Drug Addiction (1951) Part 2 of 2

Marty, a "good boy," experiments with marijuana and experiences "profound mental and emotional disturbances." As in all anti-drug films of this vintage, marijuana leads straight to "H," and Marty's decline continues until he is busted, rehabbed and reformed. The scene where Marty and some of his stoned friends drink out of broken Pepsi bottles is memorable. As in all drug films, the marijuana sequences are the most entertaining. "Thoughtless curiosity can lead to a lifetime of pain and torment!" The street pushers in this film wear turtlenecks.

Drug Addiction's stilted view of the urban drug culture and unrealistic portrayals of stoned slackers make it entertaining viewing today. It belongs to that little-known "second wave" of anti-drug films, the postwar scare stories about middle-class kids overcome by junkiedom. What this wave of films reveals is that drugs were an issue for white adolescents long before the psychedelic Sixties, and that the official response to the threat expressed a general, not specifically targeted paranoia.

Producer: Encyclopaedia Britannica Films, Inc.
Sponsor: Juvenile Protection Association of Chicago (The) and The Wieboldt Foundation

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• substance abuse
• marijuana
• drugs
• heroin
• campy
• retro
• 1950s
• pushers
• dope
• dealers
• smack
• reefer
• reefer madness

[imajika2]

The way the mom says "Marty" is hilarious and annoying at the same time.

[kbs1212]

I love how it played out like a movie. Thanks for uploading, this is still as educational now as before.

[cheshirekens2233]

wow, the mom's acting wasn't that convincing.

[electrogeek77]

"False sense of loyalty"? They probably just didn't give a crap.