Film's inspiration worthy of its own look

At first glance, it appears as if Sin City is the latest installment in the trend of increasingly gruesome comic books, but that impression is incorrect for a couple of reasons. First off, the Sin City series began its run in 1991 but has only recently found widespread recognition with the production of the major motion picture of the same name.

Secondly, author/artist Frank Miller and his ilk prefer the term “graphic novel” for their aggregate works owing to the mature subject matter and complex themes which often pervade. Suffice it to say that the level of artistry involved in the creation of many graphic novels is top notch. Frank Miller's masterful use of negative space, the absence of ink on the page, is reason enough to check out the bound version of Sin City in addition to the cellulose one. “Chudd”, “Spukk”, “Poom” and all the other onomatopoeias that pepper the pages are a bonus.

Oh, and there's a story too. Each of the seven volumes tells a tale of some depraved soul's misdeeds in and around Basin City, a bustling metropolis founded on corruption and prostitution. The graphic novels create a world out of studio era film noir on steriods where the real character of the city only emerges once the sun drops below the horizon.

Miller’s aren't your usual protagonists either. The morals and ethics on these cats could make Ted Kennedy blush. In fact, you'd be hard pressed to find a single character who does not personify the eros and/or the thanatos.

The similarity between the Sin City you'll find in theaters to the one in two dimensions is striking. It even extends to the time it takes to make it through each, somewhere between two and three hours, so it's not question of which one to experience but in what order. Consider it high art, consider it novelty, or consider it a guilty pleasure, but whatever you do at least consider it.