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

Hosted by Amaryllis Fox, Netflix documentaryThe Business of Drugsoffers valuable insight about worldwide narcotics trafficking, but doesn't fully succeed indeconstructing America's war on drugs. To be fair, thedocuseries 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 Drugscovers 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 Drugssubsequently strays from familiar talking points in favor of commentaries aboutlow-level workers who are far removed from big money exchanges. Many of Fox's intervieweesare 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 whoeither 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.

Related:The Business of Drugs: Why Amaryllis Fox Is The Perfect Host

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 aclear A-B-Cnarrative rather than six episodes that continuously shift to different locations. Overall, theNetflixdocumentary effectively shows how everything connects across the globe. Buthere's whatmany streamers may be curious about.

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 transpiresbetween coastal cities like New York and Los Angeles.

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 accomplishedCIA veteran, a woman who was inspired to investigate terrorism after the 9/11 attacks on America. Fox's commentariesare sharp and blunt,but the Netflix documentarywould've benefitted more with extra emphasis on the host's credentials.

The Business of Drugson 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 seeminglyhaven'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-19and how the Coronavirus has affected the business of drugsin 2020. But isn't that that a fascinating premise for The Business of Drugs season 2 on Netflix?

More:Athlete A True Story: What Netflix's Documentary Leaves Out

Batwoman Season 2 Won't Recast Ruby Rose, Replacing With New Character

Q.V. Hough is a Screen Rant staff writer. He's also the founding editor at Vague Visages, and has contributed to RogerEbert.com and Fandor.

View original post here:

Business Of Drugs: What The Netflix Documentary Leaves Out - Screen Rant