Through a Blue Lens

Addicts in the midst of drug-induced psychosis, screaming and paranoid; a teenage girl in the grip of a severe cocaine overdose, flopping around the road like a fish; an addict clawing at the 'bugs' in a five-inch open wound in her arm while her drug dealer boyfriend lies dying in the next room after shooting himself in the head. These are the gritty, even grisly scenes in this unique documentary. It is an extraordinary collaboration between a filmmaker and seven beat-hardened cops dubbed the Odd Squad who had been using video cameras to document the lives of addicts in Vancouver´s drug and disease infested Downtown Eastside for a period of 18 months. The group had decided long ago that the endless stream of drug-related arrests in the area was doing little to stem the misery. So they took a novel approach: document the misery and take it to the world outside. The resulting documentary provides unparalleled access and unmatchable perspective on the plight of the place and the people. It is not surprising that the film provides a stark warning about the dangers of addiction; what is surprising is that it also provides a moving portrait of the resilience of the human spirit that humanizes both the cops and the junkies. It was the junkies´ trust in the cops that put the officers in an unusual position as filmmakers. And it was more than access. They offer an unmatchable perspective on the Eastside´s plight.