Bloodborne: 'Sicario' sequel further descends the spiral of cartel drugs and violence

Sicario: Day of the Soldado
3.5 out of 5 Stars
Director: Stefano Sollima
Writer: Taylor Sheridan
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Josh Brolin, Isabela Moner
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Rated: R for strong violence, bloody images, and language

Synopsis: Looking to start a war between the major Mexican cartels, federal agent Matt Graver asked to put together a team to kidnap a drug lord’s daughter.

Review: One of the most interesting aspect of 2015’s “Sicario,” a film that explored drug trafficking on the border area between the U.S. and Mexico, was that Taylor Sheridan’s script called for a female protagonist. It didn’t hurt that Emily Blunt was cast in the role with Denis Villeneuve directing and a cast that also featured Benicio Del Toro and Josh Brolin. Still, it was Blunt’s character that made the film standout as something different.

Three years later we’re offered “Sicario: Day of the Soldado,” a sequel that sees Sheridan returning as screenwriter and Brolin and Del Toro reprising their roles, but there’s no Blunt and no Villeneuve.

“Day of the Soldado” is lacking what made the original film standout in the first place. That doesn’t equate into a terrible movie, Sheridan’s writing and the performances from the remaining cast make for a solid, if not incredibly noteworthy, film. The movie also benefits from a solid performance from Isabela Moner, who was also the most palatable part of “Transformers: The Last Knight.”

Sheridan populates the world of “Day of the Soldado” with characters that operate in grey to black areas. That even extends to Moner’s character, Isabel Reyes, the arrogant and violent daughter of a cartel lord. She’s also just a kid. A kid who has grown up under unusual circumstances that make her hard to condemn, but also difficult to embrace.

Director Stefano Sollima never quite establishes the atmosphere that Villeneuve was able to create and the film lacks a real signature moment, but it also never devolves into a soulless action film, which was my greatest fear.

There are a few political topics that get raised early on, but ultimately don’t factor into the main narrative in the way that they initially seem to. The complex web of the underworld points in many directions, “Day of the Soldado” explores just one of those strands.

“Day of the Soldado” might not be the sequel that I wanted, but it’s still a decent action thriller that isn’t afraid to look deep into the darkness. Just don’t expect there to be a light at the end of the tunnel or easy answers to complicated questions; Taylor Sheridan is too honest to give us that.