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Traffic
(2000) |
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Traffic examines the drug trade between Mexico and USA. Benicio Del Toro plays Javier Rodriguez, a Mexican policeman caught between the powerful drug barons, local corruption and the US Drug Enforcement Agency. Michael Douglas is the U.S. Supreme Court Judge appointed as Drug Czar, but whose biggest battle lies at home where he discovers his own daughter has a serious drug habit. Zeta-Jones is the wife of a San Diego based drug baron arrested by the DEA for suspicion of illegal narcotics trade into the United States. The story shifts from one location to another, from one perspective to another but is bound together by the narcotics trade. Soderbergh's follow up to the excellent Erin Brokovich again tackles an unsavory topic and he handles it without pulling any punches. There are no easy solutions to the problem - if there are any solutions at all - and the film is realistic in reflecting this. Don't expect the uplifting finale of Erin Brokovich. Instead there is a much more somber realization of which way the dice are stacked. The films documentary style, the gritty, handheld footage add to the feeling of 'authenticity'. Soderbergh also uses light effectively, giving the Mexican locations a bright, 'hot' feel. The US locations are given a cold, impersonal blue hue. It all gives the film an uneasy, somber mood. There is surprisingly little violence or out and out 'action' on screen, but the film is riveting throughout its 2 hours and 20 minutes duration. The performances are generally spot on. Harrison Ford was the first choice for the role of the Supreme Court judge appointed to the position of drug czar but he turned it down probably finding the role not 'heroic' enough. Douglas, however, has made it a habit over the years to play the 'not so heroic', flawed lead. It's what makes and keeps him an interesting actor. In Traffic he delivers a quite outstanding performance. Benicio Del Toro, after a recent run of poor performances, is also excellent as the small time, sleazy cop, somehow surviving between the big guns. Zeta-Jones, heavily pregnant, does not share screen time with her husband but shows that she is able to act without perhaps being quite good enough to have deserved a Golden Globe. Traffic is an unglamorous, solemn account of the drug trade in the United States. Occasionally, the film comes across as too dense… there is a fair amount of information packed into the dialogue. But it does makes for a thought-provoking movie. A serious and powerful film - excellently directed, well acted and a come March, a strong and deserving Oscar contender.
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