Sicario takes you into the fight against drug cartels in Mexico in a scary, beautiful way. Writer Taylor Sheridan and director Denis Villeneuve handled the idea of the film, a naive person thrust into the war against drugs, perfectly. They chose to show the world of drug cartels through the eyes of a policewoman who has just as little of a true grasp on the violent and inhuman nature of drug cartels as the viewer does. The film also highlights the CIA’s abandonment of the typical, police standard rules of conduct when dealing with the cartels, a part of secret operation that Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), finds herself confronting demons over. She’s the guide into the terrifying fight against drug trafficking. As she struggles through the situation she’s in, audiences learn about what they’re dealing with at the same pace as Kate. Sicario an exciting, tense, and scary ride; from the very first scene the shocking and gruesome violence of the cartel is in your face, and it captures and keeps your interest locked in the whole time.
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Kate Macer is a policewoman who is offered the opportunity to work in a group out to infiltrate and break down a powerful drug cartel in Mexico. She and her partner Reggie (Daniel Kaluuya) join the group and begin dealing with the harshness of their new positions right away. After the capturing of a prominent member of the cartel, Kate’s group survives an intense shoot out on the border heading back into the U.S.. Kate, who is feeling out of place from the rest of the members of the op wants some answers as to her role among them. Leaders of the group Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) and his partner Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro) don’t seem to be giving her the full story of what the the exact intentions of the mission are, or why her and Reggie were chosen to be with them. Graver finally explains that they’re trying to find a tunnel which is popularly used for drug trafficking, but there’s clearly still a lot that hasn’t been said. The group continues to investigate and plan for the infiltration while a side story shows the relationship between a cartel member and his young son, giving a different perspective of the cartel. The son yearns for more attention from his father, who is distant and often sleeps when he is home. Their scenes together are sympathetic for the child, but the normalcy of the family is striking and makes at least the underlings within the cartel seem human.
Just before the attack on the cartel via the newly discovered tunnel, Kate and Reggie are finally clued in as to why they’ve been just tagging along & why they’ve been in the dark. They’re only there as a legal formality, since the group that they’re with is the CIA and the CIA needs FBI agents with them in order to operate under their circumstances. Despite the revelation and Reggie’s wanting to leave, the two stay at Kate’s wish. She has been traumatized since her horrifying first encounter with the cartel, shown in the opening scene, and she wants to do her part to hurt the cartel. Alejandro becomes a very important character near the end, and he leads of the most crucial part of the raid. At the end of the film, Kate has to face her conflicted feelings about the violence of the CIA against the greater brutality of the cartel. She must decide whether she can live with herself and be quiet about what she’s seen.
The cinematography of Sicario is wonderful. One scene in particular that was absolutely beautiful featured the group walking across a desert just as the sun came up. The colors of the scene set a mood of lazy, early morning which blended with the brutal, organized chaos of the latter part of the scene. The action scenes were made more thrilling through the use of wide shots which showed how claustrophobic the area was where the shootout occurred. Additionally, by shooting from overhead for parts of the highway showdown, the difficulty of the situation was made more obvious. Sicario was shot in New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico. The establishing shots for all of these locations were absolutely breathtaking, and relying on practical lights for all the scenes added to the realism of the story.
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The performances were impressive all around. I was blown away by Josh Brolin in this role because he was just in Hail, Caesar! as a completely different character. His range is phenomenal. Emily Blunt’s performance was also spectacular and made you understand Kate’s emotional difficulty at the end of the film. Blunt makes you understand how scared the character is while also showing her as the seasoned professional member of the FBI that she is. Kate is relatable, and even though she may have some ideas that the audience disagrees with, and is sympathetic all throughout. Kate’s bravery is a characteristic most civilians would have difficulty achieving. Benicio Del Toro also played his character well, as a hurt man who will stop at nothing to get revenge.
Sicario is a sliver of a business that would be hard for anyone stomach. Kate, had the purest of intentions, only wanting to stop the men who carried out the atrocious act shown in the first scene. She was in too deep and tried to hold her own, but she was shocked and upset by the level of violence she saw and knew that she couldn’t ever fit permanently in such a setting. The ending of the film isn’t settle for the characters. Most of them are left alone, the question of “what comes next” lingering around all of them, respectively. Kate in particular has been very affected by her experience, she’s a different person from the one she was before, and will now have to begin to deal with the emotional affects of her time with the CIA.
The characters are enticing, the plot is devastating and the film as a whole is chilling. 9/10.
Lead image: Cinema Vine