Warning: This Drug May Kill You

I loved this film- although the material is incredibly heavy, it presents the footage in an incredibly graceful and interesting way. The film essentially uncovers a hidden problem that exists in the USA. Moreover, the film is all about the victims of the opioid epidemic as opposed to focusing on experts which really provides the viewer with a candid understanding of what is happening around us. It is a must watch!!! Bravo to the filmmakers-

This documentary looks at several middle class families and how well adjusted people had various illnesses of short duration and ended up addicted to OxyContin, then buying pills off the street when their doctors finally identified them as drug seekers, then to heroin as a cheap alternative, and then either ended up dead or in multiple relapses.

The illnesses involved were kidney stones, a cyst, and a C-section. The problem is, in the 1990s the manufacturers of the new opioid drugs were telling doctors that these drugs were not addictive over the long haul and that they could be prescribed freely for chronic pain. This is not to discount the usefulness these drugs have had for people in truly horrible long term pain due to cancer or car accidents, but M.D.s were passing prescriptions out like candy for a few years to people who didn't really need it and found themselves addicted in as little as one week.

There are stories of addiction, getting clean at clinics, and then relapsing at some point once released. Stories of children having to take care of and see their mother in a state that no children should have to endure, the stories of heartbroken survivors when the addict takes a fatal overdose.

There is also a look at a support group for parents who have lost children to this drug. The survivors are truly shell shocked, almost in disbelief that their Mayberry like existences would ever be permeated by drug addiction.

I can't remember if the documentary mentioned it or not, but you can't help but notice that everybody in this documentary is white and at least middle class. It could be because doctors have bias that makes them suspect non-white or poor patients. You also can't help but notice that all of the addicts here are offered rehab rather than incarceration.

This documentary is worth watching not because it breaks new ground, but because in spite of the warnings and the settlement with Purdue, the maker of OxyContin, ten years ago, this epidemic is still with us.

Something often overlooked now given a real run through. I loved the movie's message but the actual movie blew me away! 10/10 on all fronts! The cinematography is incredible. It is such an important issue that is not given a lot of attention in this political America we live in. Everyone needs to watch this movie. truly changes your views on what heroin has become.

Provocative, unflinching and at time utterly heartbreaking, Warning This Drug May Kill You takes us deep inside the lives of four American families shattered by the prescription opioid epidemic, the worst drug crisis this nation has ever seen. It is an hour long indictment, expertly delivered, of a culture and system that sold us on dangerous medications, got us hooked and then tried to dodge responsibility. We're still trying to dodge it, pretending that our drug problem is imported, and that a wall can stop it, when indeed the fault lies in ourselves. This is a challenging and important film. It should be made required viewing for our state an federal lawmakers.

I found this movie to be extremely well done. It covers three families as they struggle with a loved one addicted to opiates...they started taking pain killers, then moved onto the less expensive heroin. Most films like this have a lot of newsy talking heads explaining how the viewer should interpret all of it. I liked that it had none of these, just a few black cards with statistics.

THe movie is really a fast paced must see, especially for those with kids. Keep them off any prescription pain killers, or at least monitor carefully and throw the rest away (not into the toilet to contaminate our waters!)

If you are looking for a good documentary that moves along, and really informs, this is it. It's a gem of a short film.