Drugstore Cowboy
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Drugstore Cowboy is a 1989 film written and directed by Gus Van Sant. Matt Dillon stars in the title role. Kelly Lynch and Heather Graham are also featured.
The story follows Bob (Dillon) and his "family" of drug addicts as they travel across the Pacific Northwest in the early 1970s, supporting their habit by robbing pharmacies and hospitals. A highlight of the film is an appearance by the original "junky" William S. Burroughs as Tom, a defrocked priest who lectures Bob on the dangers of temptation. After a tragedy strikes the "family" Bob decides to try to "go straight" but finds that there is more to extricating himself from the drug user's lifestyle than just giving up drugs.
Van Sant's screenplay is based on the then-unpublished novel by James Fogle. The novel was published in 1990 (ISBN 038530224X), by which time Fogle was released from prison - Fogle, like the characters in his story, was a long-time drug user and dealer.