With Netflix’s “Narcos” turning out to be a mild hit, it’s only fitting that the criminally ignored Escobar: Paradise Lost finally comes to home video so that people can actually see it. Relegated to an extremely small limited release earlier in the year, the Benicio del Toro/Josh Hutcherson starrer is the emotionally intense drama “Narcos” should have been.

A fictionalized account set amidst Pablo Escobar’s reign of terror, Escobar: Paradise Lost has Hutcherson (The Hunger Games) starring as a Canadian surf instructor who falls in love with the daughter of the drug kingpin and inevitably ends up becoming involved in the man’s business.

Benicio del Toro delivers a fine performance as the sociopathic Escobar, whose charm masks a ruthless reality. Hutcherson, who I always thought was miscast in The Hunger Games, is terrific here and shows that despite his boyish good looks he can immerse himself in a gritty, serious role and own it.

As for the movie itself, which is written and directed by first timer Andrea Di Stefano, Escobar: Paradise Lost is an engaging and somewhat gripping drama that highlights some of the depravity of Escobar’s reign while finding a reasonable emotional core. Di Stefano gets a little wound up by some directing cliches, and some better development of the supporting cast would have led to a more powerful third act. As is, the third act holds your attention but is not nearly as gut wrenching nor suspenseful as it so easily could have been.

Escobar: Paradise Lost is a surprisingly effective drama, which puts into question why it received such a paltry domestic release. However, some of its underlying flaws keep it from reaching its true potential.

Review by Erik Samdahl. Erik is a marketing and technology executive by day, avid movie lover by night. He is a member of the Seattle Film Critics Society.