Sicario: Day of the Soldado
The overall quality of a film can be determined based on the way you look at the film. It’s happened many times before, and will happen many times in the future, and “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” is no exception, given that it can be seen as either a really fun action-thriller or a really disappointing “Sicario” sequel, and to be fair, neither side is wrong.
The war on drugs continues to be a detrimental situation as conflict on the U.S.-Mexico Border rages on. But now, smuggling narcotics seems like child’s play as cartels have resorted to smuggling terrorists across the border. With the situation escalating, the US government calls upon CIA Operative Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) to enlist the help of fellow hitman Alejandro Gillick (Benicio Del Toro) to put an end to the struggle.
Director Denis Villeneuve gave audiences quite the treat with 2015’s critical hit “Sicario,” which is seen as a tension-filled, suspense-driven masterpiece of filmmaking. Now comes in fellow director Stefano Sollima to climb a steep slope and attempt to develop a worthy-enough follow-up to the original entry, which isn’t exactly a walk in the park to say the least. In the end, however, Sollima decides to take the sequel and spin it into a new direction by straying away from the more nuanced, slowly-but-surely told story in the original and aims for a much more energetic and bombastic direction. Many people will become discouraged with this change in direction, especially those who are huge fans of the original, and it’s easy to see why.
Despite these changes, however, the performances alone should be enough to convince yourself to go and see it. Much like in the last film, Benicio Del Toro excels tremendously as the persistent badass Alejandro while Josh Brolin continues to bring the humor and grit needed in a film like this. But with a new entry comes some new faces, most notably in Isabela Moner as Isabela Reyes, the daughter of notorious cartel leader Carlos Reyes. In the story, Gillick and Graver decide to kidnap Isabela in order to incite a civil war between rival drug cartels, one of them belonging to Isabela’s father. But as the story progresses, Gillick begins to bond with Isabela and decides to protect her, disobeying the orders he was given. Moner excellently displays the dread, confusion, and panic within those sequences and throughout the narrative, making her a highlight of the film.
The original “Sicario” focused on how the war on drugs forces us to make hard choices and go against the values we are meant to defend as soldiers, and as a result degrade our humanity in exchange for security and safety. This time around, “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” shoots for more of an invigorating, adrenaline-based action film that relies more on style and spectacle than substance and nuanced storytelling. For me, however, while in many respects it is rather disappointing, I did end up enjoying it for what it was. For one, on a technical level, the film excels with flying colors. When Sollima committed himself to an action-thriller, he made sure to show that commitment with exhilarating actions set-pieces and gunfights, a suspense-driven score, and great use of screenwriter Taylor Sheridan’s dialogue and screenplay.
But this shift holds problems of its own, particularly with the second-half of the film. As I stated beforehand, the film has some benefits as an action-thriller, but in exchange also loses much of what made the original fresh and masterful. The film had me locked in at the beginning and continued strong for most of the first-half, displaying those same suspenseful and gritty realism that we’re familiar with. But the second half completely strays away from that realism and delves into the realm of lunacy and outlandish. The film requires a sort of leap in logic with some scenarios and situations that take place. It’s these sequences that undermine the suspense and grounded approach of the first half and as a result removes some, though not all, of the tension that we often associate this series with.
Overall, “Sicario: Day of the Soldado,” if looked at as a standalone action-thriller, is an exhilarating joyride with standout performances from its leads and offers up some worthwhile action and suspense. Despite its disappointing entry as a “Sicario” sequel, the film still provides enough style, thrill, and energy to make it at the very least a sufficient follow-up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIMChzE_aCo&t=1s&w=585