SIN CITY (2003)

Because “graphic novels” are so much like movie storyboards, they should pop to life in any faithful adaptation, especially when the original author’s involved. But like a butterfly collector, in practice it pins down rather than unleashes. Here, the visual flair is initially such a kick, it takes a while for SIN CITY to reveal itself as an incoherent bore: Preservation = Death. Clive Owen manages to work up some energy in parodistic form, and there’s fun hearing scripter/megger/cutter/lenser/scorer Robert Rodriguez rag on Henry Mancini’s PETER GUNN theme. But the mayhem palls as the episodes roll on, while spotting well-known actors behind elaborate make-up, or guessing what color will next highlight the shiny B&W visual scheme, provides skimpy recompense.