Sicario 2: Soldado (15)
The first Sicario flick was such an exceptionally well made tour-deforce it was my pick for best film of 2015.
It also ended in definitive fashion which suggested a one-and-done story that left a bruising, unforgettable lasting impact.
But here we are, just three years later, facing up to another tale of the relentless drug war on the US-Mexico border, which this time sees the cartels trafficking terrorists.
Denis Villeneuve, who did such a phenomenal job behind the camera on the first movie, is replaced by Italian director Stefano Sollima (TV’s Gomorrah).
It’s not all change, however, as Taylor Sheridan once again scripts the action and Josh Brolin’s federal agent Matt Graver and Benicio Del Toro’s gun-for-hire Alejandro are back in business.
There’s no return for Emily Blunt, though, and one thing this follow-up lacks is the innocence and audience-guiding presence Blunt so expertly supplied in its predecessor.
Fortunately it’s missing little else as, while inevitably coming up short when compared to the seminal original, Sicario 2 is a sequel that not only justifies its existence but works extremely well in its own right.
Like the first film, we kick things off with a hyper-tense sequence that sets the taut tone, this time centred around a suicide bombing.