There is a war going on in Juárez, and every war has a soundtrack. Meet the troubadours of Mexico's drug cartels: the narcocorridos.

El Paso, Texas, is one of the most peaceful cities in the US. Just across the fence is Mexico's Ciudad Juárez, one of the deadliest places on the planet. In this blistering, unnerving documentary, award-winning war photojournalist Shaul Schwarz juxtaposes the latter's blood- and drug-soaked culture with the narcocorrido musicians outlawed in Mexico, who have nevertheless become hugely popular by donning balaclavas, brandishing firearms and turning the inhuman crimes of the drug barons into upbeat, aspirational pop songs.

Seen through the eyes of a Juárez crime scene investigator and an aspiring Los Angelino singer, Narco Cultura is sickening, often absurd and extraordinarily beautiful (Schwarz's background shines through in the cinematography).

"An eye-opening examination of Mexico's blood-soaked drug war and its unsettling pop-culture side effects, Narco Cultura is as overwhelming as it is absorbing." - Variety

D Shaul Schwarz P Todd Hagopian, Lars Knudsen, Jay Van Hoy WS K5 Media Group GmbH TD DCP/2013