An excellent examination of the morally foggy "War on Drugs"

Rating: 9/10 (24 January 2016)

How far we should go in prosecuting the drug war is the main concern of SICARIO, the latest directorial effort by Denis Villeneuve. The violence brought about by America's war on drugs is a sensitive one because of the complex motives and casualties on both sides. This film doesn't really offer any answers, but it does provide enough to mentally chew on as the morally gray areas inherent in such an effort are explored. The audience's surrogate is Kate (Emily Blunt), an FBI agent who volunteers for an inter-agency task force that takes her into the heart of Mexico with the goal of finding a top boss in the cartel. Along for the mission is a mysterious person, Alejandro (Benicio del Toro), whose allegiance and motives are unclear (at first). If there's one weakness in the film, it's Emily Blunt's character, unfortunately. While she and her FBI partner provide the bulk of the dramatic conflict, she never really develops satisfactorily, instead relegated to a mostly passive observer. Benicio del Toro's character is by far the most interesting and compelling, and he get most of the best moments and dialogue. From a technical standpoint, SICARIO compares well with Villeneuve's other work and features outstanding cinematography, courtesy of Roger Deakins (who also worked on PRISONERS). Slow and deliberate camera-work nicely complements the slow-burn pacing, which culminates in one of the tensest (and morally ambiguous) scenes in recent memory. If there's one thing that this film does extremely well, it shows that the drug war has far-reaching effects from the top of the food chain down to a cop who is just trying to provide for his family (even if it is on the wrong side of the law). I should also mention the excellent score by Johann Johannsson, although a key element of it is reminiscent of Hans Zimmer's style. If I had seen this last year, it most certainly would have made my top ten. As it stands, it further establishes Denis Villeneuve as a talent to be reckoned with and is suitably entertaining to boot.