Well, I'm a student and I'm a big fan of music...Not necessarily popular music, but I like it :-)
Well, I'm a student and I'm a big fan of music...Not necessarily popular music, but I like it :-)
Member since:02.08.2001
Reviews:47
Members who trust:4
Hmmm...I was looking the other day and realised I'd written lots of positive reviews lately, although I suppose positive things stick in my mind better. I haven't really slated anything since Charlie's Angels, and was wandering if I would again. Then we went to the video shop and got Traffic.
Right...Traffic. On the box it says its one of the best movies ever (mind you, most movies do) and all I remember hearing about it when it came out was great appreciation. The cast looked pretty impressive too: Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones (anyone remember the Darling Buds of May?!), Dennis Quaid and more. I was expecting to be impressed.
The plot is about America's war on drugs, with Michael Douglas playing a high-ranking US official with the task of breaking down the flow of Drugs into America. However, he is taking on some of the richest and most powerful drugs cartels, and the story gets personal when we find out Douglas's daughter is an addict.
Please note, I used "Douglas's daughter", though I really should have remembered his character name. However, this leads me on to what I thought was a big flaw of the film...apart from himself and one character called Manolo, very few characters in the film actually got specifically named so it was really difficult to follow who they were. There was what seemed like hundreds of characters turning up, and at one point both I and the two friends I was with thought one character was dead, and then saw him alive and well in the next scene. Without being able to differentiate between them, it got very confusing.
It wasn't just with the characters confusion was felt. In fact, apart from just about getting the "general" plot as described above, I really hadn't a clue what was going on. You see, the plot followed several lines: Douglas's official dealings, his family dealings, the arrest of an American drug lord, the lives to two Mexican police officers, the workings of the Mexican drug cartels. I believe the aim was to combine these elements skilfully, brilliantly and almost baffling into a great story. But in my opinion they failed miserably, with you wandering what was going on and how this had anything to do with something the happened earlier on.
I can't be completely critical though (oh, my weakness!) as the acting in the film was very impressive. Of course, it was very difficult to assess it fully without understanding the plot, though my general feel was that the characters were played, in general, well. I've never been a huge fan, but I must say Douglas did an impressive job, especially when the film concentrated on the conflict of interest between his family and his work life. Catherine Zeta Jones was also pretty good as the pregnant wife of the arrested drug lord, especially when she was under harassment from her husband's former colleagues.
The direction of the film was at times quite annoying. The scenes in America were shot in a standard way, though the Mexican scenes were shot very brightly, I suppose to emphasise the dryness of the country. However, after a while I just began to wish they'd give up with it and filmed it normally so you could see properly what was going on, without blinking your eyes rapidly.
Overall I am willing to admit I missed something in this film, though I don't think at any fault of my own. The two friends I watched it with hadn't a clue either, and the best explanation we could give was that reviewers were too stubborn to slate it for its incoherence as they thought they'd be targeted, so they all gave it top reviews. I can understand easily Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Lock, Stock and Jackie Brown without any problems, but this was a real trial. In my opinion, this film was incredibly over-rated.
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Production Year: 2002 - Drama - Director: Todd Haynes - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Viola Davis, James Rebhorn, Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, Patricia Clarkson
Production Year: 2000 - Drama - Director: Gregory Hoblit - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Andre Braugher, Jim Caviezel, Noah Emmerich, Dennis Quaid, Shawn Doyle, Elizabeth Mitchell
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Fantastic op. Also, have you heard of the internet movie database (www.imdb.com)? I often use it as reference when I can't remember the name of a character or actor, as they have them all listed. Thanks ~ Dru
ncostall 26.09.2001 14:59
Thanks for the well written op - it was a good read. I really didn't understand the film either, it's not very memorable and i don't think i want to be reminded of it by watching it again either. Cheers - nathan.
Traffic is the Academy Award winning thriller set in the world of drug trafficking, from ... more
the cartels in Mexico to the wealthy dealers across America. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, Traffic evokes the high stakes and high risks of the drug trade, as see...
Featuring a huge cast of characters, the ambitious and breathtakingTrafficis a tapestry of ... more
three separate stories woven together by a common theme: the war on drugs. Bold in scope, it showcases Steven Soderbergh at the top of his game, directing a peer...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon...
Featuring a huge cast of characters, the ambitious and breathtakingTrafficis a tapestry of ... more
three separate stories woven together by a common theme: the war on drugs. Bold in scope, it showcases Steven Soderbergh at the top of his game, directing a peer...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon...
A high-ranking judge with a vendetta against drugs learns his own daughter is a cocaine ... more
addict - a San Diego housewife must suddenly take over her husband's drug dealing business when he is arrested - a Mexican police officer struggles to do the right ...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: Fantastic acting, original incite into the drug trafficking world. Disadvantages: Not that entertaining. Catherine Zeta Jones looking awful and unconvinving.
Alex1226 26.02.2001 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Traffic (DVD)
Advantages: Variety of characters. Strong theme. Performances by Del Toro, Cheadle, Christensen & Douglas. Good support. Disadvantages: Heavy going in places. Quite long.
MrRPriest 08.03.2001 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Traffic (DVD)
![Traffic [DVD] [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78540259.jpg "Traffic [DVD] [2001]")
Sep 26th, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
