The raw material for heroin, opium is a substance with tremendous power to both ease pain and destroy lives as it fuels a vast illegal trade larger than the economies of many nations. Raw Opium travels the world to profile diverse players in the opium game: an opium master in southeast Asia, a UN drug enforcement officer on the Afghan border, a former Indian government Drug Czar, and two people who confront the reality of drug addiction on a daily basis: a Portuguese street worker and a crusading Vancouver doctor. The film reveals how a beautiful flower plays a pivotal role – not just in the lives of those who grow, manufacture and use it – but also in the increasingly tense sphere of international relations. In the process, Raw Opium challenges assumptions about addiction and the War on Drugs.
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