Yes, this is another blog post about drugs and drug use and how both are depicted in the movies. Yet, such depictions often illustrate larger truths about drug abuse and the societies where such works are produced. They can even be instructional.

Many films have portrayed drugs and drug use. A partial list on Wikipedia lists just some of the many, many movies about those subjects.

Some of these depictions are featured in some of the most popular and critically acclaimed movies. For example, who can forget the overdose scene in the 1994 film Pulp Fiction? (Here’s a link to that scene, but be warned: it’s very intense.)

In fact, one character in that scene encounters problems because she mistakenly uses one drug, heroin, but thinks it’s another, cocaine. Needless to say, using either of those drugs can produce consequences that are dangerous, even fatal.

This scene also depicts the sad reality that drug users make mistakes. In many instances in life, if we make mistakes, we can learn from them, and then move past them. If we make the mistake of abusing a potentially fatal substance, however, we might not have those opportunities to learn and grow.

Drugs cause problems for other people in the film as well. The drug dealers in the movie encounter problems based on their livelihoods and their associates in that field. Basically, drugs contribute to the ruin of many people in Pulp Fiction.

Maybe making more films like Pulp Fiction can help fight the battle against drug abuse. After all, we can keeping telling people and telling people to “just say no” to drugs, but does anyone really listen to such talk?

Instead, films such as Pulp Fiction provide stark, visual depictions of what can happen if you abuse drugs or become involved with the world of drugs. For many people, showing, not telling, are better ways to learn and remember things. The scene appeals to our emotions, which can help us learn.

Pulp Fiction certainly isn’t a documentary. But this Fiction might help people find the truth about drugs.