There is an age-old myth about blues legend Robert Johnson. As the story goes, Johnson met the devil at a crossroads and sold his soul in exchange for unparalleled guitar prowess. This perennial fable, rooted in American folklore and the haunting melodies of the Deep South, lies at the heart of Ryan Coogler’s latest film, Sinners, a supernatural drama merging blues heritage with gothic horror.

Sinners follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack Moore (both played by Michael B. Jordan), prodigal sons who return to their Mississippi Delta hometown in 1932 to seek redemption after thriving as gangsters in Chicago’s bootlegging underworld alongside Al Capone. They invest their ill-gotten wealth in a juke joint — a vibrant dive bar pulsing with liquor, blues, and jazz. The contrast between their flashy arrival in a sporty convertible, clad in pinstripe suits and bowler hats, and the bleakness of their hometown scarred by the Great Depression is among the film’s visual triumphs.