'ZeroZeroZero': A very realistic depiction of how illegal drug money makes its way into the global market
Spoiler alert for Amazon Prime Video's 'ZeroZeroZero'
Who are the main players in the global business of cocaine? Is it the Mexicans, with their absolute monopoly over the market, who put their purest of pure cocaine out for sale to the highest bidder? Or is it the brokers who, sitting in one corner of the world, ensure timely delivery of tonnes of cocaine across continents and countries? Or it is the buyers, crime lords who wish to cement their power and position in their world of violence and transgressions?
Amazon Prime Video's 'ZeroZeroZero' action crime drama spans three continents and six countries to tell you this very story. Through eight roughly hour-long episodes, the series tells the story of a cocaine shipment that is supposed to reach Calabria, Italy, from Mexico.
Inspired by the book of the same title (written by Roberto Saviano of 'Gomorrah' fame), we follow the journey of the cargo from the moment the powerful but ageing Don Minu (Adriano Chiaramida) decides to buy it and till it is delivered and paid for.
Everything that happens in that duration is a vile play of power and influence — and the main reason you should watch the series.
The international cocaine trade is undoubtedly a complicated affair with its foundations in the fragile network linking powerful organisations — both legal and illegal — and corrupt individuals from the soldier at the lowest rung of the ladder to the head of international customs at a shipping port.
'ZeroZeroZero' will force you to confront the deeply-entrenched corruption and greed that runs the underworld that we know very little about.
A cargo is set to cross oceans and reach the other end — not before a handful of corrupt officials fill their pockets with bribes. Not before a greedy, power-hungry corrupt soldier goes rogue and unleashes brute force killing civilians in order to gain control from drug kingpins. Not before an assassination plot commences. Not before the drug and its money fuel Islamic fundamentalist political movement and military organizations.
'ZeroZeroZero' questions what drives its characters — god, power, money, greed, revenge, survival, love or legacy? At some point through the series, it is all of these. With meticulous storytelling and a deep understanding of the nuances of the drug trade, Amazon Prime's crime action drama reveals the unknown.
All episodes of 'ZeroZeroZero' are currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
