July 8, 2018 3 min to read

Sicario Day of the Soldado

Sicario Day of the Soldado isn't the masterpiece the original was, but it's excellent characters are enough to make it a compelling watch.

by Zach Saul

Sicario: Day of the Soldado isn’t the masterpiece the original was, but it’s a good action thriller nonetheless. Benicio Del Toro is still on my list of five action stars I call if I have to make an action movie to save my life, and Brolin has gotten really good at playing the villian at this point in his career. I’ll begin this review by admitting that the premise of Sicario Day of the Soldado is absolutely riddiculous. The government attempting to insight a drug war between rival gangs as a way of stopping the pipeline of ISIS fighters in response to a terrorist attack didn’t make much sense. The weakest parts of this movie were the scenes in the situation room, and the interactions between the secretary of Defense and Graver (Brolin) - which felt corny, inauthentic and out of place. However, to it’s credit - when Sicario: the Day of Soldado exits the situation room and focusses on the drug cartels and those fighing the war against corruption: it shines.

This sequel doesn’t have the same haunting pulse that Villeneuve’s version did, but once it settles it it comes pretty close. A large majority of the action takes place is dusty desert terrain near the border and we get to experience up-close and personal what it’s like to question the logitimacy of everything around you from the police, to a suspect’s gang membership, to the Americans’ true intentions in the drug war. Morally questionable intentions are both frustrating, and a source of the movie’s tension as Del Torro is still motivated primarily by vengfulness, and Brolin by beurocratic ambition. Theres a hopelessness to this movie that’s clearly intentional, but at the same time had me questioning what’s left to fight for in Alejandro or Graver’s (Brolin) eyes. In the original, Emily Blunt was our compas and lens through which we viewed everything happening around us, she gave the audience a footing it understanding what the grander purpose to all of this was. Despite well written and interesting characters, this sequel really misses her presence.

Despite Emily Blunt’s abscence, we are introduced to two promising young characters that will probably play a large role in the imminant third Sicario movie. Isabella Moner (Isabel Reyes) the daughter of a drug lord, and Elijah Rodriguez (Miguel Hernandez), the right hand man of a prominant drug lord. Isabel Reyes in particular will be interesting to follow in the next movie because she bore witness to so much trajedy in Day of Soldado including watching Alajndro (Del Torro) get shot in the head. Where her loyalty evetually falls will be really interesting to watch, and I look forward to seeing how Alejandro and the Americans regard her as the conflict with Reyes’ gang escalates.

The Good: Sicario movies will always feature the action scenes in the trailers, but the rich characters and the mystery is what really elevates them. Despite some signifficant flaws the sequel is extremely entertaining because it’s characters are all compelling, complicated, and nuanced in a way other action movie protagonists and villans aren’t. The score is still excellent as well - and incorporates major elements from Jóhann Jóhannsson’s original.

The Bad: Those that say Sicario 2 was unneccisary, despite the fact I enjoyed the film, have a point. The premise around ISIS bombers was pretty ill-concieved, and despite it being heart-wrenching - it led to some cringe-worthy exchanges between government officials and the ‘Sicario Fighters’.