Sicario (2015) Review

"What is our mission?"
-Kate Macer

"To dramatically overreact."
-Matt Graver



After a raid on a suspected cartel safe house that is filled with corpses and booby traps, FBI Agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) is recruited to a Departed of Justice task force, which is led by Matt Graver (Josh Brolin).  She is told their goal is to take down cartel lieutenant, Manuel Díaz (Bernardo Saracino), and to do that they are going to El Paso to see Díaz's brother.  However, after arriving in El Paso, Kate discovers they are actually going across the border into Ciudad Juárez to extradite the brother.  As the mission continues, Kate is repeatedly not told everything that is going on, and her suspicion of both Matt and his associate, Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro), continues to rise as the mission gets more violent and less ethical.


What Works 

The pacing of Sicario is excellent.  This movie is two hours long and it flies by.  The first time I saw it, I was shocked when it ended.  I couldn't believe how fast the movie went by.  The story is consistently engaging, entertaining and leaves you excited for what is going to happen next.

The film's score is excellent as well.  I can't give enough praise to the late Jóhann Jóhannsson.  His score is really fantastic and does a great job of increasing the tension of the film.

The performances are great all around.  Emily Blunt is a great protagonist and her partner, played by Daniel Kaluuya does an awesome job of saying what the audience is feeling.  He is very direct and and won't stop asking questions, which is very refreshing.  Benicio del Toro is fantastic as the lawyer turned hitman and he shines in every seen he is in.  And Josh Brolin manages to ride the line of being a monster and being the kind of guy you'd want as your boss.  It's an impressive feat and more than a little unsettling.

Finally, I love the Juarez sequence.  It's one of the single most tense scenes I have ever seen captured on film.  The score, the cinematography, the acting, everything works together to build up this sequence.  You know the attack on the convoy is coming, even when you see the gunman, the tension still builds.  It's a masterfully directed scene and the highlight of the film.


What Sucks:

I only have one, minor, complaint.  As I said above, the Juarez sequence is utterly fantastic and the highlight of the movie.  But this scene happens fairly early in the film and the rest of the movie simply can't match that level of tension and entertainment.  The rest of the movie is great, but Sicario does peak too early.


Verdict:

An all around excellent film, Sicario has fantastic pacing, music, acting, and tension.  It does peak too early, but its still a massively engaging and entertains film from beginning to end.  Sicario has absolutely got it going on.

 9/10: Great    

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