Cocaine - La vera storia di White Boy Rick

I enjoyed most of this film. There were a few slow parts and its just as much a family drama as it is a crime/action flick. I thought newcomer Richie Merritt did a good job. He is likable and I found my self rooting for him throughout the movie. The setting of the film is early to mid 80's Detroit when factories are closing and the city is starting to spiral downward. This is a bit depressing but the city itself is kind of a character in the movie because of this. You understand why young men turn to a life of crime when there are no other ways to make a living. White Boy Rick was more a victim of his surroundings and environment than anything else. I can't recommend that you sprain an ankle running out to see WBR but it is worth seeing.

White Boy Rick: This is a true story based in the 80's about a 15-year-old, Rick Wershe Jr, who worked as an undercover FBI informant. I hadn't read up on this story, because I wanted to watch the movie not knowing any details. I was pleasantly surprised. This movie was not what I was expecting. I went in thinking it would be a Pablo Escobar kinda movie, but it was not. It's about a teenager trying to figure out how to survive living in a low income part of Detroit. It was heart wrenching, and even had some very funny parts. It also had some parts that made you shake your head and say, "what is he thinking?" In my opinion, it's definitely worth the watch. Also, I was completely blown away by Richie Merritt's performance. Especially since this was the first time he's acted, ever.

White Boy Rick is the cinematic equivalent of Sloppy Joes. It tastes good, but it never coalesces into something satisfying, with a solid base of support to keep it together. White Boy Rick has all the ingredients of a great film. A stellar all-star cast, excellent cinematography, razor-sharp editing and a story that keeps you invested the entire time. But something seems missing. For one, some of the story seems rushed to get to the more interesting aspects, without properly explaining how we get there. For example, how did the FBI hone into Rick and his father for an FBI investigation? The agents just appear in the beginning, and we're supposed to roll with it. Now you understand why I compared it to Sloppy Joes. The exposition, at times, is pretty sloppy. But fortunately, never once did that take me out of the film. White Boy Rick is a thoroughly good time at the movies. The performances, notably from McConaughey, are top notch. White Boy Rick himself garners sympathy as a lost soul, and that's important to clarify. Some people might write this off as a run-of-the-mill crime thriller biting off "The Wire". If I was so inclined to be jaded, maybe I'd agree. But always give things the benefit of the doubt. Give it a watch?

Rick Wershe Jr's claim to fame, or infamy if you prefer, was that at fourteen he was the youngest ever FBI informant before becoming a kingpin drug dealer at sixteen. Yann Demange's (he made "'71"), film "White Boy Rick" is a 'Serpico'-like account of how Rick got into this and it makes for surprisingly sobering viewing. It didn't help that his dad, (an absolutely terrific Matthew McConaughey), was a low-life gun dealer and his sister, (Bel Powley, brilliant), a junkie. You might say that with a family like this, a life of crime was inevitable.

It's a tragic story that Demange never exploits and if it isn't quite in the same class as "'71" it may be because this is material we've seen too often in the past. In the title role newcomer Richie Merritt is excellent and the film looks terrific, (Tat Radcliffe was the cinematographer), moving nicely from Hollywood crime movie gloss to documentary realism often in the same scene. In the end, this is a grim, downbeat little movie but it's hard-to-believe true story is one worth telling and Demange tells it very well indeed.

I was expecting a movie that showed the rise (and fall) of the youngest gangster in America, but I ended up getting a movie with an identity crisis. It didn't know if it wanted to be a crime drama or a family drama. Too many details were skipped or fast forwarded, like Rick's rise to power in the second half of the movie. Then it all comes down crashing so fast, I felt like they ran out of time trying to tell the story. The acting was average, I didn't see any particular standout performances, and it was hard to feel empathy for any character. Overall, an okay movie, worth streaming maybe somewhere down the road.