Based on a true story, the movie tells the story of a major drug dealer named Barry Hill who becomes a CIA informant who joins forces with the U.S. government to take down Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
The movie gives the viewer a sweaty, exhausted but fluid feeling, and one of the more interesting things about it is that it still highlights Tom Cruise's never-ending personal charm.
The movie is done with ease for Tom Cruise, making full use of his old charisma, toothy grin, and gift for gags, but as a depiction of the late '70s to early '80s, the movie can't be considered perfectly done.
The style of the movie is director Doug Liman's tone, but his preoccupation with using Tom Cruise's character to frame his script results in a less-than-adequate sense of drama and tension throughout, even when he's not pushing hard enough to call out the U.S. government for its lies and interference in the policy actions of other countries.