In this interesting doc you follow the lives of multiple heroine addicts follows a story of addition sadness anger and death i found this doc to be very interesting indeed could have covered some topics more deeply but id recommend this still

8/10

It's unfortunate this documentary had the faults it did, because it meant well.

These were the issues that made it hard to watch for me: 1) It was a little confusing how they put together the stories of the multiple people together to create this. I understand wanting to include many different voices and experiences, but including so many different people meant that some of the people didn't get to tell much of their story.

Personally, I love watching these to get inside the heads of an addict so I can empathize better with those I care for and my loved ones. This didn't really offer much of a look into their minds and hearts because they had to be told so short.

2) Some of the people interviewed seemed genuine. They were raw and vulnerable, and really seemed to care about being a part of this documentary.

Others seemed to be more interested in bragging (literally) about stealing, neglecting responsibilities, and how they were a "better" addict than others. These were hard to watch.

I understand they wanted a range of experiences. I'm not judging these people's lives. We all have our stuff we go through and it's great that these people put their struggles and vulnerability on display to raise awareness.

I just feel some of them weren't interested in doing that, it seemed they just wanted to be on TV or something. Maybe if they had allowed us to see more of their stories it wouldn't have felt like this. I feel like they just randomly introduced people who wanted to brag.

3) They spent a long time describing how "amazing" the heroin high is. I mean like at least 15 minutes. I understand that they need to let people understand why the drug is desirable, but they didn't need to spend so much time explaining it. My boyfriend is a recovering addict (3 years clean!) and he had to walk away from this because it was so triggering.

I get that it's going to be triggering in a sense because of the topic, but he likes watching docs about heroin addiction because it helps him stay sober, seeing how far he's come and doesn't want to go back to that life. But this was super detailed, multiple people describing the high in very intimate ways.. I don't understand why they'd spend so much time just talking about how great it feels. Isn't this about awareness??

4) The interviews with the healthcare officials seemed randomly placed too. They didn't add to the story told before they jumped in. They just jumped in with random facts.

At one point, a pharmacist said "I don't know myself, but I have heard oxycodone produces a similar high as heroin". You don't know this?! They are both opioids... Why would they even include this clip in the documentary? This is supposed to be informative and the professional chosen to educate the public is admitting she doesn't know much.

Scary that a healthcare professional wouldn't know that honestly, considering they've linked the heroin epidemic to the over prescription of legal opioids in the late 90s/early 00s.. people turned to heroin when they cut down on this. This is universally known information. Again, if she didn't know about the heroin epidemic, why include her?

TL;DR: They could have made a great documentary so easily honestly. A pretty standard formula, considering the bulk is supposed to be focused on getting to understand and empathize with the people telling their stories. Instead this gave many surface-level accounts from people who use heroin. They spent 15 minutes detailing what a heroin high is like and emphasizing how amazing it feels.. in a documentary meant to spread awareness. Some of the healthcare professionals in the documentary admitted they didn't know much about the heroin/opioid epidemic but were somehow chosen to be in a documentary about it? The entire construction was messy and poorly executed. It almost seemed more like a reality show rather than a documentary.

Many of us have been touched by the damage that Class A drugs can do, and for those affected close to home, this is a difficult watch.

We have here an unflinching documentary which is no holds barred as the interviewees are the talking heads explaining their exasperations, failures and hopes to kick the heroin addiction. Giving free reign to the interviewees is quite a brave move, but it works and you feel that you are learning something. It's good to see it let them paint themselves and not resort to filming tactics to try to humiliate them.

One of the most difficult parts is watching the help group for the parents of the addicts. They are honest and straight, and it can be quite heart sinking to see this.

There is not necessarily anything ground breaking here, it's a window into a world where those there are in a downward spiral. It's difficult viewing but still interesting.

Give it a viewing. A good job done by the documentary makers and hope others follow their example in how to tackle such a subject.