COCAINE WARS (1985)
“Cocaine Wars,” a 1985 Argentine-American action film directed by Héctor Olivera and produced by Roger Corman, follows Cliff Adams (John Schneider), a Miami-based DEA agent working undercover in a South American country (implied to be Bolivia). Cliff infiltrates the organization of Gonzalo Reyes (Federico Luppi), the region’s top cocaine exporter, posing as a pilot. His mission takes a personal turn when his fiancée, Janet Meade (Kathryn Witt), a reporter digging into Reyes’ operations, becomes a target. Reyes orders Cliff to assassinate Marcelo Villalba (John Vitali), a crusading journalist running for president on an anti-drug platform, but Cliff refuses, torn between his cover and his morals.
The stakes escalate as Reyes, fearing Villalba’s campaign and Janet’s exposé, sends henchmen after Villalba and kidnaps Janet to pressure Cliff. Caught in a web of betrayal, Cliff endures a brutal torture scene—electrodes to the nipples—before breaking free, fueled by vengeance. With help from allies like Bailey (Royal Dano), he turns the tables, launching a one-man assault on Reyes’ empire. The climax features a chaotic showdown, capped by Reyes’ grotesque demise—face-first into a pile of cocaine, collapsing from an overdose—proving the drug’s own lethality. Cliff rescues Janet, Villalba survives, and the cartel crumbles, leaving Cliff a battered but triumphant hero.
Shot on a shoestring budget, “Cocaine Wars” oozes ’80s exploitation vibes—cheesy synths, over-the-top action, and Schneider’s mustachioed swagger. Critics panned its rushed feel and clichéd plot, yet Schneider’s cool-headed charisma and the film’s sleazy charm earn it cult status. Part Rambo knockoff, part drug-war parable, it’s a messy, violent romp that revels in its low-rent excess, delivering guilty-pleasure thrills for fans of B-movie grit.
