Product: Blow [VHS] (2001)
Rating: 4.0
One of Depp's best performances
This is one of those movies that had no immediate appeal to me and I never planned on seeing it. Then one day I find myself watching it and being riveted by the story and Johnny Depp's performance.Depp plays George Jung who according to the film hooked up with Pablo Escobar and the Colombia drug cartel to bring cocaine into the U.S. Jung was responsible for the cocaine explosion in the 70s and 80s by providing a better product than had been available before. Jung makes millions, gets married to a crazy latin woman played by Penelope Cruz and is living (no pun intended) the high life.Eventually there are plenty of betrayals and paranoia and Jung gets out of the business and tries to live a normal life with his wife and daughter. But when he needs money he goes back to the only thing he knows, smuggling coke which leads to several arrests, the last with a sentence of 60 years.I guess part of the reason that movies like this are fascinating is that you know there are people like Jung out there doing these things, but its enlightening when you get to see how they did it and the effect it had on their lives. Jung is portrayed in the film as a decent guy who loves his daughter deeply but who can't stop making stupid decisions that ruin his life.The performances are very good throughout and the movie moves along at a brisk pace until the last act when it slows some.