As "American Pain" (2022 release; 106 min.) opens, we hear from Chris George, caught on tape saying he fears he'll get arrested soon. A voice--over reminds us that Chris and Jeff George put more opioid pills on the street than anyone else. We then go back to their early upbringing in privileged Wellington, FL... At this point we are less than 10 minutes into the documentary.
Couple of comments: this is the latest from Emmy Award winning producer-director Darren Foster ("Science Fair"). Here he looks at how twins Chris and Jeff George brazenly and blatantly exploited a weakly regulated drug industry. Of course they are not the only ones who set up pill mills. But its ilk like that who certainly played more than their part to unleash one of the largest and deadliest health emergencies this country has ever seen, and STILL is dealing with. That the George Brothers thrived in Florida should not surprise you, as state regulation of this industry was in those days (late 00's and early 10's) one of the weakest in the country. And then people are shocked, SHOCKED I tells ya, that things like this can happen. For shame. The documentary flies by in no time, as you watch and you wonder why nobody stepped in until it was too late (and even then...). Comments someone: "Big Pharma, doctors, drugstores, patients, pill mills, everyone knew what they were doing and all turned a blind eye". Turns out that some eyes perhaps are a little more blind than others. (The documentary also exposes Chris George as a white supremacist, Oh, are you surprised?)
"American Pain" premiered at last years Tribeca Film Festival to immediate critical acclaim. It is rated 88% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. It aired on CNN earlier this year and then started streaming on Max, where I caught it last night. If you have any interest in understanding how a national health emergency originates when everyone turns a blind eye because there is crazy money to be made, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.
