News will label something as "controversial" such as supervised injection facilities in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. The average person might be frightened at the prospect of that type of facility. Love in the Time of Fentanyl shows us what that world is actually like and why it's unusual, but far better in the opioid battle.
The clinic is run by volunteers who are all too familiar with the opioid scene in that area in Vancouver, as in fellow users. The documentary takes us into the people mourning those who have been lost and saving people, so they are still around.
We don't get so close to the action to see actual drug injections but there is an intimacy to watching people do something highly personal that would never been shown on the late news. Safe injection sites have proven to be necessary in the time when opioids can easily be laced with fentanyl.
The film shows us Overdose Prevention Society (OPS) staff members administer Narcan for those who overdose and save their lives. Sometimes, the efforts are too late.
The unofficial narrator is Ronnie aka Narcan Jesus, a gentle giant who is one of the workers at the facility.
Director Colin Askey gives us the intimacy of startling moments without an all-knowing narrator. Sometimes the decisions you don't make are the smartest choices.
The intimacy can be a bit startling but Askey understands we need to see the reality of that world to see the importance of safe injection sites.
British Columbia decriminalizes some drugs but at a really low threshold
CanadianCrossing.com British Columbia coverage
The film reflected the reality in the time of filming. Now those in British Columbia can carry a small amount of drugs, including opioids, without fear of arrest. This includes opioids, which sadly may have fentanyl in them.
Reducing the stigma and the reality of being arrested gives these people a safer environment for themselves and others.
Love in the Time of Fentanyl is a play on the title Love in the Time of Cholera, a 1985 novel Colombian Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez. The book was later turned into a film that was released in 2007.
Canadian film review: Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy
We don't pair films together, like wine and food. If you want to learn more about opioids addiction, the Elle-Maija Tailfeathers documentary featuring her mother is an outstanding watch. While this is geared toward opioids in Indigenous communities, its solutions are just as relevant in the mountains of West Virginia in the United States.
Speaking of Tailfeathers, the part of Vancouver in this documentary is very close by where her earlier film, The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open, was filmed.
CanadianCrossing.com film reviews
CanadianCrossing.com film coverage
The beauty of documentaries, such as this one, is the way to see what is talked about in the news and show this to an audience who is curious.
Love in the Time of Fentanyl is a great example of showing us a "controversial" world and humanizing the experience. We suggest you watch the film with loved ones and compare notes after watching the film.
Love in the Time of Fentanyl has run in Canada and is available through Independent Lens on PBS. A reminder to our American readers that the PBS version has censored curse words from the documentary. As we have noted, Canadians are far less concerned over the impact of those words than in American society.
video credit: Independent Lens/PBS
photo credit: Love in the Time of Fentanyl
