Bleak and brilliant.

Rating: 8/10 (19 October 2015)

I am not observant enough to know exactly how they did it, but this movie feels almost like a documentary. The "establishing shots"(?), bird's eye view or at an angle, probably helped. They could have been made digitally, but somehow they felt more real. Like the movie was showing that these are real locations. Long takes, and the camera not always in the middle of the action, probably helped as well. It really made the movie feel grounded in reality. I'm not familiar enough with cartels, FBI operations and the other players in the movie to say anything about how realistic it actually is - but it was all very believable.
The plot itself is both intelligent and interesting. It's all about force, where the ones with the most power are the winners. People using each other. Hopeless situations. Not exactly sunshine and rainbows.
Lastly, the cast is amazing. Josh Brolin has found his calling in these "no bullshit"-characters, similar to the ones he played in MIB3, No Country for Old Men and Inherent Vice. Emily Blunt was great in Edge of Tomorrow, and she is just as great in this movie. Del Toro makes me want to see every movie he's ever been in.