Netflix' "Heroine" or "Heroin(e)" is an American 40-minute documentary in the English language from this year, very new very fresh 2017 release. The focus here is on people overdosing in the state of West Virginia and on 3 people working on getting the situation under control. Now from my very personal perspective, it is true that drug addicts are miserable and can be felt sorry for, but you have to keep in mind that the first time, the very first time they were using, it happened because they agreed to and made a completely conscious decision instead of saying no. I'd rather spare my sympathy for those who really aren't 1% to blame for their (possibly life-threatening) misery like innocent victims of accidents. That aside, I also had many issues with the approach given here by Elaine McMillion Sheldon. It is about a serious subject yes, but it's feel-good material of the worst kind in my opinion. The ways in which the state officials and the addicts are so close, keep hugging etc. the state officials are so close too with each other, the comedy, the applauding at the courtroom, the podium tears etc. In my opinion hardly anything felt authentic and realistic about these 40 minutes, which is a gigantic problem because this is the area where the (should) want to deliver the most. Everything feels scripted and the very last scene was the perfect example as the phone rings in an interview and she has to get out right away because there is another OD situation. You may mistake it for the filmmaker being humble and putting her movie second to the important work of the protagonists, but I am just not buying it. The judge was probably the least likable in here. The other ones were at least doing a somewhat honorable job that is good for them, but not for general audiences in my opinion. At least not the way it was presented here..
That said, I still believe that this film can be a major contender during the 2017/2018 awards season and an Oscar for Best Documentary short would not surprise me at all. It is about a national, maybe global, contemporary problem set against the background of an American town in a very specific scenario. It tries to deliver heart and emotion, drama and situational comedy and I think it could be exactly what the Academy is going for. I still hope they manage to see beyond how shallow and staged it all feels and in my opinion, the quality is close to an insult to the really serious subject that would have deserved a far better execution. 4 stars out of 10 is still fairly generous in my opinion and that's all I can give this film. The outcome is as disappointing as the really simple play on words in the title. It's one for simple audiences. I give it a thumbs-down. Don't watch.
That said, I still believe that this film can be a major contender during the 2017/2018 awards season and an Oscar for Best Documentary short would not surprise me at all. It is about a national, maybe global, contemporary problem set against the background of an American town in a very specific scenario. It tries to deliver heart and emotion, drama and situational comedy and I think it could be exactly what the Academy is going for. I still hope they manage to see beyond how shallow and staged it all feels and in my opinion, the quality is close to an insult to the really serious subject that would have deserved a far better execution. 4 stars out of 10 is still fairly generous in my opinion and that's all I can give this film. The outcome is as disappointing as the really simple play on words in the title. It's one for simple audiences. I give it a thumbs-down. Don't watch.