White Boy Rick

I was on the fence about seeing White Boy Rick but I didn't have any plans last night so I decided to check it out.  I ended up liking this cautionary tale based on a true story much more than I thought I would.  As a fifteen year old, Rick Wershe Jr. (Richie Merritt) can see that his life is going nowhere.  He lives in an economically depressed Detroit in the 1980s with a gun running father (Matthew McConaughey) who has big plans for opening a video store which never come to fruition and a sister (Bel Powley) who is a junkie.  He has dropped out of school and runs with one of the many black gangs who rule the city where he acquires the nickname "White Boy Rick."  Two FBI agents (Jennifer Jason Leigh and Rory Cochrane) blackmail him into becoming an informant by threatening to arrest his father for selling guns that were involved in a crime.  They have Rick do controlled buys of crack cocaine to build cases against the dealers.  He eventually sends the members of his former gang to prison and gets shot in the stomach for his trouble.  When his girlfriend has a baby and his sister almost overdoses, he decides that selling crack for himself will be the best way to help his family.  This leads to his arrest, a betrayal by the FBI, and a mandatory life sentence at the age of 17.  The brilliant performances are what makes this movie better than I expected.  Merritt, in his first ever role, is incredibly sympathetic as a teenager bereft of hope and he gives Rick a certain vulnerability along with the swagger.  McConaughey is charismatic (and a little bit sleazy) as a father who means well but can't do anything to improve his family's situation.  Powley is riveting as a strung out junkie and the scene where she is found in a flophouse is absolutely visceral.  I also really enjoyed the 1980s verisimilitude, especially the scenes at the roller rink.  My problem with this movie is that it is sometimes really unfocused and confusing with a lot of vignettes that don't add up to a cohesive whole.  I was left with a lot of unanswered questions which prompted an online search for information that should have been included.  I'm glad that I saw it, though, and I recommend it for the touching family drama and the great performances.

Note:  It goes without saying that a movie like this is full of violence and profanity, although I didn't find it to be gratuitous.