The first trailer for director Denis Villeneuve's Sicario has been released, and it is an intensely brutal affair.
Sicario means hitman in Mexico, the trailer informs us right at the beginning as ominous chords are struck both literally and metaphorically.
We are introduced to our heroine Emily Blunt, in yet another role that cements her as one of the premier movie stars working today. She plays a rookie FBI agent who's recruited by the more hardened Josh Brolin in an operation that takes them to the badlands of Mexico.
There they are introduced to Benicio Del Toro's seedy enforcer, and the absolute lawlessness of the US-Mexico border. Blunt soon realizes that she isn't exactly prepared for what may happen in such a dangerous place.Catch the trailer here
The trailer does a great job at depicting the harsh violence that is inherent to a story like this. It is part gangster movie, part western, part crime drama. In other words: Everything that it takes to get us excited.
Denis Villeneuve is part of a growing number of brilliant Quebecoise directors, others being Xavier Dolan, Jean-Marc Vallee and Francoise Ozon. All his films offer the same unique style (bleak and brutal) and we can't wait for his Blade Runner sequel. He has enlisted the help of the legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins once again, to characteristically excellent results, although there is more than a hint of No Country for Old Men visuals (also Deakins).
Sicario stars Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, Benicio Del Toro and Jon Bernthal. It is written by Taylor Sheridan and is expected in theatres on September 18, bang in the middle of awards season. It premiered to great acclaim at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
Read: