Movies about drug addictioncan often be hard to watch, but the best examples of these types of stories can shed understanding and empathy on a serious issue. There was a time that drug use in movies was completely prohibited in Hollywood, despite the fact that it was certainly a well-known issue in society. Now, drug use is depicted quite regularly in cinema, sometimes as a passing moment, sometimes highlighting the criminal aspect, and sometimes even for comedic effect. However, there are movies that also deal with the darker realities of drug use and addiction.
Certain films have dealt with drug addiction head on, detailing the harrowing experiences of main characters in the throes of the disease and their attempts to get sober. In other instances, it is not a main aspect of the story, but is dealt with in such a memorable and effective way that it can have a profound effect on the audience. These movies about drug addiction pull away the glamorization seen in other films and leave the audience with a look at the realities of the battle against a powerful, unrelenting force.
Tom Holland gives an intense performance in this true story of a young soldier who returns from the war with PTSD, which leads to drug addiction and crime.Cherryisan important reminder of how trauma can be a key contributor to drug abuseand how there are many soldiers who are not given the help they need to deal with such things.
While most people remember the violence and mayhem ofScarfacein its story of Tony Montana becoming Miami’s biggest drug kingpin, it is easy to forget that it was drug addiction that ultimately brought him down.Fueled by cocaine, Tony begins to fall apart, seeing enemies all around himuntil he has no one left when the actual enemies come to find him.
Martin Scorsese’sThe Wolf of Wall Streettells the true storyof Jordan Belfort, whose corrupt business dealings funded his life of complete excess and debauchery. Some have accused the movie of glamorizing Belfort’s drug use and party lifestyle, but it is quite clear this is a tale ofan immoral man who loses all control, with his drug use as a main contributor to his downfall.
Rocketmanisthe musical biopicdetailing the rise to fame, iconic career, and many struggles of Elton John. There are countless movies that explore the connection between fame and drug addiction, butRocketmanis one of the most authentic, partially becauseElton John himself insisted the movie pull no punches in showing these dark moments in his life.
Goodfellasis based on the true story of Henry Hill, a member of the mob who was at the center of the lavish and exciting world until it all came crashing down.The final act of the movie finds Hill addicted to cocaine and filled with paranoia, with Martin Scorsese doing a brilliant job of putting the audience in Hill’s anxiety-driven mindset.
The Fighteristhe true sports storyof Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg), a Boston fighter who became a champ while being coached by his half-brother and former fighter Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale). Bale won an Oscar for his performance asthis man who was once a contender, only to lose it all to drug addiction without ever admitting it to himself.
Terry Gilliam adapts Hunter S. Thompson’s surreal satire novel starring Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro as two friends on a drug-binging journey to Las Vegas. The movie is not as serious as other movies about drug addiction, but the way in whichthese men live their lives in a constant stupor, detached from reality, makes it a grotesque thing to witness.
Midnight Cowboystars Jon Voight as a young man who moves to NYC with dreams of making it in the big city, which he pursues alongside his new streetwise, outcast friend (Dustin Hoffman). The movie is a heartbreaking look at howthese two friends with big plans for themselves find those dreams replaced with drugswhen they find there is seemingly no place for them in the city.
Less Than Zerocame out of the era ofBrat Pack movies, but offered a much darker look at the struggles of young people in the story of a young man who returns to his Los Angeles affluent community to find that his close friends have become consumed with their drug lifestyles. Many drug addiction movies look at the lives of impoverished addicts, butLess Than Zerois a reminder that the privileged can succumb to it just as easily.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s masterpiece is an epic journey through the height of the pornography industry and the beginning of its downfall in the 1970s and 1980s as seen through the eyes of various actors and filmmakers in the business. While the movie is fun and wild in the first laugh,it becomes a brutal look at addiction destroying the lives of this pseudo-family of outcastswith the drug den scene a particularly memorable look at drug-fuelled mayhem.
