Sicario (2015) – If
Denis Villeneuve isn’t already one of my favorite working directors, Sicario ought to cement that reputation.
I’ve loved Prisoners and Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, so Sicario
fills in a gap with a movie that combines the seat-edge tension of Prisoners with, well, Blade Runner 2049’s fascination with
dust. Emily Blunt plays an FBI agent whose safehouse raid goes wrong, leading
her to take a new role in the war on drugs alongside two Department of Justice
operatives (Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro) who redefine playing their cards
close to the chest by keeping her in the dark about their ambiguous,
ultra-violent mission. From the film’s opening scene, which takes several
brutally unexpected turns, Villeneuve and screenwriter Taylor Sheridan (he of Hell or High Water) keep the audience
guessing as Blunt’s Kate Macer tries to find her own footing in a plot that is
never quite transparent about its goals. Indeed, for a film that doles out its
cards so slowly, it’s almost alchemical how Villeneuve keeps the audience on
his side for the duration of the film; he’s helped ably, one should note, by
cinematographer Roger Deakins, who has been the cinematographer for many of the most gorgeous films
of the last twenty years (favorites: Skyfall
and No Country for Old Men, whose
visual influence is acute here). Points also to Benicio del Toro, who gives a
riveting, largely silent performance as Alejandro, the man who “If he says to
do somethin’, just do it” – and you buy it from del Toro’s quiet intensity.
Hours after watching Sicario, I was
elated to learn that there’s a sequel, Soldado,
due in June of this year. And as a moviegoer, I don’t know if there’s a better
feeling than discovering a delight you’d missed along your way, only to be told
that there’s more coming just around the corner.That does it for this week’s edition of “Monday at the Movies.” We’ll see you next week!
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