Product: Blow [VHS] (2001)
Rating: 4.0
More Money More Problems
For the movie Blow, the old saying holds true: The higher you go, the further you can fall. George Jung was the typical American, wanting nothing more but to get rich quick. The dramatic sequence of events summarized the history of cocaine in America and the biography of George Jung (Johnny Depp), largest American drug lord in the late 70's and early 80's. The drama just sucks you in filled with disappointment, lies, betrayal, deceit, money and drugs, the essentials that made Blow so well directed.The main thing that makes this movie so interesting is the reality of it all. A lot of it is twisted a bit by Hollywood, but you can't help but watch in awe that this happened. This man was responsible for the drug of choice by the rich and famous three decades ago. If you bought cocaine in the late 70's, early 80's, chances are you got it from him. Jung trafficked more than of all cocaine that circulated America. This documentary leaves you stunned, keeping you tuned for was happens next.It started off like most that spend their life, striving for prosperity. That's about the only connection I can make to my real life. His father didn't provide enough money for the family though he worked hard at it. Then you had the dissatisfied mother. George never wanted to be like that, so he took the fastest way to wealth. He started small time with marijuana on the California coast. Through that he found people to help with his smuggling operations. The story bases on his many mistakes that imprisoned him from time to time. That only gave him an outlet to bigger and better crimes.Throughout the movie you're not sure whether you feel bad for the man, or whether he was simply not careful enough. For example, the one scene where his wife, Mirtha, purposely gets him arrested ironically gives you remorse. The director did a great job with the importance of money. Money is such a big theme all the way through. Millions of dollars are presented in your face to make a huge impact of what George has gained, yet what he could lose. It's basically how the small town kid made 100 million dollars and lost it all.As far as acting goes, again Johnny Depp stars in another great movie. Penelope Cruz co-stars as his flamboyant, deceitful wife, Mirtha. The characters they act are artificial to each other, bringing the main point across. Realistically, the tie between them was only of money. When the money was gone instantly, so were they, showing how unhealthy their lifestyles were based on.Like they say, more money, more problems. Blow focuses on the dramatic aspects more than anything. There's a little comedy and a little action with gunplay but that's it. They don't take much distraction from the drama. It makes the movie seem about an hour longer than it really is because of all the problems. Jung lost his money, his family, his business, he lost it all. The film puts out a heavy message about what you can lose. I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to step out of reality for a few hours.