Blow
There can be no doubt that one of, if not the most pervasively evil influence on our overall culture in recent history is that of the white powder called cocaine. Seen widely at one time as a benchmark for being rich and famous, the fact remains that coke is quite nearly the equivalent for injecting arsenic directly into your heart, a deadly cocktail that allegedly makes one feel almost euphorically alive while under the influence as your cardiac muscles weaken over time and can also be said to be the main cause in inducing fatal heart attacks in men ages 45 and under, with the vast array of victims including basketball star Len Bias as well as countless pro wrestlers who would find out that their time was up even after ending their ring careers and settling into retirement. Upon the release of this film in 2001, there was certainly some controversy over whether or not the story glorified the selling and usage of cocaine (and the man most responsible for making that possible), but nonetheless there was definitely a sort of hyperkinetic drive throughout the whole film, a sense of style and pacing that made one feel as if they were watching everything through the hazy prism of a coked out fever dream. And then the punchline would actually come less than a year after the filmâs release when its 38 year old director Ted Demme (nephew of Jonathan Demme and himself considered to be a rapidly rising talent) managed to become the latest victim of this narcoticâs influence, dying suddenly of a heart attack brought on by a cocaine overdose. The film that he left behind here stands as his finest work and true legacy, telling the notorious story of the infamous real life George Jung (Johnny Depp still suffering a slight hangover from Fear And Loathing), the American drug dealer who reportedly went face to face with the fearsome drug overlord Pablo Escobar (also considered a major figure in criminal pop culture on a par with Al Capone) and set up an arrangement to import cocaine en masse into The United States and literally clean up the whole market, finally making a drug whose potency had only before been whispered about become highly and readily available for anyone who wanted it and had the money to spend on it. Jungâs hand in the overall proliferation and distribution of the drug cannot be underestimated one bit, as it can be legitimately said that every bag of coke sold in the late 70s and early 80s saw at least some of the money paid for it go right into Jungâs pocket. The film begins (with some hazy cinematography to boot) by showing some of his childhood, with a fairly easygoing father (Ray Liotta, himself best known for playing a coke happy criminal in Goodfellas) so pissed off at his own financial situations that he makes it a point to tell his son that money really doesnât mean anything no matter what others try to tell you, but it is his near monstrous, wayward mother (Rachel Griffiths) who really screws up his values with her own materialistic wonts, always berating the father for not having enough steaks in the freezer and occasionally even running away and escaping in some misguided hope of having a âbetter lifeâ (as if at least having such a loyal, loving and faithful husband just wasnât good enough). The action then shifts to sunny California, where Jung and a childhood friend (Ethan Suplee) have migrated and, having made a vow to each other to never ever hold life draining 9 to 5 regular jobs, get caught up in the world of high level marijuana dealing. This portion of the movie is arguably the best, as A) it comes across as being extremely funny and entertaining, and B) it is portrayed as being almost seen as a carefree, innocent time of Jungâs life, that of him and a small group of friends making a living while peddling a drug that never killed anybody. The possibility of bigger and bigger scores however leads to the whole operation becoming so vast for its own good that it becomes inevitable that heâs going to get brought down by law enforcement over it, serving a stretch in prison where he meets a fellow inmate (Jordi Molla) who canât seem to wait to get out because he has much bigger plans in mind, being connected to Escobar and other drug lords in South America while also schooling Jung in the basics of cocaine distribution on the gist that it will bring him more money and power than he had ever dreamed, setting up the filmâs second half where just those type of events actually occur. Now while a valid point can be made by many that since the story is told from Jungâs point of view, that his character (much like Henry Hill in Goodfellas) basically becomes an apologist here for his own misdeeds, being written and portrayed as a good and decent guy who was just looking to make enough money to not have to worry while also showing an extraordinary amount of loyalty to both his friends and business associates, only to get burned for it in the end by those same people in order to cover their own asses, while others will argue that Jung himself was literally just a mere âmiddlemanâ and NOT any kind of big âkingpinâ type that he was made out to be (and which Jung himself chose to play up as being what he was), but rather instead was just a fall guy who was lured in and set up by those who were the actual ruthless types so that they could successfully slip their own necks out of the noose. Depp (playing the whole movie with long, unruly hair) certainly makes us sympathize with his likable character in a way that Pacino never could in Scarface, even as we still walk away feeling that it was his own bad decisions that accelerated his downfall. Not nearly as likable is Penelope Cruz as Jungâs crazed, coked out, Columbian wife, clearly as much of an unfit parent as her husband but still more than willing to take on the mantle of being the âgood parentâ after her better half gets sent away for 60 years and also making a stark contrast to his earlier, ill fated girlfriend from the âweed yearsâ (Franka Potente) who comes across as being sweet, gentle, kind, and even as a kindred spirit to his freewheeling, make a lot for doing a little lifestyle. Then thereâs Paul Reubens in a sly supporting role as the apparently gay (although heâs always surrounded by beautiful women) hairstylist and small business owner who is Jungâs business partner and California connection when it comes to getting all that shit out there to the public. Molla as the wild eyed cellmate turned maniacal drug lord is one character who deserved more screen time (as his real life counterpart was himself thought of as being a major player in the illegal narcotics industry). Cliff Curtis as Escobar is as fearsome as he is well spoken, very much living up to the notorious reputation. Liotta as the dad who knows exactly what kind of business his son is into but yet refuses to judge him for it turns out to be a nice, understated turn. A very young Emma Roberts shows impressive child actress chops as the precocious and troubled young daughter whom Jung does convince us as being the most important part of his life. And we even get Bobcat Goldtwait (using his normal speaking voice for once) as a guy meeting with Jung and Reubens who gets to sample the goods. All along the way the script is smart enough to emphasize that as Jung went from the fun loving world of weed dealing to the darker one of distributing coke, he came into contact with some truly evil elements (including Escobar) but yet foolishly continued on in the hope of making quick money and paid for it dearly with both his heart and the loss of his beloved daughter. But in the end this is really the late Ted Demmeâs tour de force as a director (even if it was his last) with a razor sharp sense of camera movement, a dreamy yet still rapid pace, a crackling music soundtrack that keeps the viewer grooving, and a game cast who are essentially playing wholly disreputable characters but are still being directed in such a way that we can manage to enjoy the movie even while we are separating these people from the real life monsters who had successfully instilled a dark white poison onto our own shores from which so many lives were literally destroyed and / or ended (including director Demmeâs) mostly because of the fact that itâs still important to be able to tell this story of how we as a culture became so utterly infectedâŚ
9/10