SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO (Rated R)

Key elements of the second chapter to the drug war breaching our southern border are missing in the sequel to 2015’s “Sicario,” most notably with the absence of Emily Blunt’s idealistic FBI assigned to work the dangerous zone of the badlands boundary with Mexico.

Also absent from the crucial position of director is Denis Villeneuve, who plumbed the depths of darkness instead of pure escapism for disturbing realism. “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” no less touches on moral ambiguity in high stakes action for a pulse-pounding crime drama.

Taking over the reins held previously by Villeneuve is Italian director Stefano Sollima, whose body of film and television work is built around the often fine line that exists between cops and criminals. Netflix viewers may have seen his crime drama “Suburra.”

The new “Sicario” does reteam primary characters, Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro), the mysterious attorney-turned-assassin, with hard-nosed CIA operative Matt Graver (Josh Brolin), to fight the drug cartels turning the border into an express lane through Texas.

The story opens with Matt operating in the Middle East to capture a terrorist bent on jihad with planned attacks on American soil, which is soon realized with a gruesome, deadly attack on a Kansas City supermarket leading to more fears about the porous southern border.

The drug cartels are no longer just shipping narcotics to the north. They are also engaged in human trafficking, acting as coyotes for not just hopeful immigrants but even Islamic terrorists. The cartels are now classified by the government as terrorists.

To disrupt the all-powerful cartels, largely abetted by the corruption rampant in Mexico, steely-eyed CIA superior Cynthia Foards (Catherine Keener) directs Matt to initiate a risky venture to the south to foment violent clashes between rival drug lords.

Meanwhile, another story emerges with the recruitment of Texas teenager Miguel (Elijah Rodriguez) in the border town of McAllen into smuggling immigrants that soon gets wrapped up in nasty cartel business. An encounter in a parking lot is a tip to a future troubling encounter.
The backstory for Alejandro is that his wife and daughter had been killed by a cartel, and he is more than eager for any revenge against responsible parties, which is one of the reasons he was an assassin in the first “Sicario” film.

Recruited by Matt for a new mission, Alejandro joins the effort to stage daring attacks on associates of cartel leader Carlos Reyes, first an assassination of the cartel’s lawyer and then a kidnapping of a family member.

The plan executes an abduction of Reyes’ teen daughter Isabel (Isabela Moner), who is first seen in a brawl at her school after being insulted with a derogatory slur. This establishes that she’s no pushover who may prove to be a problematic hostage.

The daring ambush on the streets of Mexico City is executed to perfection, leaving behind the unmistakable impression that a rival cartel has started internecine warfare. A wrinkle in the scheme is the aftermath of corrupt police arriving on the scene.

Nevertheless, after being transported to a safe house in Texas, the girl is “rescued” in a phony setup with federal agents taking out imaginary bad guys so that she could be returned to Mexico under the fiction of a rival drug gang having done the kidnapping.

Getting the victim returned to her homeland turns into a bigger headache when the transport is ambushed by violent cartel members and corrupt Mexican federal police. Even worse is that Matt is ordered to end the mission by erasing all evidence of American involvement.

As a result, the resourceful Alejandro and Isabel end up abandoned in the desert, left to fend with numerous dangers alone. They find temporary sanctuary at the home of a deaf farmer with whom Alejandro can relate because he knows sign language.

Having been insubordinate in the past, Matt is undoubtedly conflicted with the moral dilemma of treating an asset like Alejandro, along with the girl, as collateral damage but unfortunately that’s where things are headed.

The resolution to the quandary of conflicted feelings to bring closure to the mission is complicated. The relationship between Matt and Alejandro is tinged with an odd mixture of hubris and vulnerability. Where things will go seems to be an uncharted course.

Benicio Del Toro really shines as the gunman developing a conscience and willing to protect an innocent victim, while Josh Brolin is solid in his character even if it lacks nuance for one facing a moral impasse.

In the final analysis, “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” is a conventional crime thriller, where violence trumps the legal niceties that agents like Matt are only too willing to bend or ignore so that any rules of engagement don’t hinder the explosive action.

The second chapter of “Sicario” ends in a big question mark that is inconclusive as to be somewhat of a letdown as well as signaling yet another installment. Whatever the case, this crime drama still has plenty of thrills for any action junkie.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.