Drug Lords in Film

Wow! $5,000,000 reward. Who will turn El Chapo in? Is it worth the money to be gunned down by the drug lord's cronies. I don't think so.

El Chapo must have watched lots of films about drugs and dealing. That's probably how he got so rich. There are dozens and dozens of films of this genre. Here are some of the best. But don't get any ideas and try to emulate these characters. You'll see that crime doesn't pay.

My very favorite drug movie is Blow starring Johnny Depp. To watch him go from naive drug dealer to hobnobbing with South American cartels is really mesmerizing. I think it's the best acting job ever by Depp. And what an interesting insight into the whole drug trafficking business. And it's based on a true story. Fascinating.






The next film, Traffic, is so realistic, it's downright scary. Didn't it start out as a TV series? Anyway it's a really interesting and well made film about the drug business. It stars Michael Douglas, Benicio Del Toro, Catherine Zeta Jones, etc. Douglas plays a judge who is appointed by the President to spearhead America's war against drugs. And then finds out that his daughter happens to be an addict.




I've read that Al Pacino's role of Scarface is one of the best characterizations of a drug lord. I haven't seen the film but I definitely will add it to my Netflix que. Then I'll decide if Johnny Depp or Al Pacino should win the prize. What do you think? Or do you have another favorite drug dealer role?