Chiko is a crime film that's as uncompromising and realistic as you could hope for; drugs, guns, sex, violence, death, betrayal... it's all here and the film doesn't shy away from showing any of it. But what makes it acceptable is that it condemns these acts rather than condone them. But through its relentless desire to be one of those violent crime films it sometimes comes off as imitation rather than embodiment.
Chiko tells the story of a young wannabe drug dealer who yearns to have the respect and power that some others possess. But when he is hired by a drug lord to get rid of a large amount of weed in just ten days he soon discovers the troubles and perils of the way of life he so much wants to be a part of.
Chiko is never an easy film to watch, never flinching away from the violence or drug use that plague the story. And it's in this way that the film earns respect simply because it doesn't shy from the reality of these situations. When a drug deal goes bad, for instance, where the buyer attempts to steal the drugs we see the horrifically violent confrontation in all its bloody detail, including someone getting their head splattered on a nearby wall. The film is an intense journey into the dangerous world of drug use and drug dealing, showcasing the violence that inevitably comes along with it.
The film has been described as "the German Scarface," but it doesn't quite live up to that claim and that's just a quoted line of praise to draw in potential audiences. Just because it's a crime film involving drugs and the quest for respect and power doesn't automatically make it the foreign equivalent of a crime classic. That's not to say Chiko doesn't work well — it's just no classic.
When a film's title carries the main character's name it obviously paints them right off the bat as an important and perhaps iconic figure. And although Chiko certainly won't go down in film history as an iconic character to enter pop culture notoriety, within this story he's someone we can latch onto and even care for in some sort of twisted way. He's not just another criminal thug hungry for money, drugs, and power but a real human being who makes mistakes like all of us. His strong attachment to his friend Tibet provides much of his motivation for many questionable acts and this provides what is the strongest aspect of meaning and moral to it all.
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