Sicario [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD]

SICARIO This is by far one of my favorite films ever and made me a huge fan of writer Taylor Sheridan. When the trailer was released I thought that this looked like a pretty good flick. It also helped that I noticed my boy Jeffrey Donovan from “Burn Notice” was in it so I was about it. I was wrong, it was not a pretty good flick, it was excellent. So I bought the Blu-Ray of course when it was released. The film follows F.B.I. Special Agent Kate Macer [Emily Blunt] as she is brought on board by the C.I.A. To be apart of a special task force going after cartels. She learns how brutal and hard that the mission is and her part in it, one she does not like or appreciate. The violence that cartels use everyday in every way is put back on them twofold by this task force and the assassin who is apart of it. As she learns. This movie is outstanding and one of my favorites, writer Sheridan did an excellent job here in his debut. Director Denis Villeneuve [“Dune”] did a marvelous job here as well as he did with the film “Prisoners”. The acting is amazing as well here from Blunt and Donovan as I have already mentioned but especially from Benicio Del Toro as the assassin and Josh Brolin as the lead C.I.A. Agent, both are excellent here. The Blu-Ray has some great behind the scenes features but I really wish there would have been a commentary from the Director and or the Writer. Still this is an excellent film and a classic in my opinion.

For one reason or another, Denis Villeneuve's movies always stay with me. I might take a pass on the "Dune" epics, but "Arrival" cemented my admiration for his work. I had seen "Sicario", but did not recall that he had directed it. Seeing it again, I am reminded that it was Benicio del Toro's and Emily Blunt's performances that originally stayed with me. But the fine points of visual storytelling dovetail with what I like so much about Villeneuve's other movies. Emily Blunt is yet another UK native who nails US speech -- you'd never know she is British. A great movie, more timely than ever.

Contra one reviewer: there really have been times & places in Mexico where bodies were hung from overpasses on a regular basis. There has been appalling violence in some areas of Mexico: the illegal drug trade should be boycotted by all Americans. *Some minor plot spoilers.* I share in the complaints about the character played by Emily Blunt (who always acts well). The film poses the difficult issue of what does a country do in the face of appalling violence when the legal means simply do not work. She’s a plot device to put forth the *follow the law anyway* argument: but her actions are incoherent. So is there really no coherent way to make the point? The movie starts off with a hostage rescue under her command, but it’s a false alarm: there are no hostages! And yet the entry is made by using a military-type vehicle to knock down a wall! And they all pile out with full military-type gear! And she machine guns down a man (trying to kill her)! It turns out that this militaristic approach was fully justified, so why is she then so freaked out when a convoy transporting a major drug kingpin was attacked by 8 gang-bangers—some with automatic weapons—and those transporting the prisoner defended themselves? Self defense is not “illegal”, and had they not acted quickly many innocent civilians would have been killed by stray bullets. And why did she then protest that she was not a “soldier” when she acted exactly like one just a few days before? If she is so “by the book” why did she regularly disobey orders? If she is so opposed to action in Mexico, why does she go into Mexico and point her gun at her own team member and give him orders? What was her authority to do so—going by her own theory? Her character does illustrate one important point: if you don’t know a man well enough to know that he’s working for a cartel, and intends to kill you, don’t decide to have casual sex with him. Casual sex is irrational.

First, let me say that I don’t look for this genre usually, I just watched it on a platform cause I could not find anything else that night . Although it is not the genre that I enjoy the most, I just could not let go on it. Now, let’s talk about the movie itself. For one, it is NOT base on a true story. But it DOES described (and pretty well) the situation, the plots and behavior of both side of the US-Mexico border of the time. It is not a true story, but it is so realistic that it could be one. In other words, they did not invented the story or exaggerated about what was truly happening there at the time. I’m not intending to give any spoilers here. If you want to know, look at it. This said, if I’m not really interested about the genre, why I kept watching it ?... Well, I was amazed by the image, the plot, the actors and the pace of the movie. Surprisingly, before watching it, I did not bother to look at the director’s name. Today, I know why I was so “glued” on it : Sicario signature is Denis Villeneuve... once again ! Without any hesitation, I bought the second one, the sequel. It was pretty good, but it could not match Villeneuve’s touch. Since, I have read that the producers are trying to get him back for the third and final installment. Ok, whatever what will happen, I already decided that I will get that third movie. But god knows how I wish that Villeneuve will be the director of it. No wonder why he is the most wanted director now, he’s a genius. For Sicario and Villeneuve, it’s a very well deserved five starts.

La película nos gustó mucho y creemos que refleja con mucha verosimilitud la situación por la que pasan en muchas zonas de Méjico, donde la vida vale muy poco, mucha acción, escenas en algunos casos algo fuertes y excelente interpretación de Benicio del Toro. La recomiendo.

This is an absolutely jaw dropping 4K release. Mastered from a native 4K DI, the level of detail in the image is like a sensory overload. But it’s the high dynamic range that gives this release an overwhelming edge over the 1080p HD Blu Ray - gone are the murky shadows, and they are instead replaced by shadow delineation that is breathtaking to watch. Take for instance the scene where two characters are watching a firefight in Juarez from the roof of a building at dusk. The light filtering through from the sun just over the horizon cuts across the scene to give the image clarity. This is lost in the 1080p HD Blu Ray and all you get are dark shapes and explosions. If you are a fan of this film, this is a must own release to get the most out of the gorgeous photography, which just adds a whole new dimension to the viewing experience.

日本で販売しているものには英語字幕がなかったのでこちらから購入しました。届くまで一カ月近くかかるとのことでしたが半月程で来ました。包装紙のよれよれは当たり前ですがしかし値段も安く、また中身がキレイだったので大変満足しています。

Fantastic cinematography and quite interesting story are the highlights of this excellent movie. It's the story of the never ending flow of drugs across the Mexican border, the very high level of violence in Mexican border towns perpetrated in large part by Mexican drug kingpins who run the show, and the U.S. attempts to slow down the drug flow even though they know the demand in the U.S. for these drugs keeps them coming. And yes, Benicio del Toro was robbed of an Oscar nomination and the Oscar itself. He elevates the movie any time he appears, but the rest of the cast are quite good, including Josh Brolin as the ethically challenged operative who will do pretty much anything to advance the goals he wants advanced. Director Villeneuve hasn't made a bad English language film, which is actually insufficient ... he's only made good to outstanding English language films (looking forward to obtaining Arrival when it comes out on Blu-ray). Strong recommendation.