Cook County

Director - David Pomes (Summer with Mrs. Von Mausch)
Starring - Anson Mount (Hell on Wheels, Straw Dog), Xander Berkeley (Being Human, Justified), and Ryan Donowho (Cabin Fever: Patient Zero)
Release Date - 2009
Genre - Drama
Format - Streaming (Netflix)

Rating (out of 5):

     I love horror but sometimes I want to sit down and watch a drama and when I want a drama I try to find something out of the ordinary. After my Necrostorm double feature and Blood Rush I escaped the world of horror with some Rocko's Modern Life season 1.  When I finished with that I wanted something a little different so I hit up Netflix.  After searching for what felt like hours I came across the film Cook County.  I grew up in West Virginia, McDowell County to be exact, so I knew exactly what the titled implied (meth making is also known as cooking).  So I hit play and you will soon find out how I felt about this flick.
     The film follows Abe (Donowho).  Abe lives with his meth cooking uncle Bump (Mount) and Bump's 6 year old daughter.  Abe's entire family is addicted to meth leaving Abe to take care of his little cousin.  Then one day Abe's father, Sonny (Berkeley), shows up and tries to make things right for Abe and his entire family.  Sonny was just released from prison but does not tell his family that.  He tries to look for a job around the run down town but work is scarce.  This makes it harder on Sonny because he is trying to live a clean life but Bump is trying to find more money to make a huge batch of meth to sell.  In order to get the money he needs to buy supplies he works out a deal to let the local pedophile have his way with his daughter.  Abe arrives in the nick of times and and saves her resulting in a gunfight.
     The reason I wanted to watch this film is because I had a little knowledge on the subject. Growing up in the area I did exposed me to a lot of things that most people know nothing about.  In this area the drug culture is huge.  I never did take drugs for recreation like so many others (beer on the other hand...) but I still find some interest in the topic.  However, you do not have to have an interest in the topic to enjoy this well crafted coming of age tale.  The acting in this one is superb.  The entire cast is amazing and played their part perfectly.  They really brought emotions to their characters and that took this film the distance that it went.  The story for this one is phenomenal.  The story is extremely dark and unsettling at times.  That is another reason I love this film like I did.  It is so realistic.  It shows the viewer that this world isn't as peachy as they may think and there is places in the U.S. where people do live like this and that is the real horror.  Finally, the film in edited perfectly and and the camera work is just as amazing as the rest of the film.  Overall, Cook County is a realistic portrayal of drug addiction and the extremes people will go to get their fix.  I highly recommend this one!