"Sin City", the new film by Robert Rodriguez, is the new comic book adaptation of Frank Miller’s works of a series of pulp-like graphic novels that traumatize, appall, but more importantly, entertain those who appreciate the most sinister of noir. Like the books, the movie is shot all in black and white, with flecks of notable color in certain blue and green eyes, special blondes, and some bodily fluids. Sure, some characters are a little plastic and their dialogues (God forbid, even monologues) can be corny, but there are still many an opportunity to crack up or gasp in horror, and isn’t that what everyone wants in a flick these days?

The plot involves three different stories from the same comic series, all of which are chopped up into mixed sequences. All are related in setting and the general plot of a town where everyone is a bad mo’ fo’ and none of them had mommas who loved them. In the end, it appears to be a subsidiary of Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece "Pulp Fiction" and almost all of his other gore fests. Don’t get me wrong, the splicing style is a technique in movies and storytelling in general that should be used more often, and the directors and screen adapters have earned their paychecks from incorporating certain locations and characters into a somewhat chronological order that is streamlined. However, because Tarantino was a "special guest director," his shadow has lurked over most of the plot sequences, such as the beginning and ending series of Josh Hartnett being a creepy murderer. At least he’s not typecast.

The first story told in general is titled "The Hard Goodbye," involving a hulk of a man called Marv, who has lost the love of his life, Goldie, because someone wanted to frame the guy. Not smart. In a tormented rage, Marv journeys around town, belligerent and desperate to discover who killed his goldilocks. We soon discover that it’s none other than the blight of all that is good and sacred, Elijah Wood, armed with his big eyes, a new set of high kicks and razor nails from one too many manicures. His favorite hobby? Eating hookers and putting their heads up on his wall. Trophy style.

The next tale of sin and greed is about a hunk of a guy called Dwight, played by our Clive Owen, who has got a problem on his hands, the story is happily called "The Big Fat Kill." A freshly ugly-faced Benicio Del Toro has come to his girlfriend’s crib while they were…dancing. So while Dwight is hiding in the bathroom, Del Toro, also known as Jackie Boy, smacks his female dog up, played groggily by Brittany Murphy. Dwight’s not going to stand for that, so while Jackie Boy’s gangstas are giving Brittany nasty looks, Jackie Boy goes to the bathroom. The bathroom scene involves a head dunking into a toilet, so Rodriguez calls his best bud Tarantino in to get experienced with digital film, and the toilet thing is something that Tarantino is a veteran in from his "Kill Bill" movies, so it’s pretty clear when the master and the commander are working or eating doughnuts in the back of the set. The best lines come from this story: "You're making a big mistake, pal. A big mistake." "Yeah? You already made a big mistake yourself: You didn't flush." Del Toro was probably my favorite character, probably because you have to hand it to the guy for taking on such a bum role in which he gets humiliated beyond his means. But because the guy takes humiliation so well, Jackie Boy becomes funny in a sick, sick way, and that’s why he makes "The Big Fat Kill" entertaining.

The first and last of these stories is called "The Yellow Bastard," because the villain is a yellow bastard who molests children. Bruce Willis plays Hartigan, an aging cop who’s bent on saving one of the Yellow Bastard’s victims. Willis is thrown in jail for turning the Yellow Bastard, the son of a political power, into Swiss cheese. Eight years later, Hartigan gets out of the big house to save Nancy, the former bookworm turned stripper, a common case in "Sin City." The Yellow Bastard returns, but this time, he’s actually yellow and looks like a goblin. This story had the best acting with an exception for Jessica Alba, Nancy, and has the best ending, but all of the other stories are pretty good too, despite the suspensions of disbelief that are a little too much, and the iffy acting every once in a while.

While other outlaw movies, such as certain Clint Eastwood and Tarantino films, are superior in dialogue, plot, and acting, "Sin City" is a valid entry into the expanding genre of gory noir.