I have to admit, I'd avoided this for years because of the marketing which implied that it was a girlboss film. Oh, no, no, no, it's quite the opposite. Huge credit to Emily Blunt for taking on a role that shows the results of a petite, basically decent woman entering a world of very serious men and trying to front and flex. The consequences of that are shown with commendably unvarnished frankness.
There's a solid plot here that credibly personalises the basic concept of "drug wars". Characterisation isn't its strong point, but that's fine, because all of the characters are presented as being focussed to the point of obsession on achieving their various goals - and for once, the woman blinks first. I honestly don't think this film could be made in CURRENT_YEAR.
The sets, costumes, equipment, cinematography and score are all top notch, leading to real immersion in the story.
I have to ding it just a little on the gunplay, which features too much super-accurate hip- and point-shooting. This is cinematic, almost a homage to Westerns, but you wouldn't see it on a properly advised production now.
That aside, there's really very little to criticise here. I can thoroughly recommend this film to anyone who is looking for taut, compelling realism rather than The Message.
There's a solid plot here that credibly personalises the basic concept of "drug wars". Characterisation isn't its strong point, but that's fine, because all of the characters are presented as being focussed to the point of obsession on achieving their various goals - and for once, the woman blinks first. I honestly don't think this film could be made in CURRENT_YEAR.
The sets, costumes, equipment, cinematography and score are all top notch, leading to real immersion in the story.
I have to ding it just a little on the gunplay, which features too much super-accurate hip- and point-shooting. This is cinematic, almost a homage to Westerns, but you wouldn't see it on a properly advised production now.
That aside, there's really very little to criticise here. I can thoroughly recommend this film to anyone who is looking for taut, compelling realism rather than The Message.