Cotton Fever [Tribeca Festival Review]

by Mike McGranaghan

Cotton Fever certainly isn’t the first movie about drug addiction, but it has a raw, realistic quality that makes it stand out from the pack. Writer/director Daniel Blake Schwartz based the story on his own experiences. As a result, it has a stunningly clear-eyed view of the struggles addicts face. The film had its world premiere in the U.S. Narrative Competition section of the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival, and it seems primed to break out.

The plot follows several different addicts. James (Kyle Gallner) reverts to both using and selling heroin after his girlfriend Dina (Sosie Bacon) becomes pregnant. She’s trying to stay clean for the baby’s sake, which proves to be a challenge. Meanwhile, young lovers Sam (Chabley Ponce) and Manny (Ari Mora) seek to create a better life for themselves, only to be repeatedly derailed by the need for a fix. Then there’s Akil (Ronald Emile), who tries to save his addict brother before it’s too late.

Cotton Fever moves back and forth between these players, acutely documenting the desperation that rules their lives. Certain scenes are intense, as when Sam agrees to do something unsavory with her mother’s boyfriend in order to obtain drugs. Others have a quiet realism, such as the moment where Dina finds some of James’ drugs and has to decide whether she can resist the urge. Whereas many films offer a somewhat sensationalized take on addiction, Schwartz sticks to the nitty-gritty, giving a straightforward, unvarnished perspective on the day-to-day realities of navigating a substance abuse problem.

The performances are incredible across the board. Gallner gives a haunting turn as James, showing us how this guy has only the best of intentions yet simply can’t shake the monkey on his back. Bacon is similarly strong, particularly in later scenes where Dina makes a move to keep herself on track. The Smile star brings alive the idea that her character recognizes she’s not living only for herself anymore. As for Ponce and Mora, they’re so authentic that I assumed Schwartz hired non-actors for the roles of Sam and Manny. The dynamic they create onscreen is touching and tragic. Not for a second do either of them seem false. They’re revelations.

Schwartz does not offer any easy outs for these people. Some of them might be okay after the end credits roll; others most definitely will not. You know, just like in real life. Cotton Fever is a gut-wrenching film because it makes no effort to polish its subject matter. It’s got a pervasive sense of truth that hooks you from the start and never lets go. No matter how many addiction dramas you’ve already seen, you haven’t seen one that knocks you for a loop the way this one does.

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