Traffic

[HANNIBAL30817]

Traffic*1/2[1 1/2 Stars]-My bad streak with movies continues. The same problem reoccurs which is boredom. This time it's even worse because instead of just 2 hours in this movie you have to deal with 3 hours of boredom. The other problem with the movie is its story line. The story does not have one organized plot and is just full of a shit load of subplots which confuses the hell out you and you start wondering what the hell is going on here. The good thing about this movie is its cast which includes Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Miguel Ferrer, and Dennis Quaid and some very solid acting. But that can't save this movies from its boredom, being too long, and its unorganized plot.

NOTE:This review was written on 01/10/01>

[The Professional]

Actually i think it was 2hrs. 30mins. Also, sometimes you have to appreciate movies for more then entertainment. I felt the same way as you did when i left the theater(The trailer was misleading). Now i see that the film has good story and character development. some movies are good because they have a story(traffic,goodfellas,magnolia), some movies are sweet because they're entertaining(The Rock) and some just suck because they have nothing(Armeggedon, Gone in 60 seconds.

[TheRock]

Overall, I have to agree that this movie is overrated. The actors all do fine jobs but I found the directing and storyline poorly done at times. It seemed like every 2 minutes we were jumping to another place. I still thought the movie was solid(I'd give it a 7) but not as good as some critics are raving.

[DVD dude]

I agree, the movie was good, but a little over-rated. And what the hell was going on with the use of all of those different lenses like the really YELLOW tones. I found that distracting. I kind of know what the director was going for, but I still found it distracting!

[DaMovieMan]

I have to disagree with u guys. I saw this flick twice and not once was i bored.
How can u say the directing wasn't good? It is one of the most unique styles i have seen. It is like a half film half documentary thing but no where near as boring as some documentaries. The point? The point is that it makes you feel like YOU are there and watching, listening to what they are saying and taking part in the action.
Story - great. Drugs are delt with alot in movies but no where near as good as here. It just goes to show that you can't beat the drug industry.
Acting - as Hannibal said was great. Douglas, Jones, Don Cheadle, Del Toro etc. were all great.
The Editing was amazing.
Use of colours was amazing.

Overall - 8/10

P.S. Hannibal i bet u didnt like Magnolia?

[vahe]

Yeah, I don't get the "poor direction" comment either! Frankly, this script, in the hands of almost any other director, would be nothing more than a mid-Nielsen Movie Of The Week. In the hands of Soderbergh, it's actually a glorified MOTW, the latter being better than the former.
The acting is fine (in the case of Del Torro, exceptional), the direction is confident and hip. Admittedly some will find the color contrasts distracting, even pretentious (I rather enjoyed it). That leaves the script, and this is where "Traffic" falls flat on it's face.
If you think about it, the whole movie is one big cliche. Let's see...the newly appointed drug tzar's daughter is a crack-head, wow...get the irony? The Mafioso's loving wife has bore him 1 1/2 children but has no clue where all their fantastic trappings come from! Then... in the space of what? A week?, she's out there negotiating deals with other kingpins, and ordering assassinations! Prissy, clueless little social butterfly one day; ruthless drug boss the next! Whatever! Of course let's not forget the by-the-numbers comic relief team of Cheadle & Guzman, inserted into the picture to make sure audience members with attention-deficient disorder don't walk out early.
This is a heavy handed message-movie. So if it was not even going to be entertaining, then what's it good for?

[falconfilms]

Yep. Very overrated. Thank God it was Soderbergh at the helm, or this would have been unwatchable. Although nominated for best picture purely for its subject matter (the Academy loves those so-called "Important Films") I can actually agree with SS as best director. I give him points for style, as well as always getting the best possible performances out of his actors. Not to mention the fact that he shot a lot of it himself, hand-held.

By the way, anyone who thinks this is a great anti-drug film obviously needs to see "Requiem for a Dream".



[This message has been edited by falconfilms (edited 03-29-2001).]

[screamer581]

Hannibal, is there any film you do like?!? Geez...anyways,I thouht Trafic was a great film, easily one of the best of 2000...and definatley the best of the films nominated for best picture this year. And oh yea Benico freaking rocked!

[Tuukka]

Hannibal liked Under Siege 2 a lot...

[Pinchadiscos]

I havent seen TRAFFIC yet, but i'll rent it when the video comes out in MAY /ubb/biggrin.gif

[Irene Manor]

Am I the only one who thought that the drug bosses wife (Zeta-Jones) was not innocent and knew about her husbands dealings all along?

I can't recall any evidence to her not knowing - Aside from her telling the cops and lawyers she didn't know. Also, she seemed to have a rapport with the Mexican dealers. I just thought it was all a part of the master direction, but I admit that I need to see it again.