The following review originally ran on Starpulse.com in 2015.
So far Sicario is the closest director Denis Villeneuve has come to mastering the slow burn thriller. His films Prisoners and Enemy show promise, although they don’t hit the mark like this one does. Despite the engaging crime story at its center, Prisoners is bloated and glacial. Enemy on the other hand, is super suspenseful, but has confusing symbolism and a total WTF ending. Sicario splits the difference between them as a swift, straightforward crime tale.
Just because Sicario is less complicated though, that doesn’t mean it’s any less thrilling. What sets it apart from Prisoners and Enemy is that its mystery is much more grandiose. Nefarious forces you never see on screen impact the characters in the name of the greater good, driving their actions and determining their destiny. Some of the characters understand their roles as pawns in a demented chess game and play them willingly, while others uncomfortably realize over the course of the movie that they’re being manipulated.
Part of the thrill in watching Sicario is slowly trying to unravel this conspiracy so you can figure out what the puppet masters’ endgame is. You’re along for the ride with FBI agent Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) after she’s recruited to join a secretive government team that’s waging war against a Mexican drug kingpin. Macer is lured in by the opportunity to nail the man responsible for horrifying murders she stumbles upon. Although she quickly discovers that her role isn’t as active as she expects it will be, and that the team’s leaders (Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro) aren’t forthcoming about their mission’s actual goals.
Macer is instantly agitated by her new colleagues’ lack of transparency and how they drag her places with little explanation or regard proper procedure. As a viewer, you become equally frustrated by their misinformation and manipulation. Just like Macer, you can’t step away however. Another part of Sicario’s thrill is seeing the operation through to the end like she does, so you can figure out why she’s there and so you can truly understand the depravity of the people running the mission.
Sicario can be violent since it’s a crime thriller, but its violence always feels purposeful. It’s a film that’s gruesome in all the right ways without ever feeling gratuitous. Even a chilling moment where a whole family is gunned down doesn’t feel excessive in context. Action scenes aren’t abundant, although they’re captivating because of the movie’s humming score by Jóhann Jóhannsson and its beautiful cinematography by Roger Deakins. A scene where the team descends a hill at sunset to embark on nighttime raid might be one the most gorgeous shots ever to grace the big screen. The following sequence’s skillful alternation between night vision shots on the ground and thermal aerial shots is spellbinding.
There are really only two minor faults that Sicario has. First, there could be more character development for Macer. The film is about her immediate struggle so it’s not absolutely essential, but it would be nice to know her better since you’re supposed to empathize with how the system jerks her around. Second, it’s annoying how coy Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro’s characters are with information, considering how matter of factly they spill their guts later. More interesting reveals through investigation and reasoning by Macer would have made for a more taut thriller. These annoyances are very tiny though and probably won’t impact what you’ll consider to be a dark, exciting tale about the war on drugs.