In Steven Soderbergh's "Traffic," the U.S. drug czar's daughter has a boyfriend who suggests to her, "I want to have sex and do a [cocaine] hit right as we're both coming." In the bleak world of Soderbergh's film, these are the kind of romantic pickup lines prep school kids use when they can obtain crack cocaine more easily than alcohol.
Adapted from a 10-year-old, five-part "Masterpiece Theater" series named "Traffik," the film explores the illegal drug trafficking industry in the United States and Mexico. Stephen Gaghan's wide-reaching script shows how everyone's lives, regardless of economic status, can be touched and destroyed by drugs and addiction.
With such a large number of characters and plots, Soderbergh required a top-notch cast to carry the weight of the story, and his actors do not let him down.
Michael Douglas, while not topping his subtle performance in "Wonder Boys," does a fine job in his role as Robert Wakefield, the U.S. drug czar. As his narrow-minded view of the drug war slowly fades, a sensitivity and vulnerability emerges that reminds viewers that he, too, is a real person. Catherine Zeta-Jones (Douglas' new wife) turns in a convincing performance as the wife of an arrested drug lord.
Don Cheadle ("Picket Fences," "Boogie Nights") and Luis Guzman ("Oz," "Magnolia") stand out as two undercover DEA agents who bring laughs to the screen almost every time they appear.
Even more visible is Erika Christensen's performance as the czar's drug-addicted daughter, Caroline. Her journey from honors student into addiction and hopelessness appears detached and disturbing. While her performance may not be as frightening as Jennifer Connelly's role as Marion in Darren Aronofsky's shocking "Requiem for a Dream" (Christensen's role is not quite as vividly written as Connelly's), she manages to fill her part well.
Shot in a large number of differing locations, the film has a novel visual look. Through the use of multiple filters and film stocks, viewers can discern where scenes are taking place even without the added location subtitles.
As filmed locations move closer to the narcotics source (Mexico), the look of each frame becomes hotter. Scenes in Mexico have an extremely yellow-bleached and grainy look, almost identical to the motif used in 1999's "Three Kings." In California, shots still have a warm but less washed-out appearance, and in Ohio, everything appears bleak in a cold blue. Simply by color temperature, viewers can tell a scene's place in the drug food chain.
As with "Requiem for a Dream," one of the most important themes in "Traffic" is how drugs manufacture the feeling of desperation in people. Drug addicts become so desperate for a fix that they prostitute themselves. Because criminals are so afraid of going to jail, they find themselves forced to kill to avoid prosecution. Mexican police are so desperate to better their $400 monthly salary that they will take money from anyone. American police are so desperate to nab criminals that they meddle with their peers' investigations so they can be the ones to make the arrests. The list is endless.
Race relations also play a huge role in the film, although the script almost never stoops to addressing the issue from a soap box. A black and Hispanic pair of cops laugh about the idea of someday arresting someone at the top of the drug chain -- someone who is white. A teenager describes how empowerment through money is a major issue when spoiled white teenagers with cash roam black neighborhoods looking for drugs.
With a large number of characters and disparate story lines, few facets of the trade are left untouched. The film depicts Mexican and American police, the drug czar, addicted teenagers, a housewife, corrupt lawyers, hired assassins, informers, street dealers and leaders of drug cartels. By weaving these numerous plots together throughout the film, it maintains a fast pace and succeeds in illustrating the universality of its story.
Nimbly avoiding editorializing, it does not argue for or against the legalization of drugs and avoids making caricatures of its characters.
The script's unwillingness to paint an optimistic or colored picture sometimes overwhelms, and it rarely gives the audience any tidbit of hope. Everyone involved in the drug trade in "Traffic" has his own motivations for what he does, and it is not always easy to discover the evil from the good. Always a sign of a smart film, this ambiguity keeps things interesting.
Why has the U.S. decided that some drugs (alcohol) are acceptable while others (marijuana) are not? Do police with altruistic motives end up hurting the drug war more than they help? Is it justified for police to use their power in the drug trade to pour money into their community and children's welfare? Would you hire an assassin to kill a loved one's accuser if your livelihood and happiness depended on it? Gaghan's script forces the audience to answer all of these questions themselves by only showing them how the drug trade works.
But beyond drugs, addiction, desperation and race, "Traffic" rises above its subject matter and hits upon an even weightier issue. The drug war cannot be won because people's lives are tough. People will do anything to make theirs better, including drug trafficking and shooting up. Everyone simply wants to find and maintain his place -- a way to fit in and a role in which he is happy.
As Soderbergh's film hints, that place is a difficult thing to find.