Ryan Coogler’s new terrifying supernatural film Sinners debuted to wide critical acclaim last week, achieving a near-perfect 98% score on Rotten Tomatoes. And while you can watch it on a variety of aspect ratios and formats throughout the country, only 10 movie theaters in the United States offer the film in 70mm IMAX, and 5 theaters offer it in 70mm. Luckily for us, we can experience both formats here in the Bay Area—a fact which holds special significance for Coogler himself, who grew up in Oakland.
Coogler, who directed such successes as Black Panther, Creed, and Fruitvale Station, takes a spin into horror territory with Sinners. The story follows twin brothers (Michael B. Jordan) in the 1932 Mississippi Delta as they return to their hometown to discover a supernatural evil.
Where to watch Sinners in 70mm and IMAX
70mm IMAX: Metreon 16 in San Francisco
Sinners is available in 70mm IMAX 15-perf projection at 10 U.S. theaters, one of which is the Metreon 16 in San Francisco’s Yerba Buena neighborhood.
This type of film spins 15-perforation 70mm film horizontally, resulting in a towering 1.43:1 aspect ratio and perfectly crisp image. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer was famously shot this way, and people flocked to theaters to see it in 70mm IMAX.
In a recent YouTube video for Kodak, Coogler hailed the 15-perf IMAX format: “I’ll try not to get emotional talking about this, but this brings us to something very special that we doing, very rare… We were fortunate enough to work with our post-production partners and get some film prints out there to the world, which is just an incredible way to experience the movie. It’s the way that I came up experiencing movies combined with this really innovative technology that IMAX has developed.”
70mm: Grand Lake Theater in Oakland
Only 5 theaters in the country are screening Sinners on 70mm 5-perf projection, which you can experience at the Grand Lake Theater in Oakland—the same theater where Coogler himself grew up watching movies.
70mm 5 perforation film presents a distinct alternative to IMAX, as it has more of a traditional vintage film feel with a 2.76:1 aspect ratio. The image is much sharper than traditional 35mm and is rare to experience in theaters these days.
Coogler elaborated on the rarity of 70mm 5-perf film: “It’s an incredible experience to watch a film like this, to have that projector running behind you. To know there’s incredible technicians that have specialized hands and knowledge that are making this happen.
“The Grand Lake Theater in Oakland… is where I watched some of my first movies with my parents. Means the world.”
These specialized screenings of Sinners offer an extraordinary opportunity to see the film as Coogler truly intended, which is all the more exciting as we have a chance to celebrate the hometown director in one of his best projects to date.