SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO

   SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO is the sequel to the 2015 film that starred Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro. This second entry stars Del Toro and Brolin, reprising their roles from the first and takes their characters to deeper and darker places than explored in the first film. They weren't the focus of the first film. The focus on that film was Emily Blunt's Kate Mercer, who is nowhere to be found in this film. Her character represented the audience. Through her, we the audience entered into a dark and scary world that most of us have no idea exists. We were introduced to a world of dark characters who did bad things to further their causes, whether it be on the side of the good or bad. Through the eyes of Kate Mercer, we the audience took off the roses colored sunglasses to see a side of the world we choose to turn a blind eye to-evil.

    In DAY OF THE SOLDADO, we are taken back into that dark and scary world created by one of the best screenwriters working today, Taylor Sheridan. There is no backtracking or revisiting the events of the first film. Sheridan rightly assumes that viewers of this second film are already familiar with his world created. Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro once again give outstanding performances as men who are not the traditional good guys or the traditional bad guys. These are two men who do some bad things to further their own causes. Brolin's Matt Graver is driven by furthering his career taking down the Mexican Drug Cartel and Benicio Del Toro's Alejandro is driven by past events that have led him down a murderous and bloody road. I will not get into plot points of this film. If you've read any of my reviews, you know that I do my best not to spoil the film for you.
  DAY OF THE SOLDADO sees Taylor Sheridan writing the second entry in a supposedly planned trilogy. Like all good second acts, SOLDADO is a deeper and darker chapter from a brillant screenwriter in the early stages of his career. The film is directed this time by a filmmaker I'm not familiar with-Stefano Sollima. He takes the reigns from previous film director Denis Villenueve and delves further into the world of Crime and terrorism. SOLDADO is not  for the feint of heart. It is a very violent and very bloody film that is unsettling and terrifying. Just when you think the film is going in one direction, Sheridan and Sollima flips things on it's head, taking the story in an often poignant but still darker road from the films first half.
  I give SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO an A. Not only is it a worthy sequel to the first film, it is also one of the best films I've seen in 2018.