Narco Soldiers Review: A Beautiful and Action Packed Film Hurt By Hit or Miss Dialog and Characters

Release date: October 30, 2020
Running time: 94 minutes
Starring: Rafael Amaya, Carolina Guerra, Ricardo Chavira
Directed By: Felix Limardo

Narco Soldiers follows one couple's Bonnie and Clyde-style rise to power in a Dominican Republic drug cartel.  The film takes place in the middle of the Caribbean, where drug routes and money are flowing, but the rise to power can be deadly. 

Narco Soldiers is a tough movie to judge.  It has good production values and camera work to really portray this Caribbean paradise in the best possible light.  It is a beautiful representation on screen and can take your breath away with its sheer beauty.  And the action and gun play are exciting to watch, with some good sound effects and shoot outs to get your blood flowing.  And the story has plenty of twists and turns in this rise to power.  And there are some fun characters to follow during your journey.  The camaraderie between the main characters is fun to see as they have good chemistry together.  And the chemist's transformation as he gets deeper into the drug trade is also fun to watch.    

However, the dialog is very hit or miss.  The voice acting is at times good, but often feels forced and out of place.  It is tough to get into the film when the dialog just doesn't feel natural.  And the acting is also hit or miss.  You can tell that everyone involved is having a good time making this movie, but the characters are often exaggerated or over dramatic for their roles.  And they often feel like stereotypical caricatures of drug cartel people.  This movie seems to get a lot of inspiration from Scarface, as you would expect from a rise to power in a drug cartel, but the movie itself is just not as well done or exciting.  It has a lot of scenes that seem to be throwbacks to that film, but they feel like imitations rather than fresh takes on the movie.  In practice, the film feels like a Hollywood take on the drug trade and a rise to power, and not something that is grounded in fact.  

Overall, Narco Soldiers tries to build an exciting drug rise to power, but the hit or miss dialog and characters overshadow the beautiful camera work and exciting action.

Pass on it.

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Don't Look Back is available digitally, and on demand on October 16, 2020.  For additional information about the film and to rent / buy it, check it out at the links below.

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