When a visionary architect and his wife flee post-war Europe in 1947 to rebuild their legacy and witness the birth of modern United States, their lives are changed forever by a mysterious, wealthy client.
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.
When investigative reporter Irwin "Fletch" Fletcher goes undercover to write a piece on the drug trade at a local beach, he's approached by wealthy businessman Alan Stanwyk, who offers him $50,000 to murder him. With sarcastic wit and a knack for disguises, Fletch sets out to uncover Stanwyk's story.
Over the course of one night, a woman drives across LA with her heroin addict brother in search of a detox center, with his two-year-old daughter in tow.
A young heroin addict roams the streets of New York to panhandle and get her next fix, while her unstable boyfriend drifts in and out of her life at random.
Saxophone player Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker comes to New York in 1940 and is quickly noticed for his remarkable way of playing. He becomes a drug addict but his loving wife Chan tries to help him.
After serving time in prison, former drug addict Sherry Swanson returns home to reclaim her young daughter from family members who have been raising the child. Sherry's family, especially her sister-in-law, doubt Sherry's ability to be a good mother, and Sherry finds her resolve to stay clean slowly weakening.
Chronicles the rise and fall of legendary blues singer Billie Holiday, beginning with her traumatic youth. The story depicts her early attempts at a singing career and her eventual rise to stardom, as well as her difficult relationship with Louis McKay, her boyfriend and manager. Casting a shadow over even Holiday's brightest moments is the vocalist's severe drug addiction, which threatens to end both her career and her life.
Following the events of El pico, the heroin-addicted Paco faces jail time due to his involvement in a double murder.
A young man turns from drug addiction and petty crime to a life redeemed by a discovery of compassion.
A down on his luck former drug dealer is forced by a corrupt LAPD policeman to sell 100 kilos of confiscated marijuana in one weekend.
Gai Nhay ("Bar Girls") is the story of how the other half lives, with a twist. Southeast Asia being known for the multitude of bar girls ready to be "borrowed" for a (usually quite cheap) price, the life these girls live--and the motivations and tribulations that lead them to it--are usually hidden to their oblivious clientéle.
Antoine, a handsome boy in his 20s, falls for a straight best friend who does not reciprocate, and being a junkie exits the film quite early. Enter a girl, who seems to make him happy again, after he has tried living as a rent boy with men, having some familial, financial difficulties. But the girl is a junkie too.
Two rich American young adults who meet and fall in love in Venice, Italy. With plenty of money and no real responsibilities or direction in life, the couple begin experimenting with illicit drugs. The movie travels through a series of flashbacks showing their progression from marijuana to harder drugs as a result of their complex romantic entanglement with each other.
Los Angeles heroin addict Jesse endangers the lives of his childhood friends after he discovers a briefcase full of money from a drug deal gone bad, and returns home with it to Texas. Hoping to turn his life around with his newfound wealth, Jessie endures detox with the support of his friends. However, the gang leader behind the drug deal, along with his cronies, trace Jesse's footsteps to Texas to exact revenge and take back their money.
Michael is a basically decent guy with a pregnant girlfriend, great friends - and one massive drug problem. Because he missed his own Las Vegas bachelor party being too stoned, his four besties decide to kidnap him for a weekend of roughing it in the California wilderness. Caught off guard by this surprise camping trip and his nose candy supply dwindling, Michael is shocked when his buddies start being ritually murdered one by one. Suspecting it’s the vicious drug dealer he cheated getting bloody revenge, Michael’s life swirls out of all control as the real truth is revealed.
Remy is a medical student who has a flair for making his patients comfortable. His genuine concern for the patients in his charge marks him as a hot prospect in his internship program. Pamela works at a children's book publishing company. The two meet via Pamela's brother, who is also Remy's good friend. They fall in love and get an apartment in the East Village of New York. Soon after, the couple begins to indulge in speed and barbiturates. They become heavily addicted. Remy is thrown out of medical school and Pamela quits her job. Remy soon finds himself in debt with the local dealer, Stutter, who introduces his customer to heroin as a revenge for his late bill. Pamela faces the prospect of getting sober at her brother's clinic, but must leave behind a destitute Remy in order to do it.
This follow-up to the 1989 documentary ONE YEAR IN A LIFE OF CRIME revisits three of the original subjects in New Jersey during a five-year period in the 1990s. We share in their triumphs and setbacks as they navigate lives of poverty, drug abuse, AIDS, and petty crime.
Two heroin-addicted couples lead hard and stressful lives on the streets of New York.
An unflinching, fragmentary look at a handful of self-destructive, marginalized people, but taking as main focus the heroin-addicted Vanda Duarte.