Told through the eyes of victims as well as perpetrators, Crisis speaks of corporate greed and social indifference to an ever-escalating number of deaths. The opioid epidemic in North America has a stronghold on large segments of the population and an indifference to life. These fatalities are caused by overdoses as well as casualties linked to the criminal activities in the manufacturing, sale and distribution of the drugs.
A trio of tales tells the story. They feature a badass DEA agent (Armie Hammer) who is on the hunt to bring down a Canadian drug lord Mother (Guy Nadon). A recovering addict (Evangeline Lilly) who suffers a personal loss that triggers a revenge plot, and Gary Oldman, a Doctor that gets put under pressure to follow a Big Pharma party line in regards to testing on a new drug. Oldman was also a producer on the project.
The three provide the bedrock to the film with varying degrees of success. Hammer in stock police procedural mode gets to be the renegade rebel with the heart of gold as he struggles to bring down the bad guy and keep his substance abuse sister alive. His storyline dovetails with that of Lilly’s as she mirrors his attempt to bring down the Kingpin, Mother. Oldman’s Doctor role exists outside of the street and is set in the world of academia and unfortunately misses the chance to make a bigger impact in the film’s narrative.
The opioid catastrophe has become a horrible scourge in North American and other parts of the world and it deserves a film that ignites a great sense of outrage and works to instill a strong desire to get involved in its banishment, unfortunately, Crisis isn’t completely up to the task. It is entertaining but ultimately lacks the gravitas that the situation deserves.
Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/UniversalPicturesAU
