Sicario – 2015

Score: 8,5/10

(Denis Villeneuve special series – part 1)

God damn this movie is powerful. One of the best crime-thrillers I ever saw, it manages to entertain viewers from the very first second up until the last amazing twist. It has tension, it is realistic and it manages to make you think about what people are capable to do for money and power. It is a visceral view into the world of the fight against drugs and it shows you how you can become the monster that you fight against. Sicario is definitely a movie to see if you are a fan of Narcos and you like that type of stories.

Speaking about the story, it is one of the best parts of the movie and it manages to shock and amaze you at the same time. It is brutal, it is powerful, real and it doesn’t beat around the bush. The characters act very similar to real life, managing to take the glamour out of the fight against drugs. These are not superheroes fighting in the spotlight, these are underpaid agents scrambling against all odds and committing atrocities of their own in order to combat the atrocities committed by those they are fighting against.

The characters are powerful, well created and they add a lot to the story. You can relate with everybody, you understand the powerful emotions that they transmit and, whether or not you agree with their choices, it will be almost impossible to condemn them. Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Victor Garber, Jon Bernthal and Daniel Kaluuya are simply amazing, they click very well together and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that this is one of the best casted movies I have ever seen…

The imagery in Sicario does justice to the world that it’s trying to bring to screen. Denis Villeneuve is a great director and we have come to expect a high standard from him. He duly delivers here, offering tension without trying to force it. You remain in awe at almost every turn, and the scene with the cars through Juarez is one I will never be able to forget. Without flashy effects and yet so effective in creating tension and anticipation in the viewer’s mind, it is definitely one of the best actions scenes I have seen in the past decade.

The movie is brutal, so brutal that in fact some of you will not like it because of that. It is shocking because it does not try to sugar coat anything. You feel the despair of the characters, you feel the anger with which they act. Especially Alejandro, brought to life remarkably by del Toro, will shock you, and the shocks will keep coming. It’s telling that I was expecting him to simply kill children at the end and I was relieved when he did not disappoint. This movie changes you, it makes you willing to accept the unthinkable, and that is a sign of how amazing it is.

In conclusion, Sicario is a movie that you must watch if you like thrillers. You will be amazed, you will be scared, and yes, you will also be grossed out by some of the things that happen in this film. You will discover an ugly side of humanity and you will learn to accept it along with the characters. A great movie, one of the best of 2015. I can’t wait for the sequel that will appear this year and I hope it will be at least as good as this one. Watch this, enjoy it, and remember, in the end, reality always wins…

Black Mass – 2015

Score: 8,5/10

I have always been fascinated with movies and series about mob bosses, starting with classics like The Godfather and ending up with modern depictions as Boardwalk Empire or Narcos. I like to understand their lives and to marvel at the things they did, which are usually, even though against the law, amazing… So this is why I was hyped about Black Mass, which tackles the life of James “Whitey” Bulger, one of the greatest Irish mob bosses in history. And I was not disappointed, the movie is brilliant, 122 minutes of thrilling action that manages to captivate and enchant its audiences.

The story is great, historic and yet entertaining. It is a testament to Scott Cooper’s ability as a director that he managed to keep the realism of the film at an amazing level while also adding certain little elements that make it more entertaining. This is too me a true mark of an accomplished director, the way he manipulates reality ever so slightly to give the film that air of mystery that fascinates us all. Black Mass is a truly fascinating movie from start to finish and you will discover a world that, while being so different from our present days, still manages to fascinate and entice every single one of us…

The characters are the best thing about the movie, by far. Johnny Depp as Whitey Bulger is simply amazing. It is one of Depp’s best performances ever and he manages to bring life to the character in an unprecedented way. Everything works, from the look to the little idiosyncrasies that the mobster was known for, it is a truly astonishing example of method acting and I was dismayed to see that his portrayal was snubbed at the 2016 Oscars.

Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Peter Sarsgaard, Dakota Johnson and Corey Stoll offer great performances supporting Depp and thus completing a star studded cast that elevates the movie and gives it a definite wow factor. You relate with almost everybody on screen, they appear realistic, well developed and the way they interact with one another is simply a joy to watch.

The cinematography is great, the scene transitions happen naturally and the movie has an overall strong and powerful narrative arc. You identify with the good guys as well as the criminals and in the end, you are conflicted, because you are not sure who you want to win. This is great for a movie of this type, because humanizing the bad guys, showing us their soft side as well as the atrocities they committed, is a sure way to make the characters appealing. You condemn but at the same time you understand, and this is why Black Mass is one of those movies that will follow you and make you feel the need to come back and watch it again and again…

The only criticism I have for Black Mass is that it loses its focus in certain parts, trying to bring too much to the table and focusing on secondary plots that don’t pan out. Because of this, the pacing is a little bit off, and the rhythm is slow, making certain portions feel drawn out. It’s not a big deal in the end, but it kind of diluted the experience for me. The central plotline was so interesting that I wanted to know more about Bulger and less about uninteresting side characters that end up being just filler.

In conclusion, Black Mass is an amazing film that I highly recommend to everybody, regardless of their movie gender preference. There is comedy here, there is action, there is drama, there is anything you could desire. Watch this movie and dive deep into the life of one of the most interesting mobsters in the history of the United States. In the end, there is a little black mass in all of us, we just have to be willing to embrace it…

 

American Made – 2017

Score: 9/10

One of the best feelings for me is when you discover a great movie that you didn’t expect to be quite so good. It’s like uncovering a hidden gem and you almost feel proud that you dived in without knowing what to expect and it turned out to be such amazing experience. This is exactly how I feel after seeing American Made, a movie that simply blew me away. As a fan of Narcos and used to a type of storytelling on the subject, slow paced and detailed, I could not believe another way of doing would appeal to me, but alas, it has, and then some…

The best thing by far about American Made is the pace. The rhythm is frenzied and you do not get a single second of respite. It’s 115 minutes rush by and you get from one action scene to the other without any filler. The movie feels almost free of exposition although it is narrated throughout, which is for me an amazing feat. Everything about the story fits together and sets a tone, introducing you in the atmosphere of the period in an amazing way. Right after watching it I went down to the supermarket and I saw a van with black windows and I instantly figured that someone was following me. This is the impact of the movie, it makes everything believable, and it puts your right in the middle of it.

The characters are perfectly calibrated to the story. Tom Cruise is simply amazing in his role as Barry Seal and his passion is so obvious it pops on screen. It is by far the best I have seen from Cruise since maybe Edge of Tomorrow and he carries the entire movie, from start to finish. The rest of the actors are not big names, but they do a good job in complementing and completing Cruise’s performance. I like that Doug Liman decided to give the Pablo Escobar character a limited role, because after Narcos and Wagner Moura’s godlike impersonation of him, nobody could accept another version.

The action scenes are good, powerful, very nicely complemented by the musical score. The movie took something for Narcos here, punctuating the action with footage of the era, and that makes it feel more realistic. We can’t speak about too many special effects, but the plane scenes are thrilling and done at a very high level of intensity. The only bad thing about the action in the movie is that in many points unfortunately the shaky cam becomes a real nuisance. Without those shaky scenes this would easily be a 10 out of 10.

You also laugh a lot, because the movie goes over the top on purpose, enhancing the reality to comedic gold. I was on the floor laughing throughout the whole “too much money” montage and I bet we all wish to have that sort of problem in our lives. There is a lot of political irony here and the lenses through which the director chose to present the historical period are very well chosen and adapted to the expectations of the public. It’s a life story, but it’s told in a very relaxed way, which means you can enjoy it without having to think too much about the big issues behind it.

All in all, American Made is an amazing movie, one that deserved far more publicity then it got. A beautiful story, based on real facts but enriched by Doug Liman with exactly the types of action scenes the public desires, the movie leaves a mark and makes you fantasize and romanticize the period. I highly recommend this to everybody, because how often do you see the life story of someone who worked for the CIA, DEA, White House, Sandinistas and the Medellin Cartel, all at the same time…?