Marihuana

Instructional film from the 1930s about the dangers of marijuana. A young girl smokes a "doped" cigarette and enters life of prostitution & crime.

0:00 Opening credits.

1:00 Text about our Marihuana problem in this country and abroad. The drug produces criminals. This is the true story of one victim.

2:20 Bar with dancing and beer. It appears to be a den of vice.

4:33 Woman at home sewing. Her daughter and fiancee leave to go out on a date. They discuss how the girl’s sister has gone over to a friend’s house to study. The mother appears to be secretly concerned.

5:43 We see the younger sister in the bar, laughing and drinking. She and her friend get up to dance with some men. Balloons fall from the ceiling as a criminal prepares to confront another criminal.

7:47 The younger sister, Burma, complains that her date hasn’t bought her enough beers tonight. One of the criminals orders her and her friend some beers. The criminal then leaves to take care of some sort of business. A drug deal occurs. The young people arrange some sort of a party with the criminal.

11:45 Burma parks car at lookout with her date, who puts some moves on her. He starts getting forceful with her and she runs off. She appears to be lost in the dark and having trouble walking in her high heels. His car pulls up beside her and she gets in. They make up and cuddle again.

15:20 The clock strikes 11. Burma arrives at home. Her mother is upset that she is home so late. Burma then asks for an evening gown she can wear on Saturday night. The girl is told to sacrifice for her sister’s wedding.

16:35 Burma and boyfriend talk about plans for the party Saturday night.

17:07 At the party. People dance and roll on the floor together. They seem to be very drunk. The criminal is there. He makes another drug deal. A drunk woman finds a shotgun and scares everyone. Drunk women smoke marijuana. Burma is there, and she agrees to try the drug. The women start to laugh crazily and speak nonsensically. One woman takes off her clothes. The women start looking for her, but apparently she has run into the ocean. The women decide to disrobe and join her. Burma goes outside with her boyfriend. She has become very “easy,” and the couple has sex. The women are all running naked on the beach, twittering with laughter. Then men follow them outside and chase them. The criminals talk about how young people are easy to hook on drugs. The first girl who ran outside has drowned.

27:02 The criminals tell the youth that they must keep everything completely secret, and that if they don’t, they will all get in trouble and will be taken away from their parents.

27:38 Newspaper clipping about the girl’s death. Burma’s mother and sister argue. Burma blames her family’s lack of attention for her need to go to beer parties.

29:00 Burma runs out to see her boyfriend. Apparently two months have passed since the event. She begs her boyfriend to marry her so she can leave her family. Burma reveals that she is pregnant, and the boyfriend agrees to find a job so they can get married.

30:30 The boyfriend goes to see the criminal to ask him for a job so he can marry Burma.

31:40 The boyfriend at the docks. There is some sort of illegal shipping thing going on. A man follows the people with the shipment and starts shooting at them as they try to escape. The boyfriend is shot.

34:18 Newspaper announcement of the sister’s wedding alongside announcement of the boyfriend’s death.

34:45 Burma goes to see the criminal about her boyfriend’s death. She yells at him about his actions and threatens to call the police. The criminal points out that she is only going to lose by sending him to jail. He then gives her a drugged beverage to “quiet her nerves” . He explains that he is going to send her away to have her baby.

37:30 Closeup of letter from Burma to her mother about how she was leaving.

38:05 Sister and her new husband leave for their honeymoon.

38:29 The criminals arrive at a hospital with flowers. Burma is in bed. She has given birth. The criminals convince her to give the baby up for adoption. She will make a lot of money from the transaction.

40:05 Burma is now drinking champagne and laughing. The criminal claims she will always drink champagne. The criminal claims that Burma has an amazing gift for getting customers hooked on marijuana.

41:15 Montage of shots of drug selling with wailing voices, gunshots, and sirens. Also newspaper clippings about marijuana-related crimes.

42:16 A heroin addict begs Burma for drugs, despite her lack of enough money. The woman eventually gives her engagement ring for the drugs.

43:25 Burma happens to see her sister with her new husband and their toddler. Then she goes to the criminals to tell them about a great moneymaking scam she has. She decides to kidnap the child for money and to torture her sister. She says she can’t get in trouble because her sister could never reveal the identity of the kidnapper and expect to retain her position in society.

46:00 The criminal gives Burma a drugged beverage. Burma tries to force the toddler to drink it. She starts to get nostalgic about her childhood.

47:20 The heroin addict lies about the loss of her ring to her husband. He immediately suspects Burma, though he doesn’t know she is a drug dealer. He files a report with the police.

48:51 The kidnapped child plays with the criminal. They appear to be having fun.

49:47 Two men come to the door and the girl is warned to keep quiet. The men arrest the criminal and interrogate him. The men search the apartment and wait for the criminal’s partner to return. They find drugs and the kidnapped child.

52:34 Burma goes to meet the father to receive the money to get the child back. He refuses to pay the ransom. He reveals that the child belongs to his wife’s sister and they adopted it. Burma agrees to give the child back when she find out it is hers. The next criminal is arrested. Burma recalls the empty promises of the criminals and how they tricked her into giving up her baby. She realizes taht even though she thought her sister was the enemy all along, it was really these evil criminals. She goes in to the apartment and faints when she sees the girl.

57:25 End of tape.