Cocaine Cowboys

 

Story:

This penetrating documentary from director Billy Corben pulls out all the stops to explore the many dimensions of Miami's cocaine-trafficking boom of the 1980s, as told by the smugglers, cops and average citizens who were there. The film is an unflinching study of Miami's most notorious and lethal vice -- from how the drug was moved and its financial impact on the city to the havoc and violence that followed in its wake (NetFlix).

Review:

When the mainstream public thinks of drug trafficking through Miami most think of Scarface or Miami Vice or one of the Grand Theft Auto games, and in a way, those pop culture revelations portray a portion of the reality that was Miami in the late 70s and 80s when cocaine was the king of the town.  But if someone wants to get a true taste of the culture look no further than Billy Corben’s Cocaine Cowboys.    

The best attribute of this documentary is how it stays true not just to the facts but also the persona of the drug trade in south Florida.  The Mafia in New York was stern, taking pride in professionalism and a stoic mentality, but the drug cartels in Miami were brash, flashy and above all in it for the money and fame.  And this mentality shows through in Corben’s film.  The era was a conglomeration of polar opposites: businessmen and wild parties, fame and family, violence and fun.  But nothing compares to the reality that Miami owed all its wealth and all of its misery to the drug trade of that time.  And Corben never hesitates to delve into any of these issues.  

There are multiple examples of this dichotomy.  The opening five minutes starts with a serious recreation of the killing of two men in 1979 because of their involvement in a rival gang only to be followed up by the opening credits that seems straight out of Miami Vice.  Later, Corben allows his subjects to touch on the notion that the drug cartels truly helped support the Miami economy and ultimately establish it as a major city in the United States.  There are multiple other seemingly conflicting elements that seem to jell this film together.  Sometimes Corben does this to keep the audience entertained, but usually this is done to highlight not just the history of the drug trade, but also the culture surrounding it (the only time real life modeled the characters of a B movie action film).  Because of this, Cocaine Cowboys develops into a film everyone can appreciate and learn from.    

The one complaint to have is its lack of a Columbian perspective.  Though I’m not sure how Corben would have found anyone willing to talk to him from this side of the story, it is unfortunate to hear only from the whites involved (drug runners, dealers and cops) and the American Colombian who ended up ratting out most of the dealers.  Hearing from the actual Colombian perspective would have truly made this a groundbreaking work in filmmaking, but as it stands it should still be on everyone’s watch list. 

Reviewed by Matthew Abshire for Documentary Film Online on December 12, 2009

In Conclusion: