Blood, gore have never looked so good

With his stark, sexy and brutal graphic novels, Frank Miller is a

master of the crime-driven thriller set in Humphrey Bogart’s hell.

His hard-boiled characters live in a film noir world of crooked cops,

untimely death and twisted love.

In harsh black and white images, he tells the stories of tortured

souls on the path of righteous revenge.

Like it or not, these lurid graphic novels have become a major art

form of our time. They are fully embraced by young men in their teens

and twenties who are the primary customers of ultra-violent video

games.

In “Sin City,” this dark genre bolts out of its adolescent cage

and crashes into the media mainstream. It cannot be ignored. No film

has ever brought this vicious format to the screen with such vivid

and breathtaking reality.

Each scene in the movie is taken directly from its corresponding

frame in the haunting novel. The images on the screen fully capture

every nuance of the original material. The thought bubbles of the

characters in the book are reproduced verbatim as their voice-over

narration in the film. Occasional flashes of bright color explode in

this black-and-white world.

Mickey Rourke, Bruce Willis and Clive Owen play the bad boys of

the story with bravura style. Rosario Dawson and a host of hot babes

bring life to the hookers packing heat.

“Sin City” is a groundbreaking film that will become the standard

by which all other movies of this type will be judged. But be warned

that this movie is full of relentless violence and sadistic villains

that go way beyond the pale of ordinary cruelty. Thank goodness the

stylized cartoon appearance softens the impact of the carnage.

Call it “Pulp Fiction” on the “Road to Perdition,” spiked with a

dose of LSD. It’s bound to be one of the most controversial films of

the year.

But it’s guaranteed to get some attention at Oscar time.

* JOHN DEPKO is a Costa Mesa resident and a senior investigator

for the Orange County public defender’s office.

PLENTY OF LAUGHS FOR THE

PRICE OF A CHEAP HAIRCUT

“Beauty Shop” is open for business and is the best showcase for

star Queen Latifah since “Chicago.” For all its in-your-face jokes

and cliches, this spinoff of “Barbershop 2” is a lighthearted comedy

about a smart, confident woman trying to start up her own business.

Gina Norris (Latifah) is a hairstyling pro, chafing under the

management of Atlanta salon owner Jorge (a truly hilarious Kevin

Bacon).

She musters the courage and a little cash to start her own shop,

taking some of Jorge’s clients and shampoo girl Lynn (Alicia

Silverstone) with her.

Gina’s stylists and clients are a raucous, star-studded bunch --

Alfre Woodard, Andie MacDowell, Mena Suvari and Della Reese -- and

their lively chatter about everything from catfish to men is warm and

very funny.

Besides struggling to make ends meet, Gina also has a young,

musically gifted daughter (Paige Hurd) and a hottie niece (Keshia

Knight Pulliam) to worry about. Luckily for her, there is a very

charming upstairs neighbor (Djimon Hounsou) -- electrician by day,

pianist by night -- to help out.

“Beauty Shop” offers positive roles for its female characters and

Latifah’s strong, easygoing presence alone makes it worth watching.

But it is Bacon’s Jorge, with his over-processed hair,

over-exposed chest and Arnold-like accent, who nearly steals the show

and proves there can indeed be more than one queen in the court.

* SUSANNE PEREZ lives in Costa Mesa and is an executive assistant

for a financial services company.