Netflix Recreates Escobar's World

NEWS SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2015 A Kashmiri fisherman rows his shikara, or traditional boat, during sunset on Dal Lake in Srinagar yesterday. Nestled in the Himalayan mountains and known for its beautiful lakes and saucer- shaped valleys, the Indian portion of Kashmir is also one of the most militarized places on earth. — AP Egypt court hands Jazeera reporters... Netflix recreates Escobar’s world BOGOTA: It’s a tall order to play the role of Pablo Escobar, Colombia. It has a very international cast,” said Moura. Continued from Page 1 “dismayed” by the outcome. British Minister for Middle the larger-than-life druglord who became the world’s sev- Netflix spokeswoman Kari Perez said the US video stream- East and North Africa Tobias Ellwood said the sentenc- enth-richest man with his shrewd, ruthless dominance of ing giant sees the show as part of its “ongoing bet” on Latin Relatives and supporters were dismayed. “I’m ings would “undermine confidence in Egypt’s progress the international cocaine trade. The Colombian kingpin has America, where it first rolled out service in 2011. “We want- shocked. Terribly shocked. We waited for an acquittal towards strong long-term stability based on imple- already been brought to the screen by actors ranging from ed to have to have a series that would work in two different and then found ourselves stuck again in the case. This is menting the rights granted by the Egyptian constitu- Oscar winner Benicio del Toro to Vincent Chase, the fictional worlds: It would be very interesting for an American audi- illogical,” Fahmy’s brother Adel said. Greste described tion”. heartthrob in the HBO series “Entourage” who nearly ence (and) a Latin American audience,” said Padilha, the the jail terms as “devastating”. “We did nothing wrong. In the initial trial, two British Al-Jazeera reporters wrecked his career with a disastrous Escobar biopic. So director. “And the way to do it was to tell the DEA story.” The prosecution presented no evidence that we did who had left the country were tried in absentia and sen- Brazilian actor Wagner Moura knew he had his work cut out Padilha made his name exploring the upside-down anything wrong and so for us to be convicted as terror- tenced to 10 years in prison. A European Union state- for him when Netflix hired him for the lead role in its latest moral universe of cops and drug dealers in his native Brazil ists on no evidence at all is frankly outrageous,” he said. ment called yesterday’s sentences a “setback for free- original series, “Narcos,” which chronicles the height of “Don with “Elite Squad” (2007) and “Elite Squad: The Enemy The journalists were arrested in Dec 2013, months dom of expression in Egypt”. Sisi has said he wished the Pablo’s” reign over the Medellin Cartel in the 1980s. Within” (2010), both of which starred Moura. A piercing crit- after the military overthrew Islamist president Al-Jazeera journalists had not been put on trial. He may The first thought to cross his mind, he laughingly told ic of the war on drugs and its unintended consequences, he Mohamed Morsi and launched a deadly crackdown on pardon them if he chooses. Fahmy, who gave up his AFP in an interview, was: “I’m f****d.” He spoke no Spanish, said “Narcos” gave him the chance to tell that story from his supporters. At the time, Qatar, which owns Al- Egyptian citizenship in hopes of being deported as for one thing. And he didn’t look the part. “I was a very thin both sides. “Escobar marks the beginning of the inflow of Jazeera, was supportive of Morsi and his Muslim Greste was in February, said ahead of the verdict that Brazilian guy,” he said. But he threw himself into the role. He cocaine with volume into America and Europe,” he said in a Brotherhood movement. Judge Hassan Farid said yes- the trial was “politicized”. “If justice is to be served we moved to Medellin for six months to study Spanish in Netflix press release. “He shaped history ... So, where else to Escobar’s hometown. He gained 20 kg - which he is still begin?” terday that it was clear the reporters “were not journal- should be acquitted as impartial journalists,” said struggling to shed, he admitted. He adopted the druglord’s The show - 10 episodes of 45 minutes each, all available ists” and had broadcast “false news” while operating Fahmy, who formerly worked for CNN. look, from the mustache to the lopsided hairstyle. immediately for Netflix’s 65 million subscribers - also fea- without a permit. Mohamed received an additional six- The three were accused of having supported the Reviewers have praised the accuracy of his portrayal, tures Chilean actor Pedro Pascal (“Game of Thrones”) and month sentence for possessing a bullet he picked up Brotherhood in their coverage. However, during the tri- which enabled the show’s director, fellow Brazilian Jose Mexican actress Stephanie Sigman (“Spectre,” the forthcom- while covering protest violence. Fahmy and Mohamed, al, the prosecution failed to find fault in their reporting. Padilha, to seamlessly splice historical footage of the real ing James Bond movie). Twenty-two years after his death in who were released on bail in February at the start of the “The technical committee that was appointed by the Escobar into the series. “Narcos,” which debuted Friday, a shootout with Colombian police on a Medellin rooftop, retrial, were taken into custody. judge gave the court a report stating that none of our recreates Escobar’s world through the eyes of Steve Escobar is still revered by some in the city as a Robin Hood Lynne Yelich, Canadian minister of state for foreign reports were fabricated,” Fahmy said. Al-Jazeera’s Arabic Murphy, an agent with the US Drug Enforcement figure who built them hospitals, schools and housing. and consular affairs, called on Egypt “to use all tools at channel had been supportive of Morsi and Islamists, but Administration. He is played by Boyd Holbrook (“Gone Girl,” Others revile him for unleashing a campaign of terror on its disposal to resolve Mr Fahmy’s case and allow his Fahmy, Greste and Mohamed worked for its English-lan- “Milk”), whose jaded narration of the cross-border opera- Colombia in his bid to avoid being extradited to the United immediate return to Canada”. The trial has become an guage news channel. Fahmy said they were “shocked” to tion against the Medellin Cartel frames the show. States. Moura said he wanted to capture Escobar’s complex- embarrassment for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who discover during their trial that the broadcaster was unli- Shot almost entirely on location in Colombia, the show ity in his portrayal. “I love the fact that he’s a very contradic- as army chief ousted Morsi from the presidency in 2013. censed, when a prosecutor presented evidence to that features dialogue in both English and subtitled Spanish. “I tory character,” he said. “He loved his family. He was loved - Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said she was effect. — Agencies don’t know anything in American television that looks like he’s still loved by a lot of people in Medellin. And he’s still ‘Narcos.’ It’s spoken in two languages. It’s shot here in one of the most terrible killers in modern history.” — AFP .

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