Blow (2001)

Director:

Ted Demme

Writers (WGA):

Bruce Porter (book)
David McKenna (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 April 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Based on a True Story.

Plot:

The story of George Jung, the man who established the American cocaine market in the 1970's.

Plot Keywords:

Cocaine | 1960s | California | 1970s | American

Awards:

1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Johnny Depp	...	George Jung
Penélope Cruz	...	Mirtha Jung (as Penelope Cruz)
Franka Potente	...	Barbara Buckley
Rachel Griffiths	...	Ermine Jung
Paul Reubens	...	Derek Foreal
Jordi Mollà	...	Diego Delgado (as Jordi Molla)
Cliff Curtis	...	Pablo Escobar
Miguel Sandoval	...	Augusto Oliveras
Ethan Suplee	...	Tuna
Ray Liotta	...	Fred Jung
Kevin Gage	...	Leon Minghella
Max Perlich	...	Kevin Dulli
Jesse James	...	Young George
Miguel Pérez	...	Alessandro (as Miguel Perez)
Dan Ferro	...	Cesar Toban

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive drug content and language, some violence and sexuality.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Chile:14 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 | Malaysia:(Banned) | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) (cut) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) (cut) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (certificate #37768) | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico

Company:

Apostle

Trivia:

George's last line, "There are no more white horses or pretty ladies at my door" is a reference to the Emerson, Lake and Palmer song "Lucky Man".

Goofs:

Continuity: When George gets busted the last time, his lawyer brings him a pack of Camels. He opens it and sets them to his right. When the lawyer pushes the tape recorder towards him, the Camels are on his left side. When he gets ready to start the player, they're back on his right side.

Quotes:

[first lines]
George: That's a nice boy. Go get 'em, Dulli.

Movie Connections:

References Jaws (1975)

Soundtrack:

Sort Of Soul

Better than expected

Based on a true story of how the American cocaine market was founded, this is a lot more funky than I had expected. A thumpingly good soundtrack right from the start and Johnny Depp cruising in to be a convincingly laid-back big-shot - almost like a graduate from Boogie Nights. Penelope Cruz manages to be blisteringly erotic in a few well-crafted scenes and without removing a stitch of clothing. Later, instead of following the usual pattern of despair in the second half where most drug movies home in on drug dependency, Blow refreshingly focuses on the emotional losses suffered by the characters. A film that just about manages to be more than the sum of its parts, it would have made a nice sort of pre-quel to Traffic, but it stands alone in fine form. And it's moving rather than depressing.