A truly great film...just don't expect "Traffic: Part 2"

Rating: 10/10 (15 April 2001)

I think that one of the big reasons many people haven't really liked "Blow" is the inevitable comparisons to "Traffic." But it's really not a fair comparison to make, because they're very different films. True, they both deal with drugs, but they do it in very different ways, and there are few other similarities between the two.
That said, "Blow" is a terrific movie. I thought that it was a very realistic account of George Jung's sad (but true) life story. Never once did movie try to say that Jung's actions were okay. Jung realizes that he messed up, and doesn't make any excuses. We feel sorry for him not because his punishment was unjust, but because we recognize how much his mistakes cost him. Some have complained about the pacing of the film, that it starts fast and slows down is it goes on. I think this was the best way to do it. At the beginning, Jung as young and free and has his whole life ahead of him. As the film goes on, he loses more and more, and it wouldn't make sense for the filmmaker's to portray this as exciting.
"Blow" is very well acted for the most part, especially Johnny Depp. His portrayal of George Jung is stunning because he gives a very human quality to a man that, in the hands of a lesser actor, would definitely come across as an inhuman scumbag. Depp's performance is almost creepy, because he seems like a regular person, like anyone else...who just happened to be responsible for the vast majority of the cocaine in America in the 70s and 80s. Ray Liotta and Rachel Griffiths, as Mr. and Mrs. Jung, also give very good performances. Liotta shows us a man who wanted so badly for his son to be happy, that he willingly let his him continue dealing drugs, because he was happy. Paul Reubens and Penelope Cruz, the other major supporting cast members, aren't really anything special, but they're good enough. They don't detract from the film at all.
Ted Demme's direction is good because it lets Depp run the story. His direction isn't nearly as stylized as some other directors, but it works very well for this story. It feels very realistic. He also does a good job with the pacing of the film, as I mentioned above. The screenwriters, David McKenna and Nick Cassavetes, should be commended for not being at all preachy. "Blow" is a story that could have dwelled too much on making moral assertions, to the point where they could have beat the audience over the head with it. But the writers thankfully avoided this. They show us Jung's life and leave us to make our own judgement of this morally complex man.
I would highly recommend "Blow." It's a great telling of the excitement of Jung's rise in the drug world, and the sadness of his fall. The story is very realistic, and not at all preachy. Just don't go in expecting another "Traffic"...it's not. The films are too different to draw any good comparisons between them. If you see "Blow" without any preconceptions of it, you will really enjoy it.
Rating: 10/10