Sinners and Saints (2010) User Reviews

Actually not the worst from that type of movies

[jack-jh · 7/10 · 12 June 2011]

When i decided to watch this movie i wasn't expecting much from it, i hoped for something similar to "Street Kings 2: Motor City" but slightly better. As it turned out it was a lot better than that cheap "Street Kings-2" which had nothing common with first part.

Sinners & Saints offers great acting, action, uncensored violence in some places and not boring story line. Don't know if it's good or bad, but there almost didn't have any female actors in film, consequently no sexual or female nudity scenes at all, though a little unusual for the action movie.

I would recommend to see this movie for Street Kings first part, Running Scared and similar movie fans. You will enjoy it!

Even though this type of movie has been done a million times this is a very good movie that is worth a watch. I say B+

[cosmo_tiger · 7/10 · 9 December 2011]

"This is N'Awlins white boy, you ain't seen nothing' yet." After a call goes horribly bad Detective Sean Riley (Strong) is given a new partner. Trying to cope with a failed marriage, the death of his son, and a series of brutal murders that is affecting the entire city he is a very unstable officer. When clues lead to something bigger then either expected it is up to the two new partners to work together and stop the ring before it's too late. Lately the "cop revenge" movies have been very slow and not exciting to watch (Blood Out/Set Up). This one, while slow in parts, is very good. I tried as hard as I could not to compare the two, but this one reminded me of a harsher "Lethal Weapon". There really is nothing new in this movie. A loose cannon of a detective is teamed with a family man who is by the book, the two somehow can work together and yada...yada...yada. Even though this is a movie that has been done to death it is still very enjoyable and very much worth watching. I really enjoyed it. Overall, one of the few repetitive type movies that is exciting and worth a watch. I give it a B+.

Nice Nostalgic Throwback to Old Style Cop movie

[torstensonjohn · 6/10 · 8 August 2018]

The film is set in New Orleans sometime after Hurricane Katrina with violence still running rampant in the underbelly of the city. The style and format reminds you of the first Lethal Weapon as Johnny Strong's character (Sean) is a loose cannon with a death wish. His child has died and his wife has left him so he goes it alone in the streets taking down criminals.

A tough, rugged cop with his own flare and own rules, Sean gets wrapped up in an old friends (Sean Patrick Flannery) Colin turbulent trouble. The high body count and great gun fight sequences bring the flare of action to the film. With a supporting cast with the likes of Costas Mandylor, Tom Berenger and Bas Rutten to the mix it does justice to the film. It is a good film, not superb acting, editing a little transparent but good story. If you like action, a good plot and character driven films this will do fine. A 6 out of 10

Wow! This movie is so cool!

[rightwingisevil · 10 June 2011]

Johnny Strong is one of the coolest actors I've ever seen, and he can also play a tough cop role so well. The firefights and the MMA-like knife fight in this movie are also very very nicely performed and directed; the knife fight is the second best, just one notch lower than the knife fights in the Korean movie "The Man from Nowhere". Although the screenplay is pretty weak but it simply won't be a problem since the tough and cool image and performance of Johnny Strong is such an enjoyable presence. There are some big flaws in this movie too: How come a totally ruined and deserted house since Katrina still got GAS? And you can see the leaking gas so clearly? If I didn't timely pay the gas fee, the gas company would just cut off the gas next month, they are not charity business.

I think Johnny Strong is the next sexy urban Rambo macho image and would have a great future in the movie business. If some TV companies or movie companies are smart enough, they should sign up this guy for any possible tough cop movie or TV series. I am die-hard fan of this cool dude after saw this movie, and my wife also thought he's the real deal that could match up with Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry. Yeah, this movie definitely deserve a big WOW!!!!

Not as good I had expected..

[kimjarman19 · 7/10 · 31 December 2011]

First of all, I'd like to say I did like this film, before people start rating this down, but I think it had the potential to be a lot better.

The main character looked too cliché for the part, I was hoping for a vaguely happy, good cop to have gone rouge if you would, but instead I got an already messed up one. The reason for him being that way was explained but very briefly and we got to see no storyline about it really.

On top of that his partner doesn't really suit the part, I didn't think so anyway.

Some of the acting was a bit unbelievable and jumpy but it's a good watch if you're not expecting anything amazingly special, and that's why I rated it a 7/10, because the acting really bugged me. Apart from what I've stated it was a good film, though.

A low-budget actioner in the vein of "El Mariachi" or "A Better Tomorrow"

[witster18 · 6/10 · 16 January 2012]

If you go in with an open-mind, and with the understanding that this film was made for 700K - then you might come out of it with a serious appreciation for those involved.

Who in the heck is Johnny Strong, and what in the heck is he doing acting so well in a no-name, rock-your-socks-off action flick like this? His performance, along with the action sequences, carry the film.

The film will test your patience.

It starts with an earth-shattering action sequence(much like the directors previous work, "The Prodigy 3/10"), and then the film settles down to start the plot set-up.

It's during this set-up that the average viewer may be tempted to turn it off. The low-production values are at their worst during the early dramatic/dialog sequences. There is some schotty camera work, and the film stock gets terribly blurry from time to time. There were points when this film looked nearly as bad as a bootleg. BUT the film really starts to grab you at the half-way point.

Johnny Strong quickly becomes a character the audience would like to root for, and with all the films' faults, it has some moments of sheer brilliance. There are some dialog scenes(one particular in the police car towards the middle of the film) that create an emotional spike to the film, and then there's the action sequences which are extremely well-done.

I can see this film growing into a huge cult-hit.

I didn't care for "The Prodigy" at all, but it's obvious this director is progressing. He and Strong may have just punched their ticket to the big-time.

The storyline is decent for a genre where we shouldn't expect rocket-science. The hero of the film is balanced with a partner who is a family man. Kevin Phillips does a fine job as the partner, but Strong's character has NOTHING to lose, and all the talent and experience in the world to take on this formidable enemy. Johnny is Johnny-on-the-spot with a gun, and an ex-marine, but his partner has more to lose. This balance adds a certain dynamic to the film.

These characters break-out performances more than make up for the cameo-like appearances of Sean Patrick Flannery and Tom Berenger.

I've already mentioned some of the film's flaws, but the film also slightly overstays it's welcome with about 5 action sequences that could have been combined into about two in the films' final half. It makes the ending a little bit anti-climactic, but the second-quarter and the third-quarters of this film are very strong considering its' resources.

You should know if this is the kind of thing you want to take a chance on or not. If you read that statement, and still rent it, you won't be disappointed.

65/100 You'll like this if you liked: El Mariachi, The Prodigy, A Better Tomorrow, Narc, and The Killer.

JUST GET PAST the early production short-comings and stick with it and you shouldn't be disappointed.

Too much talk, too long, but excellent action.

[mellenyoung · 6/10 · 24 January 2012]

I borrowed this movie based on some earlier reviews that gave it 8 out of 10 or more. Without digging much deeper into it. I thought it would be a good evenings entertainment for myself and 2 younger men (18 & 21). However, both of them left at various points, after their patience was worn down by the movie.

It starts off with a fast paced action sequence, but quickly begins jumping between what can seem to a movie goer from the last 2 decades, very long, dialog heavy sequences. The dialog scenes dragged on and the fleeting reward of the action sequences was not enough to keep my 2 associates entertained. (one left 55 minutes in, another at 70 minutes)

The writing throughout these scenes was clunky, and whilst it did help establish the plot. It would benefit from some serious cuts and perhaps even a rewrite.

That said the movie did pick up around the halfway point, with both plot becoming clearer and the movie finally achieving some decent writing for the dialog scenes. I feel that the movie certainly deserves credit for the final action sequences, which were a standout amongst a number of well choreographed moves.

Verdict: If you enjoy drama and dialog, with your action. Then there are better options out there that also manage to include some lighter moments. But as long as you can stand the first forty minutes, it should pay off.

Standout - final action sequence; the fact Johnny Strong is decent to look at didn't hurt either Let downs - the dialog and writing throughout the first half of the film Recommendation - Maybe fast forward through the talk, or skip to the halfway point and begin from there

Probably the worst movie of 2010

[Smift · 1/10 · 9 June 2011]

Stupid me, saw this movie based on the rating. I didn't bother watching the trailer, or check that in fact only about 120 people had rated.

Although this move is supposed to take place in New Orleans, which other than some badly done cuts between scenes was not evident whatsoever. No one in the movie even slightly spoke with an accent, the score didn't include anything that could resemble good music, and I mean as much as I love Meth, even he was out of place, with his effed up face. They couldn't get a southern rapper to play that part?

The story was choppy and stupid, apparently even though every god damned badguy in NO carried a tacticlol assault rifle or shotgun, they never called for backup, every one of the shootouts were the same, these "military" badguys with apparent super precision, hid behind car windows, and couldn't hit a barn if they were standing inside it. Kevin Phhilips acting was so terrible, that I think it gave me cancer. The whole movie just seemed like the guys were drunk one night, threw in every bad action movie cliché in a pot, stirred it and filmed it with some friends over the next week and done. In the end the partners just flat out turned into Riggs and a younger Murtaugh, running after cars and hollerin'. I wish I had more arms so I could give it four thumbs down.

Sinner & Saint?

[Mihai689 · 9/10 · 17 June 2011]

I have seen my share of action movies and believe it or not, after checking out the movie's score here, I went out of my way to write my very first review on IMDb.

I've just finished watching "Sinners & Saints" and after doing a quick search for the song playing when the credits were rolling (great song by the way, if anyone is interested look for "Johnny Strong - Let You Go"), I came to IMDb where I usually check and read about movies, and I must say I'm a bit disappointed with the rating this movie had.

To start off, this is no original movie, so don't expect to have your mind blown out of the way and don't expect to see any breath taking plot twists. Though this movie doesn't add anything especially new to the recipe it does a very good job in setting itself apart from other action movies.

I have rarely found myself so captivated by a shoot-out movie. It made me lose track of reality and I found myself cheering for the main character and hating the "villains", which although it might seem like a simple enough premise, it is something that very few of the movies I've seen lately managed to accomplish.

I don't want to spoil anything, nor do I want to set any special expectations, so I will refrain myself from saying anything about the action scenes or character development.

I have really enjoyed watching "Sinners & Saints". It said something meaningful to me, and I think That is the best thing a movie can accomplish.

very decent action flick

[beregic · 7/10 · 3 April 2012]

reason for 7 star; due to very low budget there were couple of scenes that missed that "extra " punch. this is a guy's movie, doubt ladies will like it unless they view it for the main protagonists (heroes and anti-heroes types).

plot was quiet decent, straight up, nothing spectacular but i appreciate for not being led on by some cheesy or pointless melodramatic fill up scenes.

however dialogues and acting very good for an action flick (all actors more or less look the part they play). in first half had quiet a dew nice surprises not found in almost any of the low budget action flicks.

i should sum it up as a decent revenge flick of sorts.

429th Review: Catering to the absolute basest of action thriller vibes

[intelearts · 2/10 · 12 June 2011]

Here was a chance to do something intelligent around New Orleans - make an interesting action thriller etc; what we get instead is a sadistic mess, where everyone simply goes full turbo out and out machine gun hell for leather - which sounds great - but trust me it ain't.

The film is so one dimensional as to be dirigible - there's so much wrong with this I don't really know where to start. Hang on, yes I do, the script is linear, non-worked through, pulp action without irony or purpose - and that's really where the fault lies - even Steven Segal and Van Damme at their cheesy worst have purpose - this seems so all over the place I couldn't begin to understand how it got greenlighted.

Both sadistic and stupid if hard action is absolutely your best thing, then sure you'll cheer as another person gets doused in petrol and set alight. I couldn't see the cop side of this - it's all beyond lawless nonsense to me....

Excellent, well executed action movie

[philsen1982 · 8/10 · 10 June 2011]

Well first off I got to say, that movie is seriously underrated. I didn't hear or read anything about it, was just by coincidence I found it.

I didn't have any high hopes etc. before I saw it, but I was surprised by the high review scores it has gotten here. But let me say as much, u wont be disappointed if u like good old, dull action movies. I do.

Especially the shootouts belong to the best ones I've seen since Heat. They are very well choreographed, people are moving like real combatants, holding their weapons correctly, maneuvering realistically with covering each other instead of just running into the enemy fire like retards. Well at least the main actors do. You can see that some thought and training went into these scenes. It is very entertaining to watch. CG is a little bit poor sometimes, but nothing that spoils anything.

I wont go into detail any further, but if u like action and good shootouts u wont be disappointed by that movie. If u prefer solid acting, dialog and depth u might wanna look somewhere else.

Pass the Popcorn

[Bob_the_Hobo · 7/10 · 2 April 2012]

Devastated by the abandonment of his wife and loss of his son and partner, Detective Sean Riley (Johnny Strong) is paired up with family man Det. Will Ganz (Kevin Phillips) to investigate a string of murders in New Orleans. The killers have taken the life of gangster Weddo's (Method Man) brother, igniting a gang war that threatens to tear apart the shaky stability after Hurrica Katrina. Things turn personal when Riley's childhood friend Colin (Sean Patrick Flanery) may be involved.

Sinners and Saints works as a pass-the-popcorn Sunday afternoon action flick. The low budget doesn't detract from the effects, most work well and the shootouts pass without a hitch as the Big Easy effectively turns into a war zone. The film isn't particularly smutty, a refreshing departure from most straight to DVD action movies. And the story is a consistently interesting mix of classic mystery clichés.

Neither Strong nor Phillips has the acting chops to serve as the leads, but they turn in adequate performances. Flanery, half the Boondock Saints, is very good as Strong's secretive friend. DTV action movie staples Kim Coates and Tom Berenger play members of the NOPD. Both have small roles that sum up about ten minutes, but it's good to see them offer their names to the production. Jurgen Prochnow and Method Man play the big villains.

This is a good action movie for a lazy afternoon. I'd recommend it.

This movie suck!

[dandu172 · 2/10 · 10 June 2011]

I want 100 minutes back of my life! This movie has zero originality, zero character development and zero credibility. The story is basically the same as every police/tough guy movie you have seen. Police with a troubled past find brutal killings, he goes Rambo, he stands up for "the right things" (Which means that he should be thrown in jail - permanently), he has a black partner etc, etc, etc. I can guess EVERY SINGLE EVENT in this movie before it happens The shooting scenes are a complete joke. NO WAY would our hero survive those, let alone winning them. If this were a less serious movie I wouldn't mind but this movie is trying so hard to be realistic & gritty. No human being but an incompetent American citizen could believe this crap was real, and because of it you lose interest. Fast.

This has to be one of the most overrated movies at IMDb and I guess it's because too many flag fanatic morons gave it a good grade.

7 of 10 Here's why!

[jeff_gregersen · 3 October 2011]

I'm publishing my review of this movie because it deserves it.

That being said…Johnny Strong…fire your agent! You're listed at like 9th on the cast role. You're the lead…hello!!!

Kim Coates???? Kim I love you…but dude you're in this like 2 seconds…now that's an agent Johnny!

Here are the non-spoiler highlights

1) The writing and directing are pretty good. 2) The acting is also very well done. 3) New blood…Kevin Philiips is going to be a well-recognized actor. 4) Old blood…thank you Tom Berenger…looking good my man! 5) SPF…the dude was Powder…enough said.

Here are the spoilers….

1) Grenades…duh duh duh duh duh! 2) Body armor! There is more hair gel than Kevlar in this thing…you make the call. 3) JohnnyStrong…please tell me this is a stage name? Dude you have skills…where are you???? A robot can get a job in acting these days…where are you???? 4) The burning whole your victims thing…over and over…nice touch…brutal even! 5) Beer! Not in the movie, just wanted to add that...

Watch it and meet me back here!

Jeff

Awesome Low-budget Action-packed Cop Flick

[lukem-52760 · 7/10 · 21 October 2020]

Blown Away comes to mind with this sleeper-hit, low-budget masterpiece!!! Expertly Directed with ferociously raw & rapid skill by the excellent William Kaufman (The Brave, Daylight's End, Jar Head 3:The Seige) this guy knows how to create exclusive & exciting shootouts & action & Bad Cop aka: Sinners & Saint's is cut from the same cloth as old school Action Classic's like Lethal Weapon & 48hrs, that old bone-crunching violence & gritty mean gun fights & explosions that we grew up loving with the Action genre. Bad Cop is a mystery too as well as action & even has plenty of depth to it's characters & story.

Johhny Strong (Daylights End) is outstanding here as the ultra-violent no-nonsense tough & rugged New Orleans Cop Riley, he's so convincing & raw that you care for him & immediately think how Cool he is & he's a Vigilante type Cop & i love that, he's old skool shoot first & ask questions later & boy does he shoot!!!! An incredibly raw & powerful performance from Strong & for a low-budget production like this it's almost unbelievable & that's how good he is & isn't just a muscle man super hero, this guy bleeds & rages like a man on a suicide mission. Strong's Riley is on the hunt for a sadistic Killer, a team of sicko Mercenaries that are burning up the hot towns of New Orleans with extreme murders & must be stoppedno matter the cost. We get a whole host of characters as this has a big ensemble cast with an excellent Kevin Phillips (Notorious) who gives the 2nd best performance here as new partner to Riley & the always great & intense Louis Mandylor (The Brave, The Debt Collector) & his real life brother, Costas Mandylor & the veteran actor Tom Berenger (D-Tox, Platoon) & an excellent Sean Patrick Flanery (Deadly Impact) in his best performance I've ever seen of him & there's more!!!! A Cool cast & an extremely gritty Cinematography & brutal blood splattered action scenes definitely puts this Action Cop Thriller right up there with the one's that inspired it.

I'm so happy someone out there has made the type of raw Action Thriller that used to be made back in the 80's & Early 90's!!! Like the Awesome Scott Adkins, Johhny Strong seems ridiculously underrated but he will definitely have fans & a Cult following within the low-budget Action genre.

All performances are great & i mean great, there's an emotional back story & real character driven action & nice chemistry between our two Detective's on the case.

An underrated under the radar Action GEM.

A mix of OK and absolutely terrible

[gambit70 · 2/10 · 4 September 2012]

Think of your favorite action movie... now remove any good characters, any good acting... any witty lines... a plot that has more depth than a rough first draft... pretty much anything good. Replace these with an incredibly bad script, awful disjointed clichés and wooden "read your line now" acting... there you have Sinners and Saints.

I am not against B grade movies where bad can be good. But sometimes bad is just bad.

If I have to think of something good to say about this movie some of the gun fights were OK, the blood splatter etc was a reasonable quality... that's it. Oh and the lead actor guy (John Strong) tried hard to deliver in a truly crappy role. OK... those are the only positive things I can say.

Sinners and Saints ROCKS Dallas

[mksentinel · 9/10 · 24 August 2010]

Digging through some independent films awhile back and found a gem of a flick in "The Prodigy". After that I started following Will Kaufman to see what he would crank out next. "Sinners and Saints" does NOT disappoint.

The gun battles are fantastic. Some of the best stuff I've seen on camera in a long time. In the action field, Kaufman and company hold their own and then some with major studio productions.

Johnny Strong comes out of nowhere as a Charles Bronson for the new generation. Clint Eastwood would be proud of some of Strong's "Dirty Harry" moments in the flick. Fun performances as well from Method Man, Kim Coates, Louis Mandylor and Costas Mandylor. Wish Kim would have been in the film more.

Fans of the Prodigy will appreciate seeing Holt Boggs, Matt Beckham and Mark Hanson as well as others from the film along side names like Tom Berenger, Bas Rutten and Sean Patrick Flannery.

So many independent films these days are going the horror route or, if they do tackle something like action, they just can't hit the mark. These guys are able to do some amazing stuff with blood, sweat and tears. Can't wait to see what's next.

Big balls, small dick.

[virindra · 2/10 · 30 October 2011]

Now we have a movie here, with this cool name "Sinners and saints'. Sounds interesting and promising. Have not heard about this movie before. Should it be an average movie then? Yes it is.

There are two big names attached to this movie like two big cojones; "Sean Patrick Flanery" and "Tom Berenger". SPF just plays a role of 5 minutes max in the whole movie and TB maybe 10. They both die and that's that. No action in their asses, no reason to have been a part of this movie in the first place.

Now we are left with the main character, this cop played by Joynnhy Strong. Nice actor, played well. But I did not hire this movie because of him. I hired this movie because of SPF and TB. So yes, I was disappointed.

SPF works for a company called Spartan. He has some evidence on a tape and Russian gang members want to have this tape. The when the movie evolves, these Russian members were involved in the Amecican war. So are they Russian people or are they American people? Now this "boss" of the Russian army people, or American people, played by Costas Mandylor isn't really that scary like Gary Oldman was in Léon. He seems to want this tape because his boss wants to have this tape. Does this boss work for Spartan? Costas Mandylor is on this tape killing some soldiers. So it seems to me that Costas Mandylor wants this tape for personal reasons and not for his boss. Who was this geeky boss with this earphone who was in bed with a young lady? What was his purpose in this movie? There are lots of loose ends. This movie is a small dick with two big names attached with no reason. Acting of Kevin Phillips was terrible. Action was hilarious. A lot of shooting and, knowing that these bad guys are trained people, they missed a lot! What a waste of time.

Better than I expected

[ashphoenixrising · 9/10 · 3 July 2011]

I don't usually watch action. I prefer horror. I watched this because Costas Mandylor was in it and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the movie contained an excellent cast of actors entirely and it kept my attention throughout the whole film. Johnny Strong was a great star of the film and I feel as though he really made the main character believable. I really enjoyed it and in fact I now own the movie for further viewing. I will say that some of the shooting scenes seemed rather lengthy, but the overall story and plot as a whole was very interesting to me. I thought the use of human psychology throughout the film definitely added something. I wouldn't say this is my favorite movie, but it was definitely entertaining and collection worthy. Another great movie with Costas Mandylor in it, what more could a fan ask for?

If You Suspend All Disbelief

[lwmswm · 4/10 · 9 November 2019]

About police procedure, logic & common sense then on a good day this movie about stupid people doing unbelievably stupid things is a four. Otherwise, it's a one. You've been warned.

Standard cop drama

[billcr12 · 5/10 · 17 April 2012]

An actor with the unlikely name of Johnny Strong; I am not kidding, is Detective Sean Riley and his kid has died, the marriage is falling apart, the boss is close to suspending the high flying cop and now a series of unsolved murders has New Orleans in its grip. How is that for an opening sentence.

Riley is o.k. as the embattled defender of all that is good in the world but the script is so filled with clichés and cardboard characters screaming at each other that it is just another seen it all before cop movie.

Car chases, fires, shootings, gang wars and every typical action scene is pulled out with great frequency, so if a mind numbing entertainment is your bag, this may for you. Otherwise rent one of the old Lethal Weapons flicks.

very Street Kings, a lot of fun

[hootanda45 · 8/10 · 10 June 2011]

This film was action movie popcorn fun. Like an action flick you catch halfway through on TV but stop and watch the rest anyway.

The gunfights and gear were great and brutal. Whoever choreographed the gunfights did a bang up job with the weapons handling and gear/holster choices. In true action movie fashion there's a few instances of endless magazines but still a lot of reloads.

The acting was so so and it was what I expected from a awesome shootout movie but it still had a lot of great 2nd string actors like Flannery, Berenger, and a few others that you don't know by name but will recognize. Johnny Strong will only get recognized for Black Hawk Down and Fast and the Furious but he did a good job for leading a fun Street Kings, Dirty Harry, gunfight flick.

If you have a couple of hours to kill, and can find the movie, go ahead and give it a shot.

A dull and forgettable cop movie.

[tylerrosin · 1/10 · 19 September 2021]

Very dull movie. Very uninteresting cop movie. Dull action and nothing special. Fell asleep. Pass on this one.

An old fashioned cop movie where Johnny Strong uses some muscle to clean up gritty New Orleans while working with a new, clean cut partner.

[rockoforza · 8/10 · 28 December 2012]

Johnny Strong lives up to his name in this new entry in the cop action movie. Strong plays a tough street cop with demons of his own on the trail of a sadistic murder crew in New Orleans. There's plenty of gritty action and gun play. The high body count is mostly thanks to Johnny Strong himself who plays judge, jury and executioner to the lowlife gangsters he encounters. There's a good supporting cast featuring Tom Berenger, Sean Patrick Flannery and martial arts bad guys Costas Mandylor and Bas Rutten, but this movie belongs to Strong. His physical presence is as important as his dialogue. In one fearsome fight scene the shirtless Strong, ripped and sporting some awesome ink, slays 4 thugs up close and personal. The plot twists and turns and the villains do some awful stuff before Strong and his partner, clean cut Kevin Phillips, bring them to justice. It doesn't take a genius to figure out this movie is working the whole Lethal Weapon thing, but it seems to update it with more realistic characters and some graphic action that might be too much for the squeamish. Still, if you like to see a tough cop cleaning up the streets old school, this flick is for you.