys, sister of Gladys. In the end, Marv carried the memory of the cruelties that his sister used towards him through his whole life, naming his favorite gun, which brings pain and death to his enemies, after the hated nun.

Further, apparently, Marv served in the army and, according to some indirect references to Marv himself, he fought in Vietnam. But just like that, the war could not let him go, eventually becoming the cause of nervous diseases that tormented him all his life.

After serving and returning home, Marv learned about his mother's illness, which, having progressed, deprived her of her sight. Therefore, Marv decided not to leave her in the suburbs and managed to find a good apartment for the old woman in Basin City.

The good life in Basin City was a luxury, and so, not surprisingly, Marv soon received his first, but far from last, prison term, and according to parole officer Lucille, "it was hell for him." But, nevertheless, Marv was able to earn a "good" reputation in certain circles of Sin City, for example, he was a close friend of Dwight McCarthy (Dwight McCarthy). They were brought together by a trouble in the house of Damien Lord (Damien Lord), which will be discussed below.

Regular Saturday night

Wow...it all looks really bad...

An ordinary Saturday, an ordinary street of a completely ordinary Basin City and a completely ordinary picture - broken police cars, a bunch of corpses and a wounded Marv, who, waking up, could not remember who or what could lead him to the new building area. Trying to remember everything and relax, Marv searches the corpse of a certain kid and finds cigarettes that are so needed at such a time and, leaning back against the broken car, lights up, trying to stir up the protesting memory. And remembers the usual Saturday evening ...

Like many evenings, Marv spent this evening at the Kadie's Club bar, where he, like other losers, enjoyed the dance performed by Nancy Callaghan when she jumped off the stage and kissed a strange old man (John Hartigan - approx. transl.) Feeling like a "deflated balloon" after that, Marv goes out into the backyard to freshen up and pass the time with a bottle of alcohol that Josie stole from the bar "at the expense of Establishments". Only after taking a sip of the bottle, Marv feels the terrible smell of burnt flesh and discovers the remains of a person. Immediately, cries for help were heard from the alley. Coming out from around the corner, Marv saw a terrible sight: judging by the clothes, the "golden youth" mocked the poor old a drunkard, first beating him, and then dousing him with gasoline. Feeling that this is his civic duty, Marv, without thinking twice, "rose" tries to drive away the bastards. But one of the puppies calls him the intricate word "bernini" and shoots him in the shoulder. And of course , immediately regrets it, because there is no need to anger Marv. Stealing a patrol car on the move, Marv pursues them throughout the city, eventually driving them into the hills in the vicinity of the city where he used to live. The two scoundrels who survived after the chase are hiding in an unfinished building, which was part of Marv's plan, who knew the customs and habits of the former "neighbors". Having made it clear that he is "their" for them, he orders with a gesture to immobilize the boys, which happens at the same moment. Slowly climbing to the place where his targets were sitting, he hangs one with the help of a successfully turned up rope. After making sure that he is already dead, Marv lifts the other by the head and asks:

- Right before the shot. You called me "bernie". Why did you call me "bernie"?
- Bernini. This is a brand. The coat you're wearing is Bernini's!
- Thanks for clarifying - Marv muttered and slit the guy's throat.

Silent Night

I will take you home.

Into the quiet winter night, Marv comes to a den of perverts who, for a fee, offered to have a good time with the children. After killing them all, he frees the girl Kimberly (Kimberly) and takes her to her mother

A woman worth killing for

Just look at those cop jerks. I'm telling you, Dwight, this damn country is going to hell.

Marv's old friend and comrade, Dwight McCarthy, needed help. Former lover Dwight Ava Lord (Ava Lord) confessed to him a seemingly long-extinct love and asked him to protect her from her husband Damien Lord. Since McCarthy could not break through the Lord's guards alone, led by the monumental Manute, he asked a friend for help. They devised a plan for Marv to act as a distraction while Dwight dealt with Mr. Lord. And I must say, he masterfully coped with this: not only did he single-handedly scatter a whole horde of armed guards, he also fought with Manut, gouging out his eye. But when he heard shots and the sound of breaking glass, he stopped the fight, ran out into the yard and saw the wounded Dwight on the ground, and in what had recently been a window, Ava with a pistol clutched in his hand. Grabbing his barely alive friend in his arms, Marv ran to the car under pistol fire. Despite being pursued by the police, Marv still managed to get his friend to Old City, leaving Dwight in the care of Gail. This story ends for Marv when he meets Goldie...

Sin City

She smells like an angel.

Sitting late in the evening at Kadie's Club, surrounded only by booze, Marv met the one who would change his life forever. He met Goldie. Although at that time he did not know her name yet. Not spoiled until now Marv agrees to spend the night with her.A night of love.Her golden curls caressed the rough body of Marv, who believed that not a woman with him, but a pure angel who descended from Heaven to Sinful Earth.Then she said that her name was Goldie (Goldie Just Goldie But angels don't live long in Sin City.

Waking up in the morning, Marv discovers that the love of his life is dead. Sitting next to his beloved, Marv vows to get to the bottom of the truth and punish those who committed the murder. At the same moment, the sounds of sirens began to be heard. Police. Since no one knew about the murder yet, and the police were already there, this gave Marv the idea that they intentionally wanted to put him under suspicion. The sounds of the advancing police were already heard outside the door, and Marv realized that there was no point in hiding or pretending to be a decent citizen - he had been attracted by the police before, so they hardly came to arrest him. End on the spot. No, here it was necessary to act as he was used to. Hearing the clerk say something about voluntary surrender, Marv only chuckled: "Already going". Then he, using the mass of his body, breaks through the door and falls out onto the landing, where he scatters the crazed policemen. Marv is not wasting a minute, rushes into the space between the stairwells and leaves for the bottom. In flight, he clings to the handrails of the stairs with his hands, climbs up on it and, despite automatic fire, manages to jump out of the nearest window. Luckily for Marv, there was a junkyard underneath and the waste cushioned his fall. To his misfortune, a patrol car taxied nearby and Marv jumps into it with two legs, breaking through the windshield and knocking out the police. After that, he throws them in the trash and leaves by car. Marv realizes that the stolen car will be pursued throughout the city, if not already pursued, and heads to the nearest pier and, along with the car, falls into the water. Having swum some distance under water, Marv finds himself in the city sewer, through which he gets out into the street. Finding himself on the street, Marv goes to the only place where he can be helped. He goes to Lucille.

After receiving medical attention and informing Lucille about the situation in which he got involved, Marv goes to his mother. I had to visit my mother and pick up Gladys. His Gladys. Since Marv's mother has lost her sight, Marv sneaks into his room and steals the gun. But he just couldn't get away from his mother. She informs Marv that some strange people came, unlike the police. Caring for his old mother, Marv tells her nothing but Goldie.

After that, Marv returns to the bar of the old transsexual "Kedi" and meets a regular there - Weevil. Having scared him a little, Marv orders Weevil to spread rumors everywhere that Marv wanders around the taverns alone, drinks hopelessly and cries for a certain Goldie girl. After telling Weevil what he wanted, Marv lets him go and orders himself a drink from the bartender Shellie.

Two unknown person entered the bar and, pushing their way through the tables, approached Marv with a pistol to his back. Assassins, assassins for hire. Marv was waiting for them. One of them spoke through his teeth:

- The show is over. Drink up!

Threatening Marv with a weapon, they together go through a tavern into a dark alley, where, seizing the moment, our hero breaks one of the killers, intercepts the gun and kills the second bastard. After forcing the killer out of his coat, Marv begins an interrogation, trying to figure out who sent them. Shooting one bullet after another into his body, Marv tries to find out that they were sent by a certain Telly Stern - the owner of the Triple Ace Club (Triple Ace Club). Thanking the villain for the information, Marv takes out his brains. Suddenly, a frighteningly familiar smell flashed through the alley. Her scent. But Marv thought it was his imagination and went to bed.

Is it worth dying for a dead whore?

- Worth dying. Worth killing. Worth going to Hell. Amen…

When the sun went down, Marv went to Stern. After finding him and torturing him, Marv goes to the next intermediary involved in the order for his murder, whom he tortured by dragging his face along the asphalt. Before his death, this man revealed to him the next link in this chain - cashier Connelly (Connelly). He, in turn, set Marv on the trail of the next target - The Priest, who serves in the city church. Arriving there and sitting in the confessional, Marv inquiries the clergyman and he admits that he was "ordered" by Cardinal Roark. Marv does not fully believe him, for the Roark family stood at the very top of the hierarchy in Basin City, but the priest insisted on this and sent him to an old farm belonging to this family. Marv remorselessly shoots the priest in the head and takes the keys to his car. Walking outside to a parked car, Marva is suddenly blinded bright light car headlights. But when he saw the face of the driver, Marv did not dare to shoot from the cocked "Gladys" - Goldie was driving. She rammed Marv's body several times with her car, and then, when he was on the pavement, she shot at him a couple of times, but, apparently, missed. After all this, she disappeared as suddenly as she appeared. Marv, shocked that his love has suddenly risen from the dead, reduces it all to a mess in his brain. Having recovered, he gets into the Mercedes and leaves for the farm.

In order not to attract too much attention to himself, Marv, not reaching his goal, turned off the road and went through the forest. There, reaching the fence and jumping over it, he feels cold. The terrible cold of death. He feels that a lot of people have died here, and the farm itself is no good. At that moment, he hears the growl of a dog behind him. Turning to face the dog, Marv stuns the dog and knocks it back. Next to this place, he discovers, suspiciously similar to a human, bone and a woman's shoe. Then, literally out of nowhere, someone attacked him from behind, which greatly surprised Marv himself, because he couldn’t understand what could sneak up on him so silently. The assailant knocked Marv off his feet, knocked out his gun, and blinded him with a blow from his hand. Trying to rub his eyes and stop the bleeding, Marv realizes that whoever was able to sneak up on him so silently could have sneaked into the room two nights ago and killed Goldie. But then his thoughts are interrupted by a blow to the head with a huge sledgehammer, and the world goes into the darkness of oblivion. Into the bottomless black space...

Marv woke up in a cold basement from the smell of antiseptic. Rubbing his eyes, he stares into the woman's head. In a row of women's heads attached to the wall, in the manner of hunting trophies. A hysterical sob came from behind.

- He leaves only the heads. He eats the rest!

It was Lucille's voice. The poor thing, half-naked, pressed herself into a dark corner of the basement, as if she wanted to hide. To calm the girl, Marv puts his coat on her, sits next to her and tries to calm her down and cheer her up a little. But Lucille could not calm down in any way and finally fell into hysterics: she screamed about how he eats people, how he cooks them and enjoys it. And in the end she broke down completely:

- He made me watch... Son of a bitch. He smiled his fucking smile and made me watch him nibble the meat off my fingers... Son of a bitch... He made me LOOK!!!

screaming last words She raised her hands as if in prayer. But one hand was missing - instead of it there was a neatly bandaged stump. In the end, Marv managed to calm the woman down. While Marv was trying to break the bars on the window, she lit a cigarette and revealed that she was trying to find out who Goldie was, with whom Marv had slept. It turns out that it was an elite prostitute, but when Lucille began to "dig" further, an unknown person abducted her not far from her car, and she woke up already in the maniac's kitchen. At that moment, they heard the sound of brakes and a call to Kevin. A certain shadow separated from the wall near the bars and hurried to the car. Now Marv knew who would be next on his list - it would be Kevin.

Having finally parted with the idea of ​​breaking the bars, Marv switched to the door. Not the first time, but she still succumbed, and the heroes ran out of their dungeon. They find the spot where Marv dropped the Gladys. But then they hear the sound of a working helicopter propeller, after which they hide in the nearby bushes. From there, Marv planned to kill them all, but Lucille, unable to allow this, stuns him and goes to surrender to the leader of the police. He, after listening to the woman's story, coolly releases a whole line of his "ultrasound" at her. But Marv was no longer at the place where the police rushed. He, armed with a small hatchet, kills a detachment of armed policemen like a herd of sheep - easily and naturally. But the one who killed Lucille, he left for last. Marv approached him with the words:

- Decent, as I see, you have a little coat,- and with a wild laugh rushes after him, and having caught up, plunges an ax into his head.

- You sat and endured ... Although at any moment you could take the gun away from me ...

- Certainly. I just thought I could convince you. Yes, and when I took it away ... I would have to harm you ... But I don’t touch girls.

Rain. Usually the rain washes everything away. Cleans. But not in Sin City. Walking in the rain with a torn coat, Marv reaches a huge statue of a cardinal and, to let off steam, shoots at it. He is tormented by doubts - what if this is all a disease, and the iron arguments that seemed before are just a fantasy of a sick mind? To finally make sure that Marv is right, he goes to the Old City and asks local prostitutes about Goldie. But a sudden shot again sent Marv into uncharted space. And Goldie shot him.

Marv woke up because someone beat him. And that someone was Goldie. Not believing his eyes, Marv thinks that this is nonsense, a game of inflamed consciousness, but he actually lies somewhere in a ditch and talks to himself. In response, he received a juicy blow with a pistol in the face. And laughed. The one who was the spitting image of Goldie kept beating Marv to nods of approval from her girlfriends and co-workers, asking questions about who had killed Goldie and the six other prostitutes. Here Marv finally realizes that it is not Goldie in front of him. As it turned out, this girl was Goldie's sister, and her name was Wendy. Breaking into a scream, Marv furiously proves to them that he did not kill Goldie or the other girls, but he knows who it was. After the girls believed him, he simply stood up and threw off the ropes they had entangled him with.

Having figured out who is friend and who is foe, Marv and Goldie head to the store and buy everything, what Marv planned to use in the fight against Kevin: a coil of barbed wire, a saw, gloves, and a dozen two-foot hoses. Then they go to the farm Marv already knows. When they get there, Marv tries to convince Wendy to stay in the car so she won't see what he's doing. She kind of agrees. Leaving the girl in the car, Marv begins to prepare for a fight - pulling barbed wire everywhere, setting fire to a can of gasoline and throwing it through the kitchen window, where, apparently, Kevin was preparing another victim. But he manages to jump out the window. Shooting back from him, Marv lures Kevin into an impenetrable steel jungle made of barbed wire and takes on handcuffs and an axe. The calculation is simple - to chain the dodgy reptile to yourself and knock him out, which he succeeds after a short fight. At that moment, Wendy appears from behind the trees and asks permission to finish him off. But Marv had other plans. Having knocked out Wendy with a confident blow, he carried the girl to the car, and then came to grips with Kevin. He ties the cannibal to a tree and saws off his arms and legs in turn, and so that his death is not quick, he tightens the cuts with hoses. When sawing off, nevertheless, a couple of streams of blood hit the ground and attracted the attention of a wolf, which ate the remains of women after Kevin. Kevin didn't say a word, though. The wolf completed what Marv had started, and bit Kevin to death. When the wolf was full and the tormentor's intestines were on the ground, Marv sawed off Kevin's head. Marv takes the insensitive Wendy to Nancy and asks her to take her sister Goldie away from this city, for her own safety.

Finally, only one surname remained on the Marv list - Cardinal Roark. He lived in a fortified building, more like a fortress than a simple house. Having killed the guards around the perimeter and in the house itself, Marv falls into the bedroom of the cardinal and throws Kevin's head to him. Roark confesses everything and tells Kevin's story. But Marv did not come to listen, Marv came to carry out the sentence of his personal court. He doesn't care about the old man's speech. He came to do justice, his own. And the old man dies. Loudly, with squeals, with screams, and most importantly - with blood. Perfect. But the surviving guards of Roark, having heard the screams of the owner, knock down the door and shoot Marv.

But he didn't die. Doctors saved his life and patched up his wounds. But when he was discharged, all the murders were blamed on Marv: both prostitutes, and Lucille and everyone else. Even Goldie. And when he refused to sign the confession, he was threatened that they would deal with his mother. The judge, spewing fire and brimstone, pronounces a verdict for the amusement of the public. Not justice is a farce. Wendy was the only one who visited him during the 18 months of his imprisonment.

For the last supper, Marv was given a decent steak and a good mug of beer. Then they shaved his head, put a rubber sponge on it and got down to business. It would be high time...

- Let's go faster. I'm not going to sit and wait all night...

- You heard! Let's!

DISCHARGE, SCREAM, SMELL OF BURNED MEAT

- And they really can’t kill ... Women ...

DISCHARGE

- Ready…

Marv: appearance, character, personality

Marv is a giant seven feet (2.1 meters) tall, who had a truly heroic shoulder span and usually towered over the people around him by a whole head. He wore short, military-style hair (in America, a similar haircut is called Buzz cut - approx. Transl.), He had an eagle face and a terrible scar that crossed the entire area of ​​\u200b\u200bhis right cheek, which more than once prevented him from having a relationship with a woman - seeing a crippled face, they preferred handsome boys to him.

From clothes, Marv always preferred an ordinary white T-shirt, leather pants and heavy army boots. Marv's separate love was coats - long and wide, dressing his figure like a medieval cloak. He wore them in any weather and at any time of the day, and if the giant's victim had a coat, then it certainly became his property (unless, of course, after the meeting of the previous owner with Marv, it retained a presentable appearance). Wherein, defeated enemy, had the opportunity to hear Marv's signature expression - "Notable, as I see it, you have a little coat."

For ordinary person Marv has an incredible physical force and endurance, which, together with the excellently developed combat skills and abilities that he received while going through the "school of life" - an orphanage, an army, a slum. All this allows Marv to get out of any difficult situation or bout the winner. It doesn't matter who confronted Marv - special police units, ordinary bandits or ordinary people who, by chance, violated the unwritten code of ethics Marva - everyone turned out to be losers, beaten, and even at a depth of two meters underground.

At the same time, it has been repeatedly indicated that Marv suffers from an unnamed mental illness, which, as he himself says, "confuses" him, causing short-term memory loss and possibly hallucinations. In connection with this disease, he is very afraid of "turning into that half-witted psycho killer that he has always been called." Lucille, his supervisor, supplies him with drugs (most likely antipsychotics) through his lover Claire, which apparently help him control his condition. Claire, a psychoanalyst by training, tried to conduct therapy sessions with him, but she did not succeed because of the way Marv himself put it. "she was too scared."

Marv himself evaluates his intellectual abilities as "small" and constantly convinces himself of this, but at the same time he shows an amazing way of thinking. When the situation calls for it, Marv is able to assemble a logical picture from a puzzle of facts. Also, the degree of his intelligence allows us to evaluate him as a good strategist and scout, who, if desired, is able to bypass any fight. However, in most cases, Marv prefers the "easy way out": break through the door, fly down several flights of stairs and hide by jumping out the window, or beat a detachment of armed policemen with an ordinary ax.

Marv is extremely experienced and inventive in the field of torture, and what to hide, he knows how to enjoy them. Marv is truly cold-blooded in these moments and never hesitates for a split second when it comes to inflicting the slowest, most creative and painful death he can imagine and inflict on his enemies. With them, he behaves quietly and peacefully, talking to them in a soft, even a little imposing manner, which even borders on nonchalance, without showing a drop of fear or hesitation. As he himself states in the novel "It's hard to say goodbye": "I love assassins. Whatever you do to them, there is nothing to repent of. In fact, the worse you treat them, the better". He also shows a really not hefty endurance and everything is also calm in such dangerous situations, such as being captured by SWAT and being ordered to open the door, he only smiled sarcastically: "Already going".

While Marv has no concept of remorse or remorse for the acts of violence he has committed and the killing of people he feels has offended someone close to him, Marv is well aware of the aisles of these feelings. Marv is terribly afraid of turning into an uncontrollable killing machine. At the same time, Marv only kills people if, in his own words, " I know for sure that I should", thereby outlining to himself a certain line that Marv should not cross. An excellent example of the above is the situation with Wendy, when Marv knocks her out before dismembering Kevin in order to save her from possible nightmares that would haunt and torment her for the rest of her life He also adheres to his personal unwritten code of honor, which dictates to Marv the steady payment of debts, gallantry towards women, stating that " they really get from me in their horns, if they offend a lady". Marv extremely appreciates and respects the kindness that was addressed to him and tries his best to repay the good received. Anyone whom Marv considers his friend or just treats well, kindly, that Marv in case of danger will protect until loss pulse, until the last drop of blood, or until he feels that he has repaid the debt that he owed.

Despite the antipathy of the weaker sex, Marv had two close friends who (each in their own way) loved Marv and cared for and protected him in every possible way. It's about Nancy, the stripper at Cady's Bar, and Lucille, his "judicial" guardian angel. The first one, he saved one night from her ex-boyfriend, who beat her and then tried to rape her. From the second, Marv was brought together by fate and the American Themis. In addition, Marv has always been very affectionate and kind-hearted towards children, for example, the case described in "Silent Night" (Silent Night), when he saved the life of a little girl and pulled her out of the dirty paws of pimps. It was also noted that Marv never harmed animals, so we can talk about his love for them. For example, he only stuns Kevin's wolf, and does not kill him, accompanying it all with the words " I wouldn't shoot you for anything, buddy. You are even dumber than me. And besides, I need your master, not you". Complements the overall picture of Marv's personality and the fact that throughout all the stories describing the events in his life, Marv never left his sense of humor. Even in the most seemingly difficult situations, Marv jokes and smiles, despite all the absurdity of what is happening.

Powers and abilities

Forces

Missing

Capabilities

• Physical strength and stamina beyond normal human levels
• strategic thinking
• Master of Torture
• Military training

Weaknesses

Mental illness

Weapon

A gun named "Gladys"

• In Sin City's additional footage, Marv's creator, Frank Miller, describes Marv as a seamless fusion of two of his favorite themes: medievalism and film noir. As a result, according to Frank, he got a certain image of "Conan in a coat."
• Marv is a fairly popular hero of modern mass media. Wizard magazine ranked Marv at number 24 on the list. best heroes comics, and Empire magazine put him in 26th place in a similar list. In 2008, the same magazine "Empire" ranked Marv 82nd among best characters films. Information site IGN ranked Marv as the 75th Greatest Comic Book Hero.
• Marv is also dedicated to the song "The Return of Marv" by French artist Stefan Rock. Marv and "Robot Chicken" did not pass by - a parody was made of him, and Hugh Davidson voiced him

"Sin City" - the most famous comic book series of the nineties of the last century by artist Frank Miller. It was he who came up with Sin City - this gloomy, dystopian (or, by the way, realistic) city in which a very conditional Good is trying to defeat the unconditional Evil in completely murderous and bloody ways. Interestingly, in these comics there were no traditional monsters, foreign invaders and rebellious robots. All the characters of Sin City are ordinary, in general, people: policemen, bandits, mafia, prostitutes, criminals, perverts, and so on. Well, yes, this is a rather highly specialized selection of characters, but others are extremely rare in Sin City ... Robert Rodriguez, being a long-time fan of Miller's work, toyed with the idea of ​​making a film based on these comics for several years. Moreover, he wanted not only, as it is now fashionable, to leave the original idea and characters, and adapt everything else to purely cinematic tasks, but he was also going to transfer the color, style and spirit of Miller's comics to the screen almost one-on-one. The problem was that Miller was vehemently opposed to any film adaptations after a rather bad experience with the second and third "Robocops", for which he wrote the screenplay. However, Rodriguez Miller persuaded, and in a rather interesting way: he simply removed a piece of one of the short stories "Sin City" (in the film, she just goes first) and showed it to Frank. He was amazed at how accurately Rodriguez managed to transfer all the features of his work to the screen, and still gave his consent ... "Sin City" was filmed using exactly the same modern digital technology as "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow": the actors played their roles without any scenery against the background of a special green backdrop, they were filmed with digital cameras, and then the scenery and the corresponding surroundings were drawn on a computer . Even in "Sky Captain ..." it was clear what interesting and incredibly impressive effects can be achieved using this technology, but Rodriguez managed to open up new horizons. But let's talk about the plot ... "Sin City" consists, as it were, of several different short stories, the characters of which intersect in one way or another. Moreover, the film uses a proprietary Tarantino technique, when the audience, for one reason or another, is shown first later events, and then earlier ones. The first novella, which was filmed by Rodriguez to demonstrate to Miller, is a short story about a nameless killer (Josh Hartnett), who is, in fact, the last romantic of this Sin City ... Actually, this is not a separate novella, but, as it were, a small lyrical introduction. The next short story is the story of an honest cop Hartigan (Bruce Willis), who saved a little girl Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba) from a maniac rapist Roark Jr. (Nick Stahl). However, Roark Jr. has Roark Sr., an omnipotent senator, so the hero Hartigan, not without the help of his corrupt partner Bob (Michael Madsen), was made a criminal, so now both Hartigan himself and the girl he saved are in terrible danger. The third novella is the story of Marv (Mickey Rourke), a creepy-looking ex-con who is warmly welcomed by prostitute Goldie (Jamie King). However, after the love affair, when Marv, drunk, was fast asleep, some guy in flashing glasses killed Goldie. Marv knew that Goldie was looking for protection from this creepy guy, so he swore an oath to find and kill him. In the process of searching, Marv will have to kill a lot of different different people. But almost all of them will be bad. Just like Marv. The fourth novella (one episode of which was directed by Quentin Tarantino) is a story about the breaking of a fragile truce between militant prostitutes who control one of the most vile areas of Sin City, the mafia and the corrupt police. It all started because tough guy Dwight (Clive Owen) protected his new girlfriend from her old boyfriend - the villainous Jackie Boy (Benicio Del Toro) - and his gang. A frustrated Jackie Boy with the boys went to the area controlled by prostitutes, and behaved very imprudently there, as a result of which Madam Gale (Rosario Dawson), who leads a detachment of local Amazons, gave the command to the deadly Miho (Devon Auki), after which Jackie Boy completely lost his head ... It's funny. That Tarantino, that Rodriguez was given out on a super megahit when nothing really was expected from them. Tarantino, after the film "Jackie Brown", which was very coolly received by the public, pissed off fans for six years, but then fired his "Kill Bill" so that the bloody fragments of the corpse of disappointment, slashed into rags samurai sword Hattori Hanzo, are still flying through the snowy winter garden. Rodriguez also did not please for some time, dealing with all sorts of two- and even three-dimensional spy children, so that, they say, all nasty violence did not attack the kids from the screen, but only pink spy cream framed by children's milk chocolate, then tried to imitate himself by filming though not bad, but not very impressive "Once Upon a Time in Mexico", and then he took it and created "Sin City", regaining slightly lost positions with one blow, and in such a way that many spectators simply fell over on their backs from this blow. What did he get? Just super-extra-mega, in our opinion with the cat Bagel! From a visual standpoint, it's just fantastic! "Sky Captain and the World of the Future", for all its entertainment, noticeably loses to this creation of Rodriguez. Because here it is simply breathtaking not only from the drawn scenery as such, but also from a large number of different visual finds originating from Miller's comics. The basis of the film is a very contrasting black and white picture, in which there is always either a bright spot of color - Goldie's golden hair, Kevin's blue eyes, the disgusting tone of the Yellow Bastard, the mafia's golden eye, the victim's red dress - or a glowing shade white color, like the cross patches on Marv's body or the glint of Kevin's glasses.

In films made using new digital technologies, it often happens that the director, like a child, has fun with all kinds of special effects, not caring at all whether it serves any serious purpose or not. (Similar things could be observed, for example, in "Turkish Gambit".) In this case, fortunately, absolutely all the effects, elements of the entourage, and so on solve a very clear task and look completely organic.

For some characters in the film, special masks were made, somewhat reminiscent of the comic book film, which at one time also made a huge impression - "Dick Tracy" ... Because of the mask, it is rather difficult to recognize Mickey Rourke in the image of Marv. But you can, because Rourke's famous ironic look cannot be confused with anything. However, everything else - the physiognomy, the most powerful torso, and so on - slightly resembled "Hellboy", but in this case it caused only the joy of recognition ... Yellow Bastard (Nick Stahl) - this is generally something amazing! The only completely colored character in the film (however, the name obliges), and even the physiognomy ... She will definitely dream at night of all impressionable natures. Because it's hard to do anything more nasty... By the way, during the filming of Nick Stahl was called "Blue Bastard" - because he had to play in a special blue jumpsuit: the yellow color of the character merged with the green background of the backdrop, so the actor was dressed in colored jumpsuit to facilitate further processing of episodes. Also, the appearance of Bruce Willis and Benicio Del Toro was changed quite significantly so that they appearance more closely matched Miller's drawings. The cast, as you can see from the list, is impressive. The only thing missing is Johnny Depp, whose appearance could be expected after Once Upon a Time in Mexico, where, by the way, he played just fine. Indeed, Rodriguez originally planned Depp for the role of Jackie Boy, but decided that Depp was quite worthy of a separate big role, therefore, it is planned to shoot a sequel to this film - "Sin City 2" with him, which is scheduled to begin filming in February 2006. When it became clear that Depp would not act, Rodriguez began to select another actor for this role. And during the Oscars, seeing Benicio Del Toro with long hair, Rodriguez remarked to Benicio that he looked exactly like Jackie Boy. After that, the role was offered to Del Toro on the condition that he would not cut his hair short. Benicio immediately agreed and played brilliantly in the film! However, as usual. The role of the Yellow Bastard was originally invited to Leonardo DiCaprio, but he, after some deliberation, refused. It's a pity he missed a good chance to make fun of himself... But Nick Stahl, who was madly disappointed in Terminator 3, didn't miss his point and played the Yellow Bastard quite well. In general, we can say, even impressed. His role is definitely... Kate Bosworth was originally invited to the role of Gale, but for some reason she refused, and then Rosario Dawson became the commander of the combat prostitutes. She played great. This is exactly how I imagined the commander of the Amazonian prostitutes ... Rodriguez offered some roles to Steve Buscemi, Willem Dafoe, Christopher Walken and Michael Douglas, but for unknown reasons they could not take part in the project ... Bruce Willis played policeman Hartigan not bad, but, in general, somehow quite traditional. Bruswillis style. But Clive Owen, who recently buried King Arthur in his performance, was very pleased. Initially, I thought that the role of the tough Dwight would hardly suit him, but Owen played it quite well. This time there is no miscasting like in "King Arthur" and that's good... The film is shot very cruelly and severely. Kind of like Kill Bill. All sorts of terrible fights, mochilovo, rubilovo, dismemberment, articulation and dismemberment again. And despite the fact that Rodriguez constantly emphasizes the toy, conventionality and comic nature of what is happening (the blood sometimes turns white, the characters from the blows sometimes scatter deliberately cartoonish), all these blood flows make a somewhat depressing impression on some viewers. The directors of the film, as stated in the credits, as many as three: Rodriguez, Miller and Tarantino. Miller Rodriguez was invited to the directors so that the artist from beginning to end controlled the entire process of creating a picture and made sure that it exactly corresponded to his work, and an old friend and accomplice of Rodriguez Tarantino (he starred in two of his films) took part in the creation of "Sin City" as a return courtesy - Rodriguez worked on the soundtrack of "Kill Bill" for him for a fee of one dollar. The same one dollar Tarantino received for directing one of the episodes of the novel with Dwight. In some publications it is written that he filmed the entire novel. This is wrong. Tarantino only filmed the scene in the car when Dwight is driving with Jackie Boy. Well, more specifically, with what's left of Jackie Boy... By the way, because of the three directors listed in the credits, Rodriguez had to leave the Directors Guild, whose rules prohibit such knuckles. At the same time, he immediately got problems in relations with the Paramount studio, which works only with members of the Guild, but then the producers Harvey and Bob Weinstin (whose Miramax studio once rose great on Tarantino's Pulp Fiction) joined the film process, and after appearing in picture of these bison modern cinema it was already possible not to worry about the new brainchild of Rodriguez ... Interestingly, many critics of "Sin City" scold. Paying tribute to the amazing visual component, they say that, they say, oh, how much violence is in the film. And what, they say, oh, what primitive dialogues and oh, what a stupid plot. A counter question arises: what did you guys want? Romeo and Juliet? Dispersed by the wind? It's a Millerian comic, folks! Filmed so accurately that even the author of the comic was pleased. And filmed so impressively that even those who have never seen the comic itself (by the way, in Russia it will soon be released in hot pursuit, and the translation of the lines is done by Goblin), nevertheless, they are delighted with how amazingly this is all filmed . I summarize. This is a real masterpiece. Something like a fusion of "Dick Tracy" masks, "Sky Captain" pictures and "Kill Bill" hack-and-wash dynamics. However, this is a completely independent and completely original movie, which personally made a huge impression on me! Nevertheless, I will not say that almost everyone will like it. That's for sure - not all! Firstly, some ladies do not tolerate all this blood flow and incessant violence very well. Secondly, some gentlemen, watching the ups and downs of the existence of the City of Sins, consisting of murderers, prostitutes, perverts, rapists, corrupt policemen, and so on, come to a sad and depressive state, probably comparing all this with some modern megacities, which, although have a different name, but they are still the same city of sins ... And thirdly, you still need to at least slightly understand the aesthetics of comics and the aesthetics of Rodriguez's black humor. You won't like it without it. A good test could be the movie "Kill Bill". If you liked it, then you can go to the "Sin City" without a doubt. If not, then it's better not to watch "Sin City", although you are depriving yourself of a lot - at least from a purely visual point of view ... Yes, and finally - the traditional mantra that this film should only be watched on the big screen. On a VERY big screen. Otherwise, the impression will be irrevocably spoiled. I foolishly watched this film in a small cinema and now I'm going to rewatch it in a huge cinema in a few days. Yes, yes, I wanted to rewatch it almost immediately. This is a very powerful movie. In fact, it's a masterpiece. A comic book masterpiece. Here's how to shoot it all! And not to fool people's heads with all sorts of daredevils, aunts-cats and hulks in green shorts ...