Sicario

There are very few people on this planet, outside of my family, that I’d actually risk my life for but one of them just so happens to be talented and lovely Emily Blunt. The other is Leah Briese, an actress I met while she was making a short film here in Austin. I told her then and I will tell Blunt the same thing when I eventually meet her, that if they asked me to, I would follow them to the borders of Mexico and risk getting thrown into a barrel of fire just to be with them.

Now looking back, that statement seems beyond cheesy and a little bit dramatic but hey it’s true! Ever since I saw that beautiful Brit in The Devil Wears Prada I knew then that I had finally found my replacement for Nicole Kidman; even if my idiot friend does think that she looks like Nicolas Cage’s daughter. Thankfully for me she doesn’t have Cage’s crazy eyes but what she does have is an elegance about her that I can’t fully put into words. All I know is that a woman like that would make me rob someone in broad daylight; DMX style!

So naturally I went to go see her new movie Sicario before I went and checked out the science fiction film for middle aged people, The Martian. Director Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners) is quickly becoming one of my favorites in Hollywood as all of his movies are dark, challenging, and put you in these tough moral dilemmas. All of his protagonists, and I use that word loosely, have a justified end game in mind but their methods of getting there are a bit unscrupulous.

And this is exactly what happens in Sicario. Blunt plays Kate, a sullen FBI agent who is known throughout the agency for being tough as nails and for doing everything by the book. Well one day while raiding a home in Arizona, she discovers something so awful that it grabs the attention of not only the major media outlets in America but also the attention of people whose paygrades are a lot higher than hers. So in order to shake things up and bring peace of mind to the American public, the people in charge essentially force her to become a part of a new tactical team to go to Mexico and help bring down the Cartel that’s responsible for this horrible incident. The team is led by Matt (Josh Brolin) and the mysterious Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro) and they take Kate into a number of tense and dangerous situations without ever fully explaining to her why. But as they get deeper and deeper into the inner workings of the Cartel, she discovers what the real mission was and she, as well as you the viewer, are left floored.

Villeneuve is a master at making you feel the same pain, fear, and turmoil that his characters do. And while you may find yourself slowly leaning towards the questionable actions of his "heroes", he always provides you someone in the movie to help keep you grounded, so to speak. And that’s the role Blunt plays.

The real star of the movie however is Del Toro. He is a natural as he plays the gun for hire role to a tee. He’s like the crazed father in law you want on your side in case a fight breaks out but you also never want to get too close to him for fear that he may freak out and turn on you one day. And from what I saw in this movie, that’s something you definitely don’t want happening any time soon.

There are a number of cool shots in this movie and while it’s not quite as frightening or gloomy as Prisoners was, it is something that will stick with you for quite some time. I rate this movie as very FRESH and I suggest you check it out.