Product Description

IN THE 1980S, RUTHLESS COLOMBIAN COCAINE BARONS INVADED MIAMI WITH A BRAND OF VIOLENCE UNSEEN SINCE PROHIBITION-ERA CHICAGO - AND IT PUT THE CITY ON THE MAP. THIS IS THE TRUE STORY OF HOW MIAMI BECAME THE DRUG, MURDER & CASH CAPITAL OF THE UNITED STATES, TOLD BY THE PEOPLE WHO MADE IT HAPPEN.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9668 in DVD
• Brand: MAGNOLIA PICT HM ENT
• Released on: 2007-01-23
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Color, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 5.00 pounds
• Running time: 118 minutes

Amazon.com
More of a real-life exploitation film than a bonafide documentary, Cocaine Cowboys is tailor-made for anyone who worships Brian De Palma's Scarface. It's no surprise that this slick, energetic film found a niche audience among crime-obsessed hip-hoppers; from a journalistic perspective it's an irresponsible mess, but director Billy Corben is obviously more interested in capturing the thrills and danger of the drug trade that transformed Miami, Florida during the Miami Vice era of the late 1970s and '80s. Corben has no particular interest in seriously examining the sociopolitical implications of Miami's drug-fueled rise and fall, so Cocaine Cowboys lives up to its title by focusing on some of the most colorful, daring, and outrageously successful survivors of that era, when tons of cocaine were distributed through Miami by the kingpins of Colombia's notorious Medellin cartel. Chief among the many interviewees are Jon Roberts and Mickey Munday (who personally transported over $2 billion worth of cocaine into Miami) and Jorge "Rivi" Ayala, a convicted drug-trade assassin now serving consecutive life terms in prison. They're lively storytellers who are egotistically eager to share their coke-tales, and Corben's only too happy to capture their exploits on film, up to and including the dubious use of violent reenactments that could easily serve as a recruitment film for Tony Montana wannabes.

It's simultaneously disgusting and compelling, especially since Corben has a knack for matching swift editing to the pulsing score by TV's original Miami Vice composer Jan Hammer. In the final analysis, it must be said that Cocaine Cowboys succeeds as a brash and breathtaking record of a bygone era, when murder rates were at an all-time high, coke was everywhere, and Miami was financially transformed into a nightlife mecca where criminals were kings. Or queens, as in the case of Griselda Blanco, the ruthless and self-appointed "Godmother" of the cocaine trade, who was responsible for countless murders and as of 2007 remained at large, her whereabouts unknown. All of this deadly life in the fast lane makes for a fascinating movie, but Corben and coproducer David Cypkin's breathless commentary makes it clear that they're young, immature thrill-seekers, and their film makes no apologies for glorifying the drug trade while exploring its bloody and frequently fatal consequences. Their commentary also accompanies an abundance of deleted scenes, and there's also a bonus featurette, "Hustlin' with the Godmother," in which Griselda Blanco's former lover and big-time coke dealer Charles Cosby tells his story, which clearly has all the makings of a Hollywood movie along the lines of Blow. You can bet that film will eventually be made, and don't be surprised if it's Corben who makes it. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

A down-and-dirty Wild West story
Cocaine Cowboys is an aptly-titled 2-hour documentary about the cocaine economy which built modern day Miami. The documentary covers the flashiest crimes and personalities in the cocaine explosion of the 1980's. Director Billy Corben tells the story of the city built on cocaine via interviews with smugglers, hit men, and dealers. This isn't a socio-political look at the drug trade, rather, it is a down-and-dirty Wild West story, complete with a Godmother who could give Scarface a run for his money.

It does drag in parts, and could have been told in a more streamlined fashion. Even at 2-hours on length, the DVD has another two dozen deleted scenes, for anyone who wants more time with the men on the street. Anyone who enjoyed Scarface or Blow needs to pick this one up, as does any armchair economic historian.

Unbelievable but True
Fascinating documentaryfilm on the violent world that Miami was during the 1970's and 1980's. It's a must see.

Cocaine Exploration
This movie is well crafted and edited in such a way that you feel like you have been transported back to the mid 70's. The soundtrack, the backdrops and the editing style strictly reflect the raw nature of the gripping documentary. My only drawback on this 2 hour epic is the dramatic change an hour into it from the American point of view to the Cuban/Columbian point of view. A little too hasty and tended to drag in parts. Other than that a must have for lovers of Scarface and Miami Vice. A lot of interesting facts, so many so that it's hard to believe that the two main narrators in this doco are still alive.