A Reel Review: SICARIO - DAY OF SOLDADO

The frequent topic of discussion surrounding the sequel to SICARIO, the 2015 sleeper-hit crime-thriller, is how it would fare without the vital elements. Lead actress and heart-of-the-picture Emily Blunt is absent this time around, as is director Denis Villeneuve. What it does have returning is writer Taylor Sheridan, along with two of the best actors in the business…which leads to the question, is that enough to carry DAY OF SALDADO.

After a terrorist attack on the United States, the CIA decides to initiate an off-the-books mission to start a war between rival drug cartels. Leading the way is CIA agent Matt Graver (Josh Brolin), and his undercover operative Alejandro (Benicio del Toro), who hatch a plan to kidnap Isabela (Isabela Moner), the 16 year-old daughter of a drug lord.

SALDADO is simple in its beginnings. Kidnap the daughter, make it look like a rival cartel did the job, and let the two (or more) factions wipe each other out on the other side of the border. But, just like any other government operation, things are bound to go sideways, which they certainly do. After a quick doublecross and one hell of a bloodbath via shootout, Alejandro is left alone in the desert with Isabela, with Matt back at the base catching heat for the failed mission and incoming political and global shitstorm that is about to roll downhill for the U.S. government.

Eager to mop up the mess, Matt’s bosses (Matthew Modine and Catherine Keener) order him to order Alejandro to fully wipe up, which is code for getting rid of the kid. At this point a moral dilemma enters the picture, with both men refusing to do the deed. Somewhat isolated, an opportunity presents itself for writer Sheridan and new director Stefano Sollima to explore the moral grappling that both men seemingly are stuck with it. This is an opportunity that is quickly and unfortunately passed by, as both men just say what they’re doing and stomp forward with it. With little for the two principles to do but chase and shoot each other, the film lacks a moral center, making SOLDADO one cold film to try and latch onto. Alejandro’s past comes into the film nicely and gives him reason to go off the grid with the young and frightened girl, but it’s simply not enough. A sub-plot involving a young Mexican teen working as a human trafficker is another attempt to generate empathy, but again, not enough time or effort is spent on it.

The lack of humanity is somewhat compensated by the powerful punches of tension and action. The shootouts are bloody glorious, and are only eclipsed by the nail-biting tension leading up to them. They are structured so close to the first SICARIO, that Sollima was clearly inspired and not willing to stray too far from what worked. There are some great tracking-shots, although editing is a tad sloppy as there’s a few breaks in continuity. One or two twists towards the end turns the film a little upside-down; the surprises are quite good. The score by Hildur Guonadottir also copies a lot from the predecessor, as does the cinematography but falls short of the beauty of SICARIO.

Acting is superb. Brolin and del Toro do their best with the thin script, and both come off as bad-asses that no one would want to cross. Matthew Modine and Catherine Keener are fine, but are both underutilized and wind up as extended cameos. The show is stolen by young Isabela Moner whose character goes through more horror than a 16 year-old girl ever should.

SOLDADO is firmly entrenched in today’s world of immigrants and what they should and shouldn’t be doing, along with the old grappling of governments doing something wrong for the sake of accomplishing something right, so this isn’t a film that works as escapism. The filmmakers have described this movie as a spinoff to SICARIO more than a sequel, and this is accurate as there’s very little from the first film that carries over…but oddly enough, the ending sets up a third film. And with that ending, SOLDADO feels incomplete with too much punted down the road. SOLDADO is a nail-biter and nicely down, but lacks some sort of human being to connect with.

BOTTOM LINE: Rent it