Sicario: Day of the Soldado Surges Up Netflix Rankings
Taylor Sheridan’s follow-up to Sicario, starring Josh Brolin, has quietly landed on Netflix and is quickly climbing the global charts. The film delves into a high-stakes US-Mexico border standoff involving cartels and terrorism.
Without much fanfare, Taylor Sheridan’s follow-up to the acclaimed action thriller Sicario slipped onto Netflix in January, and it’s already making waves with viewers. Sheridan, who’s made a name for himself with hit series like Yellowstone, Landman, and 1923, is no stranger to the big screen either. He’s penned scripts for films such as Hell or High Water and Wind River, and of course, the original Sicario directed by Denis Villeneuve. Now, the 2018 sequel, Sicario: Day of the Soldado, is back in the spotlight as it climbs the streaming service’s global charts.
Currently sitting at number seven on Netflix’s worldwide weekly rankings, the film has found a fresh audience. While Sheridan returned to write the script, directing duties shifted from Villeneuve to Stefano Sollima. Josh Brolin reprises his role as the tough-as-nails Matt Graver, joined again by Benicio Del Toro and Jeffrey Donovan. New faces in the cast include Isabela Merced, Catherine Keener, and Matthew Modine.
Plot Shifts and New Faces
The original film followed Kate, played by Emily Blunt, as she was thrown into the murky world of the US-Mexico drug war. This time around, the focus is squarely on Graver. When Mexican cartels start sneaking terrorists across the border, Graver teams up with the enigmatic Alejandro to kidnap a cartel boss’s daughter, hoping to stir up trouble among the criminal ranks. The official synopsis puts it like this:
FBI agent Matt Graver calls on mysterious operative Alejandro Gillick when Mexican drug cartels start to smuggle terrorists across the U.S. border. The war escalates even further when Alejandro kidnaps a top kingpin's daughter to deliberately increase the tensions. When the young girl is seen as collateral damage, the two men will determine her fate as they question everything that they are fighting for.
The sequel ups the ante, shifting from the original’s tense, slow-burn style to a more direct, action-driven approach. The stakes are higher, and the moral lines are even blurrier.
Reception and Comparisons
With the original Sicario being one of Villeneuve’s most celebrated works, expectations for the sequel were sky-high. Sicario: Day of the Soldado managed a 62% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with audiences giving it a slightly better 66%. That’s a fair way off the original’s impressive 91% critic score and 85% from viewers, but still respectable for a follow-up.
Some punters reckon the sequel holds its own. One reviewer on Rotten Tomatoes wrote,
A masterpiece, just like the first film... Some folks didn't have the patience to embrace this 2nd piece to the story. But it is beautiful, start to finish.
Still, the general mood is that the sequel doesn’t quite hit the same heights. The story feels a bit less tight, and the subtlety and visual punch that made the first film so gripping are a bit thin on the ground this time.
Streaming Success and Lasting Appeal
Despite mixed reviews, Sicario: Day of the Soldado is clearly striking a chord with Netflix viewers. The film’s gritty take on border politics and cartel violence, along with strong performances from Brolin and Del Toro, have helped it find a new lease on life. Whether you’re a fan of the original or just keen for a tense crime drama, it’s worth a look while it’s riding high on the charts.