Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Must-see film about the drug world, 11 Nov 2005
This fascinating, all-star look at the world of illegal drugs loosely weaves several stories together, showing drug dealers, buyers, and those who work to stop the drugs. Michael Douglas plays the new American drug czar who discovers, too late, that his own daughter is an addict. Oscar winner Benicio Del Toro is a Mexican double agent who is caught up in the cruel drug trade in Tijuana. Catherine Zeta-Jones plays a society matron who finds out her husband's fortune comes from selling drugs. And Don Cheadle is an undercover DEA agent who is trying to stop the flow of drugs from Mexico to the US. All of the actors are wonderful. I didn't expect to like this movie, but I did. The script emphasizes character development and I really got caught up in the stories. Each vignette is compelling and memorable, and the script wisely leaves each story unresolved. Traffic won four Academy Awards, including Best Director for Steven Soderbergh.Kona
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31 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Reality in perception., 27 Sep 2001
By A Customer
Personally having been at the coalface on the "War on Drugs" (1973 - 1981), served as both a special agent and a federal marshal, I found this a captivating view on the current drug war. Excellent performances from both Michael Douglas as the drug 'czar' and Benicio del Toro as the entrepreneurial Mexican police commander. The film is focused on the illegal drug trafficking trade over the border between Mexico and the United States, with settings in Mexico, San Diego and Washington, DC. Taut direction by Soderberg keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way through. The cast showing real talent and Soderberg deserves the praise that he has received (most notably for best director at this years Oscar's). The actors, specifically Douglas, Del-Toro, Zeta-Jones, Don Cheedle and Luis Guzman, are all on top form and do a brilliant job. The film is disturbing (and it should be) as it portrays the destruction that the use of illicit drugs has on both the social moral fiber within the family and of the nation, but in the end focusing on the break down of the individual family. Illicit drugs effect all social classes, all neighborhoods and all communities. This film is challenging, thought provoking and brings home the reality of this major social issue, which affects many nations around the world. Buy this. Show it to your family, friends and neighbors. You won't regret it.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
'The drug is not in the doll, the drug is the doll', 5 Jul 2007
I have finally seen this film in it's entirety and I like to say that `Traffic' is a richly entertaining epic that recalls the great works of the 1970s, when directors like Robert Altman and Francis Ford Coppola engaged mass audiences with works of genuine substance. Soderbergh works on a larger canvass than he's ever done before, bouncing several characters and plot-lines against and off each other, so that images and themes rhyme and echo. Although the subject matter is drug trafficking, this is not an "issues" movie per se. Instead, it's a profoundly affecting dramatic thriller where the destructive forces of drugs cut across different sections of society.
Some will say that it takes too long, or that some of the scenes are a bit slow. But does everything go fast paced in real life? It just tries to sketch a realistic view of handling with drugs. And maybe there isn't a lot of action going on, but that's not the goal of the movie.
This film has an amazing ensemble cast where everybody is working at the top of their game. However, Benicio Del Toro definitely stands out with the breakthrough performance. I don't think it's accidental that the movie begins and ends with shots of him. He plays Javier Rodriguez, a Mexican police officer caught in a futile and corrupt system, and it's as compelling of a character as Michael Corleone. Del Toro is exceptionally relaxed and subtle, keeping his thoughts and feelings private from the other characters in the films, but sharing it with the camera. Del Toro navigates the audience through a world of impossible choices and moral corruption, quietly simmering with intense conflict just beneath the surface. Benicio's been an indie stalwart for years and this film shot his stock through the roof.
Michael Douglas is also terrific, adding another strong performance to his gallery of flawed men in power. He shows genuine fear and vulnerability in a harrowing scene in which he searches for his daughter in a drug dealer's den. I've never seen Erika Christensen before, but she makes an impressive debut. Don Cheadle and Luis Guzman are as loose, limber and spontaneous as ever, providing plenty of comic relief as well as keeping it real. Catherine Zeta-Jones takes a complete 180 from her past roles and admirably plays against her looks, appearing very pregnant while thrown into gritty surroundings. Dennis Quaid is appropriately slimy as a corrupt lawyer.
Anybody who is starved for a genuine piece of film making should breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy Soderbergh's engaging film.
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