‘White Boy Rick’ is about Rick Wershe (Matthew McConaughey) who is a single father who’s struggling to raise two teenagers during the height of the crack epidemic in 1980s Detroit. Wershe sells guns illegally to make ends meet but soon attracts attention from the FBI, and then federal agents convince his son, Rick Jr. (Richie Merritt), to become an undercover drug informant in exchange for keeping his father out of prison. When young Rick gets in too deep, he finds himself seduced by the lure of easy money and becomes a drug dealer himself.
I thought this film was very informative because here is a story about how white privilege didn’t exist for this white boy, especially when it came down to his prison sentence.
As all “Based On A True Story” films go, it told the story of who Rick was, how he got involved in the lifestyle choices he chose, with humor, glamour, and touching moments. Yes, Rick placed himself in the position he is currently in, but as an empathic audience member, I appreciated how the film showed how the police, FBI, mayor, and many other government officials were also knowingly and willingly involved with illegal activity.
Also, this is Richie Merritt’s first film and was an unknown actor before this role, which I think he did exceptional at.
This film came down to power, position, wealth and social standing. Statistics state that low-income individuals are more likely to be affected by drugs, yet what those statistics neglects to inform you about is how a billion-dollar business thrives in poverty-ridden areas.
White Boy Rick is not a story about a drug dealer, it’s a story about a 15-year-old little white boy named Rick who was learning how to survive.
White Boy Rick hits movie theaters September 14th, 2018.
