Blow (2001) - Synopsis
In just a few short years during the 1970s, powder cocaine turned from a relatively obscure illegal drug to a multi-billion dollar international business with the power to make and break nations.
Most people know that behind the surge in cocaine’s popularity were powerful Colombian drug cartels determined to make money no matter the cost.
What most people don’t know is that the Colombian narco-lords had an American connection who made it all possible: George Jung, just your average small-town American boy who decided to pursue the American Dream his way -- by becoming the first American to import cocaine to the United State on a large scale, using his entrepreneurial skills to expose college kids, high-paid professionals and the Hollywood glitterati to a new, hipper form of high.
Soon, Jung was sleeping, breathing and eating money, living out a fantastic, no-rules lifestyle many have dreamed about. But no matter what he did, he could never get the only thing he truly wanted: a love that couldn’t be taken from him.
How did the typical boy next door become Pablo Escobar’s right-hand man, one who played a key role in the importation of cocaine to the U.S. during the 70s and 80s?
Blow reveals the riveting inside story of George Jung’s rise and fall the story of how one man used every last bit of his ingenuity, ambition, courage and savvy only to blow all of his dreams on greed.
The film also reveals the other side of 1970s glitz and glamour by providing an intimate look at the border crossings, illicit flights, ruthless negotiations, brutal executions, extensive money laundering and all-out war with the justice system that let the party go on.
At a time when drug use and addiction continue to grab headlines in America, Blow provides a movingly human look at how we got to where we are today, and what the price has been.
Johnny Depp stars in the New Line Cinema drama Blow, directed by Ted Demme from a screenplay by David McKenna and Nick Cassavetes, which is based on Bruce Porter’s non-fiction book of the same name. The film also stars Penélope Cruz, Ray Liotta, Jordi Molla, Cliff Curtis, Rachel Griffiths, Franka Potente, Paul Reubens, Max Perlich and Ethan Suplee. Blow is produced by Demme, Stillerman and Denis Leary. Georgia Kacandes and Michael DeLuca are the executive producers.
