Sicario
Starring Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin
Directed by Denis Villeneuve
Films don’t get much better than Canadian Denis Villeneuve’s searing and blistering narco-thriller Sicario. Emily Blunt leads the charge as an FBI agent who volunteers for a clandestine task force, led by Josh Brolin, aimed at taking down the main players in the drug cartels of southern Texas and Juarez, Mexico. Along the way, a shadowy Benico del Toro joins the team and his true intentions grow increasingly enigmatic. Sicario is brilliant at nearly every level.
Villeneuve’s masterfully shot compositions, mixed with the veteran prowess of cinematographer Roger Deakins are often breathtaking and the film is jammed with eye-catching set pieces that serve the plot rather than fuel generic action. In terms of acting, Blunt, del Toro and Brolin are in top form, with del Toro churning out some of his best work. The Walking Dead’s Jon Bernthal and Daniel Kaluuya provide strong support as well.
Even Taylor Sheridan’s timely script, that examines the moral ambiguities of the war on drugs, hammers the message home concisely. Despite the vast and complex world the film tackles, it often plays out more like a stage production than a standard Hollywood feature; every detail and scene has purpose and all fit together like a puzzle.
Sicariois a slow burn that requires some patience from the viewer and doesn’t always answer all of its questions; this is riveting work from a team at the top of their game and its imagery and themes will resonate long after the final credits have finished rolling.
