Opium: The White Powder Opera

In the 1970s, Hong Kong served as a midway point for the transport of narcotics from Southeast Asia to North America. Commissioned by a British television station, Peter Yung formed his own company to produce this documentary on the international drug trade, shot on location in Hong Kong. Yung helped the to crew find those related to the drug route, tracking down middlemen who transferred the drugs, capturing footage of suspected traffickers being arrested at the airport and even drug addicts who were forced to become drug dealers. The film objectively depicts the workings of the drug trade, but doesn’t forget to show the cruel realities of those forced into the business. The documentary even intentionally references Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera (1928) to emphasize its message. Showing together with The Rickshaw Boy.

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