Body Brokers

Wow, such a crazy informative true story. Newb filmmaker John Swab casted, produced, wrote and directed this docu-type film, and did a decent job.

It is well directed and shot, and the casting was decent with Frank Grillo performing and narrating the true facts of this film. My only casting issue was Jack Kilmer as Utah; he performed well as a junkie, but after rehab he still had that monotonic expressionless boring demeanor. I'm not sure if it was his acting failing to turn-up a few notches, or Swab not directing him properly, or both, but his role in the second act was disappointing.

The score and cinematography were on point, but the 111 min runtime felt much longer with the film's often slow pacing. Swab's screenplay wasn't perfect, but told the story he was aiming to tell, quite well - enough to anger most people who have had trouble with addiction, or know someone close to them that has been through the system. Although a compelling story, the plot was too plain, but at least the details were vivid enough to keep you watching until the end. It's educational and investigative into an exploitative crime surrounding addiction. It certainly opened my eyes. Props to newb filmmaker Swab for putting this little gem together.

Overall more interesting than exciting, but nevertheless a story that really needed to be told - and I'm surprised it took this long.

What's good about this movie is that it opens your eyes on a community problem of drug addiction and how the treatment programs could be an issue themselves. What's not good in this movie is that it only focuses on failure stories. It's a bit slow as well.

This film begins with two masked thieves named "Utah" (Jack Kilmer) and Opal (Alice Englert) robbing a convenience store and then deftly escaping from the police with their stolen money. That same night they buy some heroin to satisfy their drug addiction and subsequently pass out on a bed in a cheap hotel room. The scene then shifts to a day or two later with both of them essentially broke and homeless. It's then that a man by the name of "Wood" (Michael Kenneth Williams) observes their plight and invites them inside a local diner for a free meal. While there he tells them that he was also an addict a few years ago and encourages them to go to a rehabilitation center on the West Coast. Although Opal is adamantly against this idea, Utah eventually decides to take him up on his offer and gets admitted. What he doesn't know is that Wood is a recruiter for this particular rehabilitation center and gets paid each time he refers someone for admission. Not only that, but if they should relapse, he also gets paid for any readmission as well-and therein lies the problem because it actually benefits Wood when this happens. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was an intriguing film which potentially shines a spotlight on a major problem within out medical system. Having said that, however, let me also say that this is not a documentary and it doesn't reference any peer-reviewed documentation to bolster its case. So, regardless of all of the facts and figures it might stipulate, the only thing for certain is that this a movie--and for the reasons just mentioned should probably be treated as such. To that point, it should go without saying that Hollywood has a tendency to embellish things when it suits their purpose. Therefore, since I honestly have certain doubts, I won't speculate on the accuracy of any allegations made in this film. What I can say, however, is that it was an interesting film for the most part and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Body Brokers is a film that means well and sends a message not only about drug addiction but how companies are exploiting the misery of these people by making billions of dollars . I'm just not quite sure the format of the film really works.

I did like the film. The performances are good , especially from Jack Kilmer (Utah) and Michael Kenneth Williams who I think is a massively underrated actor .

I just think the film isn't quite sure if it's a drama or a documentary and it ends up not fully being either .

It does send an important message about drugs and it's a war that can never be won but there is nothing stopping the United States stopping corporate greed and changing the rules on making money from desperate people .

Worth a watch .

Very well executed movie, I'd say. The pacing might be slow, but it renders the feeling of aimlessness of the addicts. I would have wanted to be told what in the movie is true or invented, but if the numbers are true, and cash exchanges that easy, then the question really is who are the big fish promoting those policies, because they're obviously set up to be exploited. Actors played well and human emotions of loss, betrayal, belonging, community, fear, shame, anger, all rung true to me.