The 12 Best Movies That Tell the Truth About Addiction and Recovery
HBO has just released a trailer for the second season of its acclaimed teen drama Euphoria. There was a long wait between seasons – although there were a few specials released during that time, the last episode of the regular series aired over two years ago. The show frankly (very frankly) touches on many aspects of modern life among the characters of late adolescence (at least at the beginning), led by Zendaya as Ryu Bennett, who is already recovering at 17 years old.
Addiction and recovery are powerful sources of drama, which is why they are often portrayed in the media. It is also easy to make mistakes in them: turn into melodrama or come to easy answers and undeserved conclusions. There are several aspects of human nature that are more complex than addiction disorder, and our media do not always cope with this task. However, in some films, things are going right – at least in part. These 12 films aren’t perfect in their portrayal, but they do shed light on aspects of addiction and recovery that reflect real life, if not 100 percent accuracy. These films are especially important, especially during the holidays – a time of year when the fight against addiction can be particularly acute. (In discussing the ways in which these films deal with recovery, I’m going to reveal some plot details, but these are not films that can really be “screwed up”.)