Crisis is the latest crime thriller film written, produced and directed by Nicholas Jarecki. The film aims to present an overview of the opioid epidemic that countries like the US and Canada are currently experiencing.

Jarecki aims to present the complexity of the epidemic by including all involved and affected by it, from the substance user, their loved ones, the police fighting the ‘war on drugs”, those who sell and profit from the sale of these substances, and the large corporations that manufacture and distribute the substances while ignoring conflicting scientific evidence to their addictive properties.

The film stars Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer, Evangeline Lilly, Greg Kinnear, Michelle Rodriguez, Luke Evans, and Lily-Rose Depp, with Scott Mescudi, and Martin Donovan.

The ensemble cast drives Crisis and make it stronger, in my opinion. No one character stands out more than the other, which makes sense, since they are all fighting against the same ‘evil’. In true thriller fashion, the film’s pacing is fast and keeps one engaged in the stories. My shout out goes to editor Duff Smith for putting together a film that complements each of the characters’ stories while also keeping the audience’s attention through its entire duration.

Although the film contains multiple stories, they all connect at the end in an effort to provide a bigger picture about the opioid epidemic.

I also spoke with Crisis director and writer Nicholas Jarecki, who provided a lot of insight into the making of the film along with other interesting aspects about his filmmaking process.

Crisis is currently available to stream on all major digital platforms.