Depiction of Drug Trade in Films

    In this next post of my blog I will look into the depiction of drug trade and drug distribution in films. Most of these films fall under the category of the action or thriller genre and these films have become common within popular culture. These films often times have similar themes including sex, drugs and violence. Also, in my eyes it seems that many of these action or thriller films that incorporate drug trade or drug distribution often time use similar stereotypes. According to Poyntz, “Stereotypes give us answers to problems or questions we have about a people or a place and usually ensure that those using a stereotype feel pretty good about themselves in relation to the groups about whom they're making generalizations. This more extensive notion of what stereotypes are and how they work in our culture suggests much for understanding what codes of meaning stand behind the portrayal of drug ravaged cities or drug use itself in our culture”.

    The use of these stereotypes in films might be looked at as a bad thing by portraying only certain people like minorities or only certain places such as cities and inner cities. I am not saying that this is always the case for every film, but I find it to be common with the movies I have seen over the years that have to deal with this particular topic. In my eyes stereotyping isn’t right, but when it comes to films and film making stereotyping is just another way for the filmmakers to capture a sense of realism. This is not a way for writers and directors to directly make a scapegoat out of a particular stereotype, but it is for the purpose of wanting to make certain films as real-life depicting as they can be.

    A film that came straight to my mind when I was brainstorming about this topic was the film, Scarface (1983), which was directed by Brian De Palma. The film was a major success and has become one of the most popular thriller or “gangster” films of all time. This movie follows the story of a Cuban man who comes to America in search for a better life and what he finds is that the easiest and fastest way to make money was through drug trafficking. As the film progresses you observe the rise and fall of this character. The character was once a man with everything and in the end he became a man with nothing. Greed is a common theme in this film and other films like it and it is because of greed that some of the characters in these films meet their demise. Blow (2001), directed by Ted Demme is another example of a film that falls into this topic of how drug trade is portrayed in films. This particular story is actually based on a true story and follows the life of a man who simply wants to make it in the world and he turns to selling drugs in order to start the life that he wanted and eventually he sold drugs to maintain the life that he had. The main character gives you this feeling that he truly just wants to do the right thing and to clean up his act, but in the end selling drugs was all he knew and he couldn’t escape the life. The depiction of drug trade and drug distribution has become a popular theme in drug films because the films often times depicts money, wealth, violence, etc., which have attracted a wide-range of viewers over the years.

"In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women". 

-Tony Montana: Scarface (1983) -

Poyntz, S. (1997). Homey, I shot the kids: Hollywood and the war on drugs. Emergency Librarian, 25(2), 8.