Sicario, dir. Denis Villeneuve

Zero and Wiz RECOMMEND Sicario Sicario does many things right: it has intense action sequences that bookend a meaty plot about finding justice in a business where it always feels dirty. But the one thing that the film does so very well: evoking a feeling of being a pawn on a chess board where you're not quite sure you are actually playing chess. Kate, played by Emily Blunt, is an idealistic person who desperately wants to bring to justice to the criminals that killed her squad...but she wants it by the book. This leads to her being increasingly frustrated and exasperated by the methods of Matt, played by Josh Brolin. Matt uses all sorts of subterfuge, dirty tactics and morally questionable actions to get results. Kate is essentially the avatar of the audience when it comes to wanting to do "the right thing". But in a subversion of the trope, the film shows the protagonist being completely shut out in the machinations of the plan. That feeling of a lack of control is key to the film. The audience, as well as Kate, is never certain who to trust, what will happen and what is actually going on. It leads to the film having a consistent feel of unease as you grasp what's going on. And when slivers of the truth start to form, you are still not entirely sure of what is actually going on. This feelings is further enforced by a great performance by Emily Blunt. Blunt is believable in all aspects of the character: from her ability to do the job she's doing to the feeling of paranoia, frustration and disgust by what's going on. But this is also helped with two other great performances: Josh Brolin plays a slimy, shady operator with great bravado and a devilish sneer. He's particularly effective in scenes where he one-ups Kate. My favorite performance? It has to be Benicio Del Toro as Alejandro. The film does a great job peeling Alejandro's layers slowly throughout until you know what his true purpose is. It's a complex performance that hits incredibly well at the end. At the end, Sicario isn't a complex or even a confusing film. It's a film that has one job: make you feel the unease and frustration of the main character. In that, it succeeds quite well. This is aided by great performances and sequences that are executed incredibly well.