The Two Escobars

One of the greatest documentaries I have ever seen. I liked the director's unbiased approach to telling this story. The poor people of Colombia didn't love Pablo because he was a drug dealer, they loved him because he was their savior. In the Americas Colombia has the third most number of Blacks behind U.S. and Brazil. In Colombia, just like U.S. and Brazil, the Blacks are predominantly poor and uneducated and governments do nothing but flood ghettos with drugs and welfare systems to barely keep people breathing. Pablo didn't flood the ghettos with drugs, he instead built schools, hospitals, houses and soccer fields. I am not praising Pablo for being a drug dealer, but let's not sit here and pretend that our leaders are not as corrupt as the leaders were in Colombia.

I am a very big football (soccer) fan, and I have always been intrigued by the story behind Andres Escobar's own goal and the chain of events that the event triggered.

At first when I saw the trailers and ads on ESPN I wasn't too sure about also including Pablo Escobar in the same documentary, but boy was I wrong. This is one of the most powerful documentaries I have ever watched, it should be of high interest to anybody, not only football fans, and football was just an excuse for ESPN to show it in my opinion.

The story of Colombia is an incredible story that needs to be told and shown to people who live in similar countries, Mexico should take note on the film and the violent history of the very rich nation which is Colombia.

I hope to watch it again as soon as it is released on Blu Ray, and I would highly encourage you to watch it and be moved by the incredible story behind Pablo Escobar and the people of Colombia. I did and it completely changed my perspective in the way I judged Pablo Escobar, though now I have a lot more questions on the topic, but I plan to do a little reading after today.

10 out 10

I don't know how the Zimbalist brothers managed to portray with such perfection the truth behind the last thirty years of Colombian history, they did an outstanding job. I really felt moved watching this documentary made for the ESPN series 30 for 30. It reflects all the pain and suffering mixed with the joy for the game of football (soccer)and the wonderful team of players we had at that time, the best ever. It shows the good and the evil, the yin and yang of human nature in the symbol of such wonderful man as was Andres Escobar and the ruthless evil figure of Pablo Escobar also shown to have a good side. This was captured in a very objective manner again a wonderful job by the Zimbalist brothers. Although being from Colombia, some of the stories told in the documentary were just gossip to me at the time but watching it, confirms all of it as true, a sad but true episode that we still carry to this day.

30 for 30: The Two Escobars (2010)

**** (out of 4)

This entry in the ESPN series is somewhat of a masterpiece even though while watching the thing you have to keep reminding yourself that it's all true and not some sort of strange fiction from Hollywood. The documentary tells the story of Colombian drug trafficker Pablo Escobar whose love for soccer had him donating money and soon various other dealers were involved in the sport. We also meet Andres Escobar, a Colombian player who in the 1994 World Cup scored a goal against his own team and soon after wards he was murdered. That just briefly sums up the story told here but it goes even further as Pablo is buying off the government to continue his trade but when he's killed, the underworld pretty much went wild, which could have been one of the reasons why Andres was allowed to be killed. This documentary runs just under two-hours and it's some of the most amazing and downright sad images you're likely to see. Learning how the drug trade pretty much took over the sport and then eventually brought it down. While watching this film it was hard to believe that all of this took place such a short time ago and the fact that this own goal was scored against the U.S.. Directors Jeff and Michael Zimbalist do a terrific job at building an incredibly tense atmosphere that is constantly flowing throughout the film. They really make you feel uneasy while watching these events so you can imagine how horrid it must have been for the players and coaches. The film does a very good job at telling all sides of the story. To some poor people Pablo was seen as a God-like person even though he was killing hundreds of people. Seeing how evil someone could be but at the same time he probably saved thousands by building them homes, keeping food on their table and by making jobs for them. With Andres, reports would vary about what really caused his death but the site of sports players going around with death threats and bodyguards is certainly something you don't see everyday. The amount of danger they were dealing with makes for some pretty big revelations towards the end of the movie. Once again ESPN must be given a lot of credit for playing this movie uncut as it does features some very risky subject matter and contains some bloody images of the death surrounding these events. The film is in Spanish with English subtitles, which was another brave move by ESPN but once again this series pays off.

I went to watch this documentary full of apprehension, I had to try and summon the courage to face some old demons. This story for me was personal on many levels. I am Colombian; I grew up in Medellín in the 1980s. I went to school with Andrés Escobar's fiancé. And I was at the Rose Bowl in 1994, when Andrés scored the infamous "auto-goal" in a failed attempt to prevent the ball from going into the net. As I drove to the theater last week, I could feel my emotions gathering up in my chest, and old forgotten wounds felt suddenly brand new. I've tried very hard not to think of that day in June of 1994, but I remember it well. Even though the disappointment was palpable, there was no shame in our defeat. I was proud of our team! It was difficult to feel proud of anything Colombian in those days. Perhaps it was fortunate that I didn't yet know of the insurmountable amount of shame that would fall upon all of us a few days later, on the day Andrés was killed.

I've lived in the U.S. for over 25 years now, and I've learned to suppress pain and anger when both strangers and friends make "funny" drug related comments in my presence. Few non- Colombians have been able to grasp the magnitude of the damage Andrés' senseless murder caused. It wasn't about "bad sportsmanship". This was more than another black mark on our well-tarnished national image. The death of Andrés branded all Colombians as savages, it vanished the role models of millions. It stole the hope of an entire nation. It made us all infamous!

The Two Escobars utterly surprised me. Although the title might suggest an emphasis on the similarities of these two men, it really highlights the vast difference in their moral fiber. Two young American brothers were able to weave this documentary, that eloquently expresses what an entire nation hadn't been able to verbalize in over a decade. The Zimbaslist brothers didn't tell us what happened. They showed us what happened using Colombian footage, using our own words, interviewing the surviving protagonists—villains, heroes, and victims alike. The documentary is well balanced. They not only show the horror of what we Colombians have lived through, but also how far we've come. I am so immensely grateful for this film, and to Michael and Jeff Zimbalist for their commitment to tell a story that wasn't their own. I want to dare everybody I know to go see it, not because it paints my compatriots in a good light, but simply because it is honest and enlightening, and I hope it shatters some tiresome stereotypes. It's important to remember that every time we label something or someone based on a generalization, we betray our own ignorance. Every story has a Pablo Escobar—a despicable characters that makes headline news—but fortunately every story also has someone like Andrés Escobar.