SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO

FBI agent Matt Graver calls on mysterious operative Alejandro Gillick when Mexican drug cartels start to smuggle terrorists across the U.S. border. The war escalates even further when Alejandro kidnaps a top kingpin's daughter to deliberately increase the tensions. When the young girl is seen as collateral damage, the two men will determine her fate as they question everything that they are fighting for.

Director: Stefano Sollima

 

Cast: Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Jeffrey Donovan, Isabela Moner, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Catherine Keener

Release Date: June 29, 2018

 

Genres: Action, Crime, Drama

Rated R for strong violence, bloody images, and language

Runtime: 2h 3min

Review:

Sicario: Day of the Soldado is a solid sequel even though it is missing that spark that made the original film so impressive.  Losing Denis Villeneuve and Roger Deakins was bound to leave a gap but new director Stefano Sollima tries his best to keep the aesthetics the same and general feel of the original.  Still there’s a noticeable talent gap which is compounded by some truly bleak sequences which are as shocking as they are rather unnecessary.  The script has a strange undercurrent of nastiness which can distract you from some strong performances.  Benicio del Toro drives the film with an impressive showing expanding on his character from the first film.  Del Toro is always the most interesting person on screen while Josh Brolin is a close second.  Brolin adds some needed depth to his character but the film doesn’t spend as much time cultivating it as it should.  Isabela Moner is a strong child performer who emotes fairly well even though she’s not given a ton of dialogue.  Catherine Keener is given a thankless role which wastes her considerable talents which is a real shame.  The film’s twisty plot is kind of muddled and once the film gains momentum it suddenly just ends with a door flapping open for a sequel.  It’s weird to think of this series being a franchise but that’s where the film leads us.

B-