Traffic

A socially and politically grandstanding soap opera about the narcotics trade and the futility of the "war on drugs," Traffic is a gritty, realistic feat of cinematic logistics, following no less than 15 major characters through several complex, well-acted storylines about all sides of the drug trade--from kingpins to cops to policy wonks to addicts. But with all due respect to Steven Soderbergh, the picture's ever-brilliant Oscar-winning director, who certainly does a fine juggling act, this multi-narrative message-heavy epic is so busy peddling smug liberal proclamations and milking dubious (if not implausible) melodramatic ironies that it is severely undermined by its failure to build credibility in two major story lines. Specifically, I don't buy the naiveté of the rich drug smuggler's pregnant wife (Catherine Zeta-Jones) or her sudden transformation into a ruthless kingpin, and if you want me to believe the U.S. Drug Czar's pretty, seemingly normal teenage daughter is a freebasing cokehead, you're going to have to give me some backstory so I understand why. Still, given the film's strengths, not to mention its recent Oscars, this is recommended, overall. [Note: Following a relatively extra-less initial DVD release last year, the new double-disc Criterion version ($39.95) serves up a bevy of extras--bordering on overkill. To wit: viewers are treated to three separate commentary tracks (one from director Soderbergh and writer Stephen Gagnan; one from the trio of producers and a pair of consultants; and one from composer Cliff Martinez); 25 deleted scenes with commentary; and 30 minutes of multiple angle additional footage. Most interesting for film buffs are the suite of demos--film processing, editing, and dialogue editing--that take viewers step-by-step through various technical achievements (such as creating that atmospheric bleached look in the Mexico sequences). Recommended for cinema studies collections, but a questionable purchase for those who bought the first version.] (R. Blackwelder)[Blu-ray Review—Apr. 27, 2010—Universal, 148 min., R, $26.98—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 2000's Traffic sports a decent transfer with DTS-HD 5.1 sound. Blu-ray extras include deleted scenes (26 min.), an “Inside Traffic” featurette (19 min.), and the BD-Live function. Also included on this combo flipper disc is a bonus DVD version of the film. Bottom line: a solid Blu-ray debut for Soderbergh's popular film, although most of the bounteous extras from earlier DVD releases have been left off.][Blu-ray Review—Jan. 31, 2012—Criterion, 147 min., in English & Spanish w/English subtitles, R, $39.95—Making its second appearance on Blu-ray, 2000's Traffic features a great transfer and DTS-HD 5.1 sound. Blu-ray extras on this edition are identical to the previous DVD release, including three audio commentaries (one from director Soderbergh and writer Stephen Gagnan; the second from producers Laura Bickford, Edward Zwick, and Marshall Herskovitz, and consultants Tim Golden and Craig Chretien; and the third from composer Cliff Martinez), additional multi-angle footage (43 min.), three demonstration segments on “Film Processing,” “Editing,” and “Dialogue Editing” (36 min. total), 25 deleted scenes (27 min.), a gallery of trading cards depicting the U.S. Customs canine squad, trailers, and a booklet featuring an essay by film critic Manohla Dargis. Bottom line: one of Soderbergh's best films gets the red carpet treatment for Blu-ray.]