Blow (2001)

The story of George Jung, a boy raised in a struggling middle-class family and determined never to endure the same fate. He moves to California after high school, one thing leads to another, and George becomes a driving force behind the expansion of the U.S. cocaine market in the 1970s.

While not quite award material, by no means does this film blow. Sorry, had to be done. In all seriousness, it is worth seeing for its entertaining, mostly true story and for the excellent performance of Johnny Depp. Depp is convincing as George Jung throughout all phases of this complex character’s life, from the innocence of his youth to the hardened, down and out shadow of himself that we are left with at the film’s end.

Abandoning Massachusetts for California after high school, young George meets Derek Foreal (Reubens), a bisexual hairdresser and semi big time marijuana dealer. Derek takes George under his wing, eventually landing the latter in jail, but this is only the beginning. George encounters a fellow inmate, Diego, who introduces him to the world of cocaine trafficking after their release.

George’s rise to the top of the drug underworld ($60M in the bank), followed by his systematic fall to rock bottom (life sentence in federal prison), comprises the majority of the story. Depp delivers an engrossing look at the highest of highs (no pun intended) and lowest of lows over the course of several decades. He’s a character we feel sorry for, take pity on, resent, and look up to as a counter-culture hero, all at the same time.

The film does a decent job of portraying the American drug culture without a preachy tone. George’s father, Fred (Liotta) epitomizes this message in both his disappointment and unconditional love for his son. The drawbacks are an awful performance by Penelope Cruz as George’s wife, and a plot that made the self-made drug kingpin’s downfall a little too formulaic. Definitely good viewing, however.

Also Watch.

• Be Cool (2005)
• Beverly Hills Ninja (1997)
• Big Trouble In Little China (1986)
• Bloodsport (1988)
• A History of Violence (2005)
• A Knight’s Tale (2001)
• Capote (2005)
• Can’t Hardly Wait (2005)
• Brokeback Mountain (2005)