History YMMV / Sicario

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: In the end of the film, [[spoiler: Alejandro holds Kate at gun point, with her gun, to sign a paper saying that that everything done by him, Matt, the Deltas, and the rest [[BlatantLies was done by the book]]; when Kate initially refuses, Alejandro puts the gun under her chin, forcing her to breakdown and sign the paper]]. Did Alejandro [[spoiler: put the gun to her head]] because he was prepared to [[spoiler: shoot Kate if she refused again]] or because he [[spoiler: wanted to give her a chance to save her own life because [[YouRemindMeOfX she reminded him of his daughter]] ]]? The fact that [[spoiler:[[WhyDontYouJustShootHim he could've just shot her]] when she refused and actually made an effort to get her to sign the paper]] suggests the latter theory

* {{Anvilicious}}: The filmmakers really really want you to understand that they despise the War on Drugs war. In their eagerness, however, they created a film with an utterly outlandish plot: [[spoiler: Apparently, the entire US government is on board with reviving the Medellin cartel, to be run by a CIA proxy warlord]].

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: Alejandro and Matt are two of the smoothest operators this side of VideoGame/ModernWarfare, some proper bad enough dudes. And the film is ''very'' clear that all the cool guy shit they do is ''very'' bad.

* {{Anvilicious}}: The filmmakers really really want you to understand that they despise the drug war. In their eagerness, however, they created a film with an utterly outlandish plot: [[spoiler: Apparently, the entire US government is on board with reviving the Medellin cartel, using their hitman to do it, and not just sanctioning but orchestrating black operations and assassinations of children on the soil of one of the USA's closest allies without the consent or knowledge of the ally's government, the torture of prisoners in acknowledged US government facilities and the torture of American citizens in the back seat of municipal police vehicles, in public, in Phoenix]].
** … But on the other hand, the United States government has a history of interfering with foreign governments, to the point of working with criminal elements, so it’s not as outrageous as some may think.

* AmericansHateTingle: While the movie has received critical acclaim in America, it was criticized by the ''[[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/sicario-drug-cartel-thriller-prompts-criticism-from-mayor-of-juarez-over-depiction-of-mexican-city-a6698496.html mayor of Ciudad Juarez himself]]'' as well as some of its citizens for its depiction of the city as [[CrapsackWorld crime-ridden and bleak]], even calling for boycotts of the film. However, considering the movie was originally created in 2010 when the brutality of the cartel wars was TruthInTelevision, something even the mayor admitted, this can also be seen as making the movie an UnintentionalPeriodPiece.

* ShockingMoments: [[spoiler:Alejandro killing [[WouldHitAGirl Alarcon's wife]] and [[WouldHurtAChild kids]] right in front of him before coldly finishing him off.]]

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: Alejandro and Matt are two of the smoothest operators this side of VideoGame/ModernWarfare, some proper bad enough dudes. And the film is *very* clear that all the cool guy shit they do is *very* bad.

* TooBleakStoppedCaring: Arguably the point of the film (it's something of an AuthorTract about the War on Drugs), but the only outright good characters are Kate and Reggie.

* RootingForTheEmpire: Some fans actually support Matt and Alejandro's methods of battling the cartels, considering that the cartel thugs are mostly [[AcceptableTarget not portrayed in a sympathetic way at all]] and the film shows Matt and Alejandro's methods actually working. It also helps that seeing Delta Force battling cartel assassins [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome looks really cool.]]

** The movie was already humorous to [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse Marvel]] fans for having [[Creator/BenicioDelToro the Collector]] and [[Creator/JoshBrolin Thanos]] [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy working together]], but it became even funnier when [[Series/ThePunisher2017 the Punisher]] [[Creator/JonBernthal appears]] in a minor role. Doubly funny because Bernthal [[spoiler: gets tortured by the duo, which the Punisher often receives... or gives]].

** [[{{Determinator}} Alejandro Gillick]] is [[spoiler: a Sicario defined by tragedy and hatred, using his skills and connections to Graver to satiate his cold-blooded desire for {{revenge}}. Once a criminal lawyer, Alejandro's family was slaughtered by Fausto Alarcón, resulting in Alejandro becoming a gun-for-hire to [[CrusadingWidower seek vengeance]], exhibiting remarkable skills in torture and murder that help his and Graver's schemes come to fruition. Hunting down Alarcón and [[OneManArmy killing his entire security force]] through pragmatic tricks and stealth, Alejandro calls out Alarcón for spending his nights eating dinner with his family, even while other families are killed on the drug lord's orders. Alejandro executes Alarcón's entire family in front of him before killing the man himself to seal his revenge. Capable of forming attachments to others despite his villainy, Alejandro considers Graver a friend of sorts, and grows to care for Kate Macer in the first film and [[MafiaPrincess Isabel Reyes]] in the second, at first showing a willingness to kill either one but ultimately sparing them, even putting his life on the line to rescue Isabel from death--getting himself shot in the face in the process, an event which doesn't even hinder Alejandro from killing a cartel group who threatens him.]]

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN9gcEZMZO8 The Beast]].

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The film was conceived during Ciudad Juarez's worst crime period in the early 2010s. As of the film's release in 2015, the city's crime rate is significantly lower.
** On the other hand, if you consider the movie as a representation of Mexico's overall problem with crime, then the crime rate overall has increased from 2010 to 2018.

* FoeYay: Alejandro/Kate, [[http://archiveofourown.org/tags/Alejandro%20Gillick*s*Kate%20Macer/works at least according to the fandom]]. Notably, Blunt had previously acted alongside Del Toro as his love interest in the 2010 film ''Film/TheWolfman'', meaning this effect might have arisen out of the actors' chemistry moreso than the script.

* WhatAnIdiot:
** The cartel men attempting to free Manuel Diaz's brother on the Bridge of Americas. Not only are they spotted almost immediately, but before one gangbanger can even leave his car they are swarmed instantly by the Security Detail who hilariously outgun and outnumber them. They also appear visibly nervous compared to the cool and calm Deltas and Law Enforcement agents who have their weapons trained on them while the cartel members haven't even properly drawn their own weapons. When they are given an option to lay their guns and back off, the minute one gangbanger raises his pistol they are completely lit up, with the only shots fired back are when one gangbanger gets shot and shoots into his own crew. Even a sicario disguised as a Federale who sneaks up on Kate only gets a single bullet out before she notices and headcaps him followed by some rifle fire by nearby agents. It also seemed like the gangsters in the other vehicles were only a distraction to get the CIA agents out of their vehicles while the rogue Federale came up from behind. Even with all their training and superior firepower, the only reason Kate wasn't killed was dumb luck.
** As ruthless and effective Matt is at getting things done, he was foolish keeping Kate on [[spoiler: after she had been identified by the very cartels they were going after when she got caught on camera in a cartel-controlled bank. His decision to let her accompany them in the tunnels also nearly derailed the mission.]]
** Kate isn't blameless in this. Regardless of the legality, her not listening to (life-saving) advice and not following orders nearly gets her killed more than once.
** [[spoiler: DirtyCop Ted]] who, despite knowing he's screwed with no legal leg to stand on, keeps blubbering about how he screwed up, making excuses, and keeps getting [[spoiler: beat up and tortured by Alejandro]] instead of simply answering their questions [[spoiler: at first.]]

* FoeYay: Alejandro/Kate, [[http://archiveofourown.org/tags/Alejandro%20Gillick*s*Kate%20Macer/works at least according to the fandom]]. Notably, Blunt had previously acted alongside Del Toro as his love interest in the 2010 film Film/TheWolfman, meaning this effect might have arisen out of the actors' chemistry moreso than the script.