Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother
Year: 2008
Director: Billy Corben
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Magnet Releasing / Rakontur’
Running Time: 100 Mins
Director Billy Corben is back with the latest chapter in his fascinating crime documentary series with “Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother”. This time around Corben focuses on Griselda Blanco (aka “The Godmother) and her drug empire back in the eighties and nineties. He tells her story through one of her closest former associates Charles Crosby, who helped her run her empire during the nineties when Blanco was serving time in a Federal jail. The film goes into various topics during that time from the attempted kidnapping of John F Kennedy JR to the love affair that Crosby had with Griselda Blanco until the time that Crosby betrayed her. The documentary is the true story of one of the biggest drug empires ever.
Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother is one of those films that I’ve been waiting to see, since the first time I heard that the sequel to Cocaine Cowboys was being made. But I did have that one question going into this film. Is this documentary doing to be captivating and shocking, in the way that it went into detail about the events and the players involved, like Cocaine Cowboys did, when I first saw it on DVD in 2007. Well, my question was pretty much answered early on in the film, as this documentary grabs you attention, like the first film did.
Cocaine Cowboy 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother is like the first film, an instant cult classic. Director, Billy Corben again like the previous film, grabbed my attention from the first minute on. One of the things that he does well here was to not to use the same structure that he did with Cocaine Cowboys, where you had three main conspirators of the drug trade tell their stories. This time, Corbin documents the drug trade by going into the Godmother’s operation in the nineties through one man Charles Crosby. I liked how Corben lets the movie flow through Crosby, as he’s talking the whole operation of this drug queen. It helps move the pace of the film and making the subject very interesting and shocking. Also, he continues to move the whole story of the Cocaine Cowboys saga by focusing on Blanca in the nineties, where she’s in jail and still running her operation. I liked how it focuses on Blanca in the nineties this time around, as that part of her operation was briefly mentioned in the first film but didn’t go into much detail.
One of the things that were used in this film that wasn’t used in the first was, the reenactments, by way of animation. This was done very well, as the main focus of the saga shifted toward Blanca and her empire. This was used, so that Corben can give you somewhat realistic reenactments of the events that, so that the viewer can get an understanding of it. Those were shocking and defiantly not for young children to watch.
With even all that said Corben also does a great job in documenting Charles Crosby life. This guy is a very fascinating subject. While focusing on Crosby’s relationship with “the Godmother, he also give an inside look into the person through some of Crosby’s former associates and lets Crosby tell go into some of his personal exploits to give a better sense of himself. Another thing that Corben shows in this film was Crosby’s fanaticism to the Godmother. He does that, so he sets up the reasons to why Crosby looked up to Griselda Blanco as role model and a mentor. It makes his subject even more fascinating.
This film is in the same discussion with “The Dark Knight, as one of the best film of 2008 and Billy Corben should in the same list of great documentary filmmakers, such as Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock. “Cocaine Cowboys 2: Huslin’ with the Godmother” is great continuation to the whole drug trade saga, as it’s a realistic and a fascinating look inside the life of crime.
Review Rating 5 Stars
DVD Extras:
Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother is one of those films that I’ve been waiting to see, since the first time I heard that the sequel to Cocaine Cowboys was being made. But I did have that one question going into this film. Is this documentary doing to be captivating and shocking, in the way that it went into detail about the events and the players involved, like Cocaine Cowboys did, when I first saw it on DVD in 2007. Well, my question was pretty much answered early on in the film, as this documentary grabs you attention, like the first film did.
Cocaine Cowboy 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother is like the first film, an instant cult classic. Director, Billy Corben again like the previous film, grabbed my attention from the first minute on. One of the things that he does well here was to not to use the same structure that he did with Cocaine Cowboys, where you had three main conspirators of the drug trade tell their stories. This time, Corbin documents the drug trade by going into the Godmother’s operation in the nineties through one man Charles Crosby. I liked how Corben lets the movie flow through Crosby, as he’s talking the whole operation of this drug queen. It helps move the pace of the film and making the subject very interesting and shocking. Also, he continues to move the whole story of the Cocaine Cowboys saga by focusing on Blanca in the nineties, where she’s in jail and still running her operation. I liked how it focuses on Blanca in the nineties this time around, as that part of her operation was briefly mentioned in the first film but didn’t go into much detail.
One of the things that were used in this film that wasn’t used in the first was, the reenactments, by way of animation. This was done very well, as the main focus of the saga shifted toward Blanca and her empire. This was used, so that Corben can give you somewhat realistic reenactments of the events that, so that the viewer can get an understanding of it. Those were shocking and defiantly not for young children to watch.
With even all that said Corben also does a great job in documenting Charles Crosby life. This guy is a very fascinating subject. While focusing on Crosby’s relationship with “the Godmother, he also give an inside look into the person through some of Crosby’s former associates and lets Crosby tell go into some of his personal exploits to give a better sense of himself. Another thing that Corben shows in this film was Crosby’s fanaticism to the Godmother. He does that, so he sets up the reasons to why Crosby looked up to Griselda Blanco as role model and a mentor. It makes his subject even more fascinating.
This film is in the same discussion with “The Dark Knight, as one of the best film of 2008 and Billy Corben should in the same list of great documentary filmmakers, such as Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock. “Cocaine Cowboys 2: Huslin’ with the Godmother” is great continuation to the whole drug trade saga, as it’s a realistic and a fascinating look inside the life of crime.
Review Rating 5 Stars
DVD Extras:
Audio commentary from Director Billy Corben and Co-Producer David Cypkin
The making of Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin' with Charles Crosby
Deleted Scenes
Archival Photo Gallery
Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery
Art Gallery
Original Theatrical Trailer
You sold me and I liked the first one.
Excellent review.