The First Deadly Sin

Wanna see the voice in a slasher.. here is your chance.. fun watch.. great blindbuy

Bought this blind. The premise sounded cool and some articles I’d seen popping up around the same time suggested this as a bleak crime movie to rival Se7en.

And I must say it’s nothing even close.

Sinatra plays a cop on the verge of retirement. He’s not a hard boiled relic of times past. He’s not a wisened philosopher. He’s just a cop who’s retiring. And for all his screen talent in times past, Sinatra seems incredibly uninterested in committing to any of the emotional weight needed to sell other aspects of his character. He meanders around kinda bored looking. Meanwhile someone is driving an ice climbing tool through the back of people’s heads.

There’s an arbitrarily roundabout investigation involving the help of a museum curator and the wife of a victim that boggles the mind.

There’s really no sense of cat & mouse antagonism between Sinatra and the killer. This is partially what derails the ending.

The bleakness? That comes at the end in a one-two punch , and unfortunately while the proceedings are indeed bleak at its most base meaning of the word, they come off as completely hollow and unearned within the narrative. I’d go so far to accuse it of being completely superficial.

Conceptually, First Deadly Sin has a lot going for it. Unfortunately, its execution leaves much to be desired.

Didn't really know what to expect with this one but Sinatra's performance really blew me away. Great mystery thriller that's a highly underrated gem.

A somber, unusually patient thriller with some genuinely unsettling moments and a terrific late-career performance from Frank Sinatra. The movie takes its time building its atmosphere rather than chasing constant suspense, which gives the darker moments considerably more weight. The picture quality is excellent and makes this a particularly satisfying release of an overlooked film.

Cool final starring role from Frank Sinatra