The Business Of Drugs: What The Netflix Documentary Leaves Out

Netflix’s The Business of Drugs explores narcotics trafficking, but doesn’t fully address America’s war on drugs. Here’s what is missing.

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Hosted by Amaryllis Fox, Netflix documentary The Business of Drugs offers valuable insight about worldwide narcotics trafficking, but doesn’t fully succeed in deconstructing America’s war on drugs. To be fair, the docuseries aims high by investigating the bigger picture, and how certain regions of the world are affected by modern drug production and distribution, but the downside is that many Netflix streamers, certainly in the United States, may looking for a proper breakdown of how the business of drugs specifically affects their community or region.

As a whole, The Business of Drugs covers the essentials and plenty more. Fox begins with a report about cocaine, a drug that can be easily correlated to pop culture figures, however The Business of Drugs subsequently strays from familiar talking points in favor of commentaries about low-level workers who are far removed from big money exchanges. Many of Fox’s interviewees are merely pawns in a dirty game that’s controlled by the big-time dealers. At its heart, The Business of Drugs on Netflix is mostly about regular, everyday people who either contribute to the modern drug trade or realize that it’s best to stay under-the-radar. When Fox does meet up with influential figures, she doesn’t hold back. And therein lies the value of watching The Business of Drugs, as the host – a former CIA agent – knows her stuff.

The Business of Drugs on Netflix features six episodes about cocaine, synthetics, heroin, meth, cannabis, and opioids. Each standalone episode includes fascinating insight from Fox, along with insider information from people who truly understand how drug production and distribution has changed in recent years, and how the dark web affects business in America and beyond. If there’s a critique to be made, it’s that a world of streamers may want a clear A-B-C narrative rather than six episodes that continuously shift to different locations. Overall, the Netflix documentary effectively shows how everything connects across the globe. But here’s what many streamers may be curious about.

The Scope Of America’s Current War On Drugs

The Business of Drugs may not necessarily be about the United States’ decades-long war against narcotics, but many Netflix streamers will indeed correlate the term “war on drugs” with American culture, whether it’s Ronald Reagan’s presidency during the ’80s or the rise of cocaine distribution in Los Angeles. The first episode features an interview with a Compton, California cocaine dealer, who offers a Drug Distribution 101 commentary about pyramid structures. The second episode about synthetics references the bizarre K2 “Zombie Outbreak” in Brooklyn, and the MDMA episode acknowledges an American counterculture that’s mostly associated with California. What’s missing, it seems, is a proper investigation about what transpires between coastal cities like New York and Los Angeles.

Fox’s Complete Background And Life Story

To its credit, The Business of Drugs doesn’t point out that Amaryllis Fox is the inspiration for a new Apple TV+ series starring Brie Larson. The Netflix docuseries also doesn’t acknowledge that Fox is married to Robert Kennedy III, the grandson of the late Robert F. Kennedy, the 64th Attorney General of the United States. Such information could easily distract viewers from the central message, and could affect one’s perception of the host, in one way or another. The fact remains that Fox is an accomplished CIA veteran, a woman who was inspired to investigate terrorism after the 9/11 attacks on America. Fox’s commentaries are sharp and blunt, but the Netflix documentary would’ve benefitted more with extra emphasis on the host’s credentials.

How COVID-19 Affects The Business Of Drugs

The Business of Drugs on Netflix features a revelatory sequence about coca production in Colombia, and how the port town of Buenaventura is so crucial to international distribution. There’s also a segment about low-level coco producers who understand their place in the overall infrastructure, and know that they need to accept their bosses’ price levels (which seemingly haven’t changed for decades). The Business of Drugs’ first episode even includes a sharp comparison between the modern cocaine “monopsy” (Mexican cartels) and Walmart. What the docuseries lacks, however, is a commentary about COVID-19 and how the Coronavirus has affected the business of drugs in 2020. But isn’t that that a fascinating premise for The Business of Drugs season 2 on Netflix?

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/business-drugs-netflix-documentary-details-information-missing/