Seen it 3x so far; still love it; still a 10/10; a movie about love, friendship, pain, loss, self-sacrifice, despair, death, life, family, and finding a reason to live

Rating: 10/10 (3 July 2020)

100% spoiler-free.
39% on RT. Ah, the critics, cannot stand those people.
7.7 on iMDB.
47% on Metacritic.
93% of google users liked this movie.
This movie is amazing. The story has themes like love, friendship, pain, loss, self-sacrifice, despair, death, life, family, and finding a reason to live. So many themes.
I mean you got Denzel Washington who is great at what he does and Dakota Fanning who as a kid could expertly cry (e.g. War of the Worlds 2005) and can easily make you believe she is in serious distress. Radha Mitchell (the mom) did pretty good too. Giancarlo Giannini (director of the AFI) also did good, as did Rachel Ticotin (the reporter). Christopher Walken (Denzel's friend) did ok. Jesús Ochoa (a very bad guy) did good. Gero Camilo (someone's brother) did really good acting too. Overall, good American and Mexican cast.
The plot is great from start to finish. As the movie progressed, more and more layers to the plot are revealed with the addition of some nice amount of "action" as well. I really liked the fact that the movie took place in Mexico and that a couple pieces of their culture were showcased, which were corruption and impunity. The ending was bittersweet and might make one tear up a bit. The ending song was very sad.
Memorable songs:
"Una Palabra" - Carlos Varela
"The End" - Harry Gregson-Williams
"Blue Bayou" - Linda Ronstadt
Conclusion: well-made movie that should have won some awards. This movie offers many strong themes. The protagonists did really well. The story has some nice twists. There is some nice action too. Basing the setting in Mexico made the movie very authentically different. Overall, the events of the movie felt very believable. This movie is worth at least one watch and I highly recommend it.
10/10