The Crime of the Century is an American two-part documentary film, directed, produced, and written by Alex Gibney. The film follows the opioid epidemic in the United States, and the political operatives, government regulations and corporations that enable the abuse of opioids, particularly the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma.
| The Crime of the Century | |
|---|---|
 Official poster | |
| Written by | Alex Gibney |
| Directed by | Alex Gibney |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers |
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| Cinematography | Brett Wiley |
| Editor | Andy Grieve |
| Running time | 231 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Release | May 10, 2021 |
It was aired in two parts beginning on May 10, 2021, and May 11, 2021, by HBO.
Synopsis edit
OxyContin edit
The film follows the opioid epidemic in the United States, the political operatives, government regulations, and corporations that enable the abuse of opioids. Part one of the documentary focuses on Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family, who collaborated with Food and Drug Administration official Curtis Wright IV to get OxyContin approved for wider use.[1] Government regulations tried to mitigate wrongdoing, leading Purdue and other distributors to settle cases, keeping details private. Patrick Radden Keefe, Andrew Kolodny, Mark Ross, Anna Lembke, Lynn Webster, Roy Bosley, Barry Meier, Art Van Zee (town physician), Paul Pelletier and Giles Sartin appear in part one.
The documentary commentators blame the manufacturers and marketers of opioids, while Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family blame opioid users for abuse of drugs.
Fentanyl edit
Part two of the documentary follows the mass marketing of Fentanyl. While the opioid crisis was killing over 40 people per day, Insys Therapeutics began to bribe doctors to overprescribe the drug, and a complex scheme to defraud insurance companies with fraudulent marketing tactics, and lawmakers who turned a blind eye to the crisis. Joe Rannazzisi (a retired DEA Agent), Jonathan Novak, Sari Horowitz, Scott Higham, Lenny Bernstein, David Lazarus, Nathaniel Yeager, Fred Wyshak, Ed Byrne, Will Kimbell, Alec Burkaloff, Sunrise Lee and Caleb Lainer appear in part two.[2]
The DEA's Diversion Control Division ensures that opioid pharmaceutical drugs are not diverted to the black market.[3]
Fentanyl is designed to manage the "breakthrough pain" of cancer patients who are near death; the drug is supposed to alleviate their suffering before death.
According to Scott Higham and other commentators, there is an oligopoly of drug distributors: the three main companies are McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen.
Former U.S. deputy AG Jamie Gorelick is accused of lobbying on behalf of the drug industry. Similarly, former DEA lawyer Linden Barber is said to have become a lobbyist on behalf of Cardinal Health.
Donald Trump nominates Tom Marino to become the "drug czar" in 2017.
Production edit
In February 2021, it was announced that Alex Gibney would direct and produce a two-part documentary film focusing on the opioid epidemic in the United States, with HBO Documentary Films and HBO set to distribute.[4]
Release edit
The film aired in two parts on May 10, 2021, and May 11, 2021, on HBO.[5]
Reception edit
The Crime of the Century received positive reviews from critics. It holds a 95% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 20 reviews. The site's critics' consensus reads: "Difficult, but necessary, The Crime of the Century interrogates the origins of the opioid crisis, raising big questions that will likely leave viewers wondering why something hasn't been done about this sooner."[6] On Metacritic, the film holds a rating of 84 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[7] It was both lauded and critiqued for focusing on those accused of causing the ongoing crisis more than on its victims.[8]
References edit
- ^ Records of Purdue Pharma obtained by the film's producers show that three executives of the company met clandestinely with Wright in 1995 for three days in a hotel room to write the label text for Oxycontin that allowed Purdue to market the opioid as being virtually non-addictive. Less than three years later, Wright left the FDA and was employed by Purdue with a 6-figure salary and given multiple patent rights on OxyContin.
- ^ "HBO's THE CRIME OF THE CENTURY, A Searing Investigation Revealing The Inner Workings Of The Multi-Billion Dollar Industry Behind The Opioid Epidemic, Debuts May 10". WarnerMedia. April 20, 2021. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
- ^ "DEA Diversion Control Division". Deadiversion.usdoj.gov. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 10, 2021). "HBO Teams With Alex Gibney For Two-Part Opioid Epidemic Documentary 'The Crime Of The Century'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
- ^ Ferme, Antonio (April 20, 2021). "HBO Releases 'The Crime of the Century' Trailer (TV News Roundup)". Variety. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
- ^ "The Crime of the Century: Miniseries (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ "The Crime of the Century: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
- ^ Gajjar, Saloni (May 7, 2021). "HBO's The Crime Of The Century is an incisive but fragmented look at the opioid crisis". The AV Club. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
