I found this storyline of this film to be totally predictable. Its the same old story of the rise and fall of drug dealers/smugglers. The use of Hasidic Jews as drug mules is the twist.
We see the protagonist (Sam, played by Jesse Eisenberg) as a devout, highly spiritual, young Hasidic Jew lured by the promise of quick cash into becoming a drug mule. Initially, he is told he is smuggling medicine from Amsterdam into the US. The typical progression of the temptation of easy money and the lifestyle leads him and his wreck less Hasidic buddy to become deeply involved in the drug smuggling operation. Somewhere along the way, I'm not sure exactly where, Sam losses his spirituality, and is disowned by his devoutly Hasidic family. They become increasingly wreck less, and predictably get caught. Its a very familiar film plot.
The acting and casting are decent, but not particularly compelling. Ari Graynor, the girlfriend of the smuggling ring kingpin, is really the only interesting character in the film. The issue of Sam's loss of spirituality is glossed over, when it should have been a key part of the story. How does a devout, strictly religious young man studying to be a Rabbi become an international drug smuggler seemingly overnight? We don't really get much of an answer. We do get some hints at things that reinforce the worst stereotypes about Jewish people, such as "Jews have always been smugglers" and we are left to wonder if the film makers are hinting that Jews will do anything to make a fast buck.
So, in the end, its the same old "rise and fall" of the drug smuggler thing, we've seen in films from "Scarface" to "Blow". The reason, we are supposed to be interested is that it involves Hasidic Jews and stars Jesse Eisenberg. WoW!, I'm less than overwhelmed.
I found this film to be stale and somewhat trite. Based on a true story, at the end of the film, it is stated that the Hasidic ecstasy smuggling ring brought 1 million pills into the US in the late 1990's. In the scheme of world of drug smuggling, that's actually a fairly small time operation.
We see the protagonist (Sam, played by Jesse Eisenberg) as a devout, highly spiritual, young Hasidic Jew lured by the promise of quick cash into becoming a drug mule. Initially, he is told he is smuggling medicine from Amsterdam into the US. The typical progression of the temptation of easy money and the lifestyle leads him and his wreck less Hasidic buddy to become deeply involved in the drug smuggling operation. Somewhere along the way, I'm not sure exactly where, Sam losses his spirituality, and is disowned by his devoutly Hasidic family. They become increasingly wreck less, and predictably get caught. Its a very familiar film plot.
The acting and casting are decent, but not particularly compelling. Ari Graynor, the girlfriend of the smuggling ring kingpin, is really the only interesting character in the film. The issue of Sam's loss of spirituality is glossed over, when it should have been a key part of the story. How does a devout, strictly religious young man studying to be a Rabbi become an international drug smuggler seemingly overnight? We don't really get much of an answer. We do get some hints at things that reinforce the worst stereotypes about Jewish people, such as "Jews have always been smugglers" and we are left to wonder if the film makers are hinting that Jews will do anything to make a fast buck.
So, in the end, its the same old "rise and fall" of the drug smuggler thing, we've seen in films from "Scarface" to "Blow". The reason, we are supposed to be interested is that it involves Hasidic Jews and stars Jesse Eisenberg. WoW!, I'm less than overwhelmed.
I found this film to be stale and somewhat trite. Based on a true story, at the end of the film, it is stated that the Hasidic ecstasy smuggling ring brought 1 million pills into the US in the late 1990's. In the scheme of world of drug smuggling, that's actually a fairly small time operation.