It is extremely doubtful that any person would deny the fact that drug abuse is the bane of our times. This did not occur overnight; altering mood and perception through numerous pharmacological means have been part of being human since before recorded history. At first people found that fermenting certain plant produced alcohol resulting in beverages based on ethanol becoming part of almost every culture. Then it was discovered how to extract little white powders from other plants leading to highly potent such as morphine, heroin and cocaine. Along with the changes that are considered the initial primary objective there came a dark and sinister side effect; addiction. This overwhelming psychological and physiological need becomes a craving that over shadow every other aspect of normal life. An addict will readily choose their drug even over food. No one sets out with a goal in life to become an addict yet each year millions join the ranks replacing the lamentable casualties of this dreadful disease. Just about every generation has a particular drug that rises to widespread use. Even within a person’s lifetime the drug of choice can undergo changes. The baby boomer generation started with pot in the sixties but a scant twenty later would give way to crack cocaine. This chemical modification of regular cocaine broadened the user base from those with more disposable income and made the drug readily available to the working class. It didn’t take long until crack was destroying lives at an astonishing rate.

Film has focused on drugs and alcohol since the beginning of the art form. This has gone from cautionary tales warning about the dangers of drugs to the archetypical ‘stoner’ used for comic relief and the street junkie utilized in more crime drama than can be counted, occasionally a film is made that endeavors to depict addition in more realistic easy. Movies such as ‘Trainspotting’, ‘Panic in Needle Park’ or the ‘Man with the Golden Arm’ give audiences the unvarnished look at drug abuse and addiction. Now another film can join these ranks ‘Life is Hot in Cracktown’. It is a powerful drama that is often brutal in its presentation. It shows several groups of people whose lives have been affected by crack; just trying to survive another day.

The film was written and directed by Buddy Giovinazzo based on his collection of short stories. He burst on to the independent film scene in 1986 with his freshman opus ‘Combat Shock_’, a hard hitting look at the difficulties a veteran faces returning home after seeing combat. Giovinazzo is one of those film makers that never seem to leave his audiences lukewarm; you either appreciate what he is trying to say and how he chose to say it or you don’t. He never comes off as apologetic for his work. This approach to his craft embodies the importance of independent films; it affords an outlet for creative people to tell the stories that the mainstream studios tend to avoid. It is up to an auteur like Giovinazzoto bring these darker aspects of the human condition to light. The purpose of this work is more to reveal than resolve, many have been critical of the film as lacking a definitive solutions and how it leaves many of the story threads unresolved. Considering the topic this is not only completely appropriate it is the only realistic way to shoe the effect of these drugs on people. In real life, especially when crack is involved, there are rarely endings that are neatly tied up by the end credits. Events come and with little or no tangible connection. Mirroring reality where everything doesn’t affect anyone but those directly involved. In this world violence just happens seemingly in a vacuum remove from consequences and repercussions. It should leave the viewer questioning its meaning and come to the conclusion that meaningless events happen every day.

The focus of this film is divided between four sets of people living in a down scale part of the city. One way or another each of their lives have been impacted by the proliferation of crack cocaine. Many of the cast members seem completely miscast but this just drives home the point that addiction does not restrict itself to any segment of society; it can happen to the least likely individual. One example is casting Kerry Washington as Marybeth, a pre-op transsexual. This beautiful, talent actress has made her mark id Oscar winning dramas and here takes on a portrayal the pushes her credentials to another level. Marybeth works the street as a prostitute giving oral sex to her customer in order to save up for her transformational surgery and to support her crack head boyfriend Benny (Desmond Harrington). It is not as if he just let his ‘woman’ support him; he kicks in to the coffers with the proceeds of his work as a burglar and drug dealer. Despite their illegal activities they try to present the façade of a normal life. Manny (Victor Rasuk) is a man working hard just to make ends meet. When he is not working as a security guard at welfare hotel he takes late shifts at a local bodega frequented by the neighborhood pimps, druggie and hookers. His main motivation for such an arduous life is hi very sick infant son and his steadfast wife Concetta Shannyn (Sossamon) who tries her best to keep the best home possible. Illeana Douglas plays a mother raising her ten year old son Willie (
Ridge Canipe) he begs on the street to get enough money for some fast food for him and his sister Suzie (Ariel Winter) while his mother and her hot tempered boyfriend (Edoardo Ballerin) are either getting high or figuring a way to get high. Finally there is a gang member Romeo (Evan Ross) who generally terrorizes the neighborhood.

This is a powerhouse cast that work in their separate storylines leading towards the conclusion that loosely associates most of them. One caveat that should be noted id this is an extremely graphic film that makes it frequently difficult to watch. This is definitely not light entertainment but a gritty look at an aspect of our society that otherwise most of us would never be aware of. Some may ask why this film was made. It should be considered that with so many concerned about what is called the war on drugs most forms of media concentrates on the light end drug supplies. This film drives home the human damage that is wrought by the crack epidemic. These are the people that live and die in the shadows of our culture. Sure, much of their suffering was caused by their own poor choices but as this film shows it does have repercussions for us all. in any case it deserves being watched.