an FBI agent who volunteered herself to capture the people in charge of operating drug cartels in Mexico

Rating: 9/10 (8 October 2015)

Sicario is a Spanish term for hit-man. This was introduced to the audience at the beginning of the movie. The movie focuses on Kate, an FBI agent who volunteered herself to capture the people in charge of operating drug cartels in Mexico. As they arrived in El Juarez, Mexico, the agents faced reality of how drug traffickers took over the land. Dead bodies were hung by rope over a bridge and gangsters drove through the streets to patrol the area. The agents knew that they needed to act quickly in order to clean up the mess.
"Sicario" was a suspenseful movie where the director, Denis Villeneuve, did a wonderful job on tackling the relationship between the movie and reality. Portrayed by actress Emily Blunt, Kate joined a mission without knowledge of what was going on around her. She came from a background where she learned to be on top of every mission and knew exactly what happened in her surroundings. However, Kate struggled to follow the assignments given to her because she was not aware of the specifications of her duty and new endeavors to overcome. Higher authorities were often bribed to run deliveries, protect dealers, and hint information to cartel members.
Denis Villeneuve attempted to portray accurate the views on state police members. When a dealer went through the tunnel and needed a ride, a state policeman was usually the one that gave him a ride. The corrupted officials often gave cartel members information on what was going on around the states. If any whistle-blowers were to be caught, the cartel members would send people after their family.
This movie brought out the best in all the actors and actresses. From an audience member's point of view, each cast member acted out their roles perfectly. Cast members were able to depict their characters' lives, allowing the audience to truly understand the lifestyle in the movie. In addition, the cinematography captured every aspect of El Juarez to the smallest details.
I did have a critique about the movie. If there were to be a change in the movie, I would suggest to add or remove the bar scene. Kate and her friend, Reggie, ran into one of Reggie's ex-coworker at the bar, who happens to be a state policeman. Kate decided to casually date him. Unfortunately, he ended up working for the cartel in which he tried to kill her when she found out. What I did not like about this scene was how it was a coincident for both Kate and the officer to hook up, as he ended up being a corrupted officer. Realistically, a good friend would not intentionally introduce someone to an individual that would cause harm. If Reggie were to invite him out on a separate occasion, this would have been a better scene than just running into each other at a specific bar.
Overall, "Sicario" was wonderfully directed; I was captivated throughout the whole movie. It was full of suspense and never had a dull moment. Denis Villeneuve invoked emotion with each scene and connected it with real life situations. This movie was an eye opener to the audience because most people never understood how corrupted the state officials can be. Working within a cartel will never end well; members will either shoot or get shot at. With a movie this realistic, people will now understand the war against drug cartels.