TRAFFIC ... THE DRAMA REVIEW

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Promotional line; "No One Gets Away Clean"

Great quotes; " They talk like they are conspiring to conspire… I can feel the lies vibrating from that house." - DEA Agent Ruiz " You may want to 'pencil in' some more 'face time' with your daughter." - Mrs. Wakefield

Traffic starts in the Mexican desert, outside of Tijuana, where Mexican policeman, Javier Rodriguez (Benicio Del Toro) sits in a car with his partner and friend, Manolo Sanchez. They are acting on a tip and capture a truckload of cocaine. As they drive off with their catch the Mexican army and Mexico's top crime fighter, General Salazar, stop them. He is impressed and befuddled that lowly state police officer is so well informed, thus hires Rodriguez and Sanchez to help him take down the Tijuana cartel. Things soon turn out not to be all they seem, and Rodriguez finds himself looking to do the right thing, in a situation where there are no right answers.

Ohio State Supreme Court Judge, Robert Hudson Wakefield (Michael Douglas), is the newly appointed American anti drug czar. As he prepares to supervise the country's drug war in Washington and around the country, his daughter is at home experimenting with drugs with her equally privileged friends. Just Wakefield is discovering how difficult his new position will be; he realizes that he will have to fight the war on drugs in his own home against his increasing addicted daughter (Erika Christensen).

DEA agents Montel Gordon (Don Cheadle) and Ray Castro (Luiz Gusman) are working undercover to build the case against the Obregon drug cartel. They capture midlevel drug trafficer Eduardo Ruiz (Miguel Ferrer), who agrees to testify against San Diego drug lord Carlos Ayala. Helena Ayala (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a spoiled pregnant housewife is shocked when she comes home to find her husband arrested. She soon learns of the true nature of her husband's business empire from slimy attorney, Arnie Metzyer (Dennis Quaid). Threatened by her husband's business associates and tailed by the DEA, she soon decides that she wants her old life back will do anything to accomplish that goal.

Traffic is crime/drama filmed documentary style, and uses a lot of hand-held camera work to tell the story. Lighting is also central to the story telling with different scenes being told in different lights. Almost all of the Mexican scenes are filmed in a washed out yellow tint, which portrays to the audience the heat and third world ness of Tijuana and Mexico City. Many of the Washington DC scenes are filmed with a blue tint, which gives one the feeling of cleanliness and order. The whole film seems to the layperson to be filmed with only natural lighting or the lights that one can see which gives the film a sort of reality TV feel.

Benicio Del Toro won the Oscar for best supporting actor for this role. He is sexy and charming as the pensive and conflicted police officer, conveying all of his feelings through his eyes and very few words. The large of amount of big names in the cast does not distract from the story and most blend seamlessly into their parts. The characters of the DEA agents played by don Cheadle (Ocean's Eleven) and Luiz Guzman (Anger Management) add a bit of comic relief to the film with their playful banter towards each other. Another neat thing about this film is the use of real politicians, such as California senator Barbara Boxer and former mass. Governor Weld in washington scenes giving Micheal Douglas's character advice.

Director Steven Soderburgh has directed many other hit films including Ocean's Eleven, Erin Brockvich, and Out of Sight. In 2000, both Erin Brockovich and Traffic gave him twin best director academy award nominations; with Traffic bring him the win.

Traffic screenwriter Stephen Gaghan won the Oscar for best-adapted screenplay and editor Stephen Mirrione won best film editing.

Favorite scenes...

* When Catherine zeta Jone's character learns that her husband is the head of Drug Empire. She tells Quaid that she has the right to know if her husband is a legitimate businessman. The look on Quaid's face as he assures her of her husband's innocence while putting his finger to his lips and turns up the volume to the stereo is priceless. The reaction of the DEA agents listening in the surveillance van is equally funny (the conspiring to conspire quote)

* When the Wakefield's are awakened in the morning to find that their daughter has stolen their stuff and Michael Douglas yanks her boyfriend (Topher Grace) out of school to go searching for her downtown. The scene where he finally finds her in a hotel is a touching one.

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