Sicario

Movie Name: Sicario

Year of Release: 2015

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Stars: Emily Blunt, Benicio Del Toro, Josh Brolin, Victor Garber, Jon Bernthal, Daniel Kaluuya, Jeffrey Donavan, Raoul Trujillo, Julio Cedillo, Hank Rogerson, Kevin Wiggins

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7

Synopsis & Review:

After the release of "Prisoners" and "Enemy" in 2013, celebrated director director Denis Villeneuve is back with the equally well received "Sicario". The film is the first produced original screenplay from Taylor Sheridan, mostly known as an actor. It focuses on the story of Kate Macer, an FBI agent who gets involved in an operation to bring down a huge drug cartel in Juarez, Mexico. Headlining this operation is Matt Graver, a special agent who goes to specific locations to act as a catalyst and provoke damage in criminal activities. Part of his team includes the enigmatic Alejandro, someone whom Kate doesn't understand what the agenda is. As Kate gets further involved in the operation, she comes to realize the whole purpose of her association and what the grander scheme of things is.
"Sicario" is a solid film that benefits from the incredible vision of Denis Villeneuve, who brings a new dimension, grittiness to what could be a rather lifeless plot. The script treads on plots already approached in several features: the young police officer who wants to do things correctly, the irreverent, sardonic and experienced agent who knows more than he lets on, and the enigmatic and stoic agent who turns out to be a silent menace. The film doesn't provide much depth into these core characters, and sadly the representation of the central female character is not much of an evolution of a comparable and equally strong female character created by Jodie Foster's Clarice Starling in Jonathan Demme's "Silence of the Lambs". Emily Blunt's character is the witness of all the machinations that occur in the film and through her eyes we view the horrors of the drug cartels. However her character lands more on the observational and somewhat passive side of things, which as the film evolves, makes the attention shift to Benicio Del Toro's character (which in itself almost deserves a film onto himself). Denis Villeneuve elevates the material, with the film benefiting from a stunning cinematography from Roger Deakins, score from Johan Johannsson, and great performances from all three leads. Another good film from Denis Villeneuve!