Review – Cocaine Fiends

This was the third entry in a triple feature of anti-drug movies from the 1930s recently run on Turner Classic Movies. And truth be told, by the time I got to the end they’d all started to blend together. So if I remember this correctly, it’s the tale of a girl living a wholesome life in small-town America until a smooth criminal gets her hooked on “headache powder.” From there it’s off to the big city to become a gangster’s moll and then a cast-aside former moll. Her brother comes to rescue her, but he too succumbs to the deadly lure of devil dust. My favorite part was when one of the urban temptresses was trying to seduce brother hick. She invites him to a snow-party with the snowbirds. “But it isn’t winter,” he protests. “Gosh, you really are dumb,” she replies. Yes he is. But then why should he be any different from anyone or anything else in this movie? Mildly amusing