The Death of Richie

The Death of Ritchie tells the true story of the sad death of 17 year old Ritchie Werner in the 1970's. This was a made for TV movie and was a brave even brutally realistic portrayal of the emotional turmoil in families with a drug using teenager.

Having lived with a drug using younger brother and then doing volunteer work in the field of adolescent substance abuse, the twists and turns of this story are sadly all too familiar. Drug treatment protocols and interventions have progressed since the 70's so it was frustrating to see the system not coping enough to get Ritchie the help he needed.

The three lead actors: Ben Gazzara as the father Ben Werner and Eileen Brennan as mother Carol Werner and Robby Benson as Ritchie were superb. Having been a frequent witness to the many and varied desperate attempts that parents make to get their child off drugs, I think that Gazzara and Brennan did a fabulous job in portraying the massive roller coaster ride and the sheer desperation that parents feel in these situations.

Robby Benson had already played a string of quite emotionally intense roles as a teenager (Jory, Jeremy, Death Be Not Proud and his most famous being Ode to Billy Joe) but his performance as Ritchie was worthy of an Oscar nomination had this been a big screen movie as he portrays all of the powerful and complex conflicted emotions at play with a boy stuck where he ended up. Addicts often cycle between manic good behavior patches where they try and be clean and then they relapse and crash. In one of those clean positive phases, Ritchie sells raffle tickets to almost everyone he meets in a mall parking lot. Benson excellently portrays the gangly awkwardness of that age and the energy that only really excited and focused teenage boys can put out. Benson played a ton of roles in the '70's where girls easily fell for his doe eyed sensitive charm so it took some acting for a dreamboat kid to play someone who struggled to talk to girls.

Robby Benson by then was a big teen idol courtesy of dazzling eyes, model quality looks and not inconsiderable athleticism (that was on display in a string of movies after Ritchie) but he never could break through with lead roles in big movies because he seemed to have been pigeonholed as just a heartthrob. His performance in Ritchie was akin to Leonardo deCaprio's breakout role in What's Eating Gilbert Grape from which he springboarded to a string of A list roles.

This TV film pushed the envelope concerning teenage drug usage in the era. Even though the dialogue is a bit corny at times, Benson, Gazzara and Brennan still give powerful performances. Still worth viewing! Caution! If you watch it on Amazon Prime, be prepared for a very poor video transfer.

"The Death Of Richie", more than thirty-five years later, remains a pretty effective made-for-television movie. It is fairly tough going at times, for several reasons. The main reason is that it portrays drug addiction in a pretty realistic fashion, showing that there is no easy way out of the situation for both the addict and his loved ones. Another reason is with the character of Richie. He is a pretty unlikable fellow, though after some time I realized that may have been the point, to show that drugs can make anyone into a repulsive sort of person. Benson gives an excellent performance as Richie, though Ben Gazarra also deserves kudos portraying the struggling father who is not completely sympathetic. If there is a flaw in the movie, it may be that it does not illustrate how Richie got into drugs in the first place - the movie starts in the middle of his addiction. Though I do realize that movies don't always have the time to show every detail of a situation.

I haven't seen this movie since it was on TV and I was a teenager, so that has to be considered in reading my opinion. In brief, the movie follows the trajectory of a bright, handsome teenager, played by teen hearthrob of the time Robbie Benson and his hopeless descent into drug use. He tries to reform but the drug addiction is a powerful enemy indeed. This movie was made in the seventies, and as such, is probably dated, but I do think it had an effect on me, and was a part in building up an impression that heroin, in particular, was a road I didn't want to go down. If I remember correctly, this is mostly a movie about why you don't want to become a junkie, and the frustration of parents in watching their children turn into addicts. Not a happy film, but an excellent cautionary tale. Should be remade in today's context, including meth as a topic.

There were many anti-drug made for TV movies in the 1970s. This is probably the best one of the lot (outside of "Go Ask Alice"). Robbie Benson was excellent in the role of a troubled teen who is caught up in drug addiction. There was a scene where he was in his room, crying after a particularly bad day at high school. Benson did an exemplary job of showing the kid's isolation and loneliness. Ben Gazarra was also excellent in the role of the father who ultimately has to made a hard decision concerning his son. I remember being outraged at the ending, but looking back on it, I understand why it had to come to that conclusion. I have noticed that some made for TV films have been released on video and DVD. This one should be released as well.