Black Tar Heroin: The Dark End of the Street
March. 17,2000The film follows a simple structure, and shows the drug-related degradation of five youths (Jake, Tracey, Jessica, Alice, Oreo) during the course of three years. The film depicts drug-related crimes and diseases: prostitution, male prostitution, AIDS, and lethal overdoses.
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I found the link for this doc on a fellow users blog. It broke my heart, I have been using heroin daily for almost 20 years, I have only 1 usable vein in my neck, I have had DVT in both legs and have lived a truly hectic life as a result of my addiction. That said, my life seems a picnic compared to these poor lost souls. This film really tugged at my heartstrings. These poor kids are living a life of self destruction in the extreme.( And you can bet your last dollar there is an awful underlying reason for it (like a 5 year old girl being raped by her own grandfather). Living in the UK I don't have to worry too much about aids and I think we get better quality heroin here.(The black tar verity has a high acetic acid content which can burn out the vein in double time). It really is an insight into the problems of addiction young people are facing in modern times. I would recommend watching it but be warned, if you have friends or loved ones with a heroin problem, it may open your eyes but will almost certainly break your heart, unless of course your heartless, or have a small minded hatred of addicts. 10/10.
A friend of a friend is a user, so we managed to write a short but dense critique on this excellent documentary. We are both Generation Y (24-25), so it's like watching the lives of our imaginary junkie cousins.First of all, this documentary is true. Well, you're gonna say "aren't documentaries suppose to outline reality?". Yes, but this masterpiece manages to not become over-dramatic, and follow the lives of 5 very different personae.Second of all, the shocking nature of this work of art is not meant to create an atmosphere of "drugs are bad, okay?" but to portray how the misuse of such a powerful substance can lead to the destruction of many people's lives, when the information about the substance itself, its use and its pharmacology is purely street-wise due to the lack of the Internet.Today there are a lot of people who we can technically call "addicts", but they live perfectly normal lives because of the information given through the internet, even before start self-medicating with opiates.We live in a post-curt Cobain world, so when you watch this documentary, try to have in mind how these characters would be if they lived in the age of Web 2.0
After seeing this documentary, I, like most people, wondered what the fate of those featured was. WELL, surprisingly enough, I was at the dog park today in Portland, Oregon and noticed a familiar face. It was none other than Alice, the punk rock girl from the movie! I found it hard to believe that it was really her, so I went up and talked to her and sure enough, it was! I guess she moved here 6 years ago and has been clean ever since! She told me that they were talking about doing a 'where are they now?' follow-up, but it never happened. I guess the lesbian girl who was working as a sex worker with HIV has since died, but most people are up to the same old. . .sad, but nice to know at the same time. People make choices, you know. Seeing her gave me hope. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me Alice, wherever u are.xo sigrun
I did not see this documentary in its entirety, but what I did see definitely made an impact. The images are still with me today of those who were ravaged by heroin addiction. I caught the second half. One couple lived in a slummy hotel. The boyfriend was dealing and selling at the same time. He talked about how he once said he would never shoot up; once he began doing that he said he would never shoot through his neck. Sadly, we see him do that during this documentary. The others lives were just as depressing. Two of the addicts call their family members during the documentary. This was sad because it reminds viewers that they still have people who care about them. I would like to see a follow up on those featured. I hope they were able to get help. I agree with other posters that this is a good film to show young people.