Traffic [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Overview

"Described by director Steven Soderbergh as ""Nashville meets The French Connection,"" this multi-character drama explores the effects of international drug trafficking on all fronts: from their source, to the U.S. border, to the federal government, to the private lives of users. Based upon a miniseries originally aired on Britain's Channel 4, Traffic divides its time among three main storylines and almost a dozen locales. The first and primary plot thread, set in Ohio and Washington, D.C., concerns freshly-appointed drug czar Robert Wakefield (Michael Douglas), whose enthusiasm for his new prestige position is quickly offset when he realizes his 16-year-old daughter Caroline (Erika Christensen) is graduating from recreational drug use to habitual abuse -- a secret that his wife, Barbara (Amy Irving), has kept from him. South of the border, Mexican cop Javier Rodriguez (Benicio Del Toro) attempts to wage his own war on drugs, heading off a cocaine shipment in the middle of the desert with his less-than-virtuous partner Manolo Sanchez (Jacob Vargas). Surrounded by corruption, Javier approaches the drug war with an attitude of patience and compromise, which opens him up to investigation from General Arturo Salazar (Tomas Milian), the country's dubious drug-enforcement liaison to the U.S. Meanwhile, San Diego drug kingpin Carlos Alaya (Steven Bauer) is caught in a sting operation spearheaded by DEA agents Montel Gordon (Don Cheadle) and Ray Castro (Luis Guzman), leaving behind his very pregnant and very oblivious wife, Helena (Catharine Zeta-Jones). At the behest of Carlos' lawyer and shady confidante, Arnie Metzger (Dennis Quaid), Helena decides to carry on the family business -- with tragic consequences. Adapted by Rules of Engagement scribe Stephen Gaghan, Traffic marked Soderbergh's second major release in 2000 after the critical and box-office success of Erin Brockovich, as well as his second feature as cinematographer (credited under the pseudonym Peter Andrews). A favorite with various guild and critics' awards, Traffic won four Academy Awards in 2001, including statues for Best Supporting Actor (Del Toro) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Gaghan), and surprise wins for Steven Mirrone's editing and Soderbergh's direction."

Product Details

Release Date:	01/17/2012
UPC:	0715515090810
Original Release:	2000
Rating:	R
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:27:00
Sales rank:	9,839

Special Features

Restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised and approved by director Steven Soderbergh and supervising sound editor and rerecordng mixer Larry Blake; The audio commentaries, featuring Soderbergh and Writer Stephen Gaghan; Producers Laura Bickford, Edward Zwick, and Marshall Herskovitz and consultants Tim Golden and Craig Chretien; and Composer Cliff Martinez; Twenty-five deleted scenes, with optional commentary by Soderbergh and Gaghan; Three sets of demonstrations: one on film processing and the look of the Mexico sequences; one on film editing, with commentary by Editor Stephen Mirrione; and one one dialogue editing; Additional unused footage of various scenes, from multiple angles; Theatrical trailers and television spots; Gallery of trading cards depicting the U.S. Customs canine squad used to detect narcotics and other illegal substances; An essay by film critic Manohla Dargis

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Benicio Del Toro	Javier Rodriguez
Michael Douglas	Robert Wakefield
Catherine Zeta-Jones	Helena Ayala
Don Cheadle	Montel Gordon
Erika Christensen	Caroline Wakefield
Jacob Vargas	Manolo Sanchez
Miguel Ferrer	Eduardo Ruiz
Luis Guzmán	Ray Castro
Topher Grace	Seth Abrahms
Dennis Quaid	Arnie Metzger
Steven Bauer	Carlos Ayala
Albert Finney	Chief of Staff
James Brolin	General Ralph Landry
Clifton Collins Jr.	Francisco Flores
Enrique Murciano	DEA Agent - Trailer
D.W. Moffett	Jeff Sheridan
Tomas Milian	Gen. Arturo Salazar
Amy Irving	Barbara Wakefield
Peter Riegert	Attorney Michael Adler
Benjamin Bratt	Juan Obregón
Yul Vazquez	Tigrillo / Obregón Assassin
Majandra Delfino	Vanessa
Alec Roberts	David Ayala
James Pickens Jr.	Prosecutor Ben Williams
Andrew Chavez	Desert Truck Driver
Michael Saucedo	Desert Truck Driver
Emilio Rivera	Salazar Soldier #2
Viola Davis	Social Worker
Russell G. Jones	Mark
Jose Yenque	Salazar Soldier / The Torturer
Lorene Hetherington	State Capitol Reporter #1
Eric Collins	State Capitol Reporter #2,Actor
Beau Holden	DEA Agent - CalTrans
Michael O'Neill	Lawyer Rodman
Don Snell	DEA Agent - Trailer
Gary Carlos Cervantes	DEA Agent - Trailer
Leticia Bombardier	Ruiz's Secretary
Carl Ciarfalio	Ruiz's Assistant
James Lew	DEA Agent - CalTrans
Gilbert Rosales	Van Passenger
Eileen Weisinger	DEA Agent - Public Storage
Mike Watson	DEA Agent - Public Storage
Steve Tomaski	DEA Agent - Public Storage
Buck McDancer	DEA Agent - Public Storage
Corey Spears	F*****-up Bowman
Rena Sofer	Helena's Friend
Stacey Travis	Helena's Friend
Brian Avery	DEA Agent - Public Storage
Jennifer Barker	Helena's Friend
Dean Faulkner	Parking Valet
Daniella Kuhn	Tourist Woman
Brandon Keener	Tourist Man
Bill Weld	Governor Bill Weld
George Blumenthal	Partygoer #1
Stephen Dunham	Lobbyist
Margaret Travolta	Economist
Jeff Podolsky	Jeff Podolsky
Don Nickles	Senator Don Nickles
Jewelle Bickford	Partygoer #2,Stan (uncredited)
Harry Reid	Senator Harry Reid
Orrin Hatch	Senator Orrin Hatch
Chuck Grassley	Senator Charles Grassley
Dave Hager	Partygoer #3
Barbara Boxer	Senator Barbara Boxer
Tucker Smallwood	Partygoer #4
Marisol Padilla Sánchez	Ana Sanchez
Víctor Quintero	Salazar Soldier
Elaine Kagan	Judge Reed
John Slattery	ADA Dan Collier
Jimmy Ortega	Arrested Man in Apartment
Greg Boniface	Tackled Man #1
Ramiro Gonzalez	Salazar Soldier
Thomas Rosales Jr.	Tackled Man #2
Rudy M. Camacho	Customs Official
Vonte Sweet	Dealer
Jack Conley	Agent Hughes
Craig N. Chretien	Director of EPIC
Ed Breving	Hotel Deskman
Mike Siegel	DEA Representative
Eddie Velez	Agent Johnson
Kimber Fritz	Rehab Counselor
Harsh Nayyar	Witness #1
John Brown	Assistant Director of EPIC
Mary Pat Gleason	Witness #2
Stephen J. Rose	Marty
Jsu Garcia	Pablo Obregón
Gregory Estevane	Polygraph Administrator
Alex Procopio	Polygraph Assistant
Rita Gomez	Mrs. Castro
Vincent M. Ward	Man on Street
Kaizaad Kotwal	Teacher
Kymberly Newberry	Press Secretary
Carroll Schumacher	Ayala Security #1
David Jensen	John
Jay Krymis	Waiter #1
Michael Showers	Meeting Leader
Mike Malone	Waiter #2
Chic Daniel	DEA Agent (uncredited)
Salma Hayek Pinault	Rosario (uncredited)
Fred Anderson	TV Reporter (uncredited)
Sonia Debreczeni	Reporter (uncredited)
Rod Fielder	Newspaper Photographer (uncredited)
Adam Clark	FBI Agent (uncredited)
Tony Guma	Detective (uncredited)
Ambrit Millhouse	Cincinnati Hooker (uncredited)
David Pittinger	Cincinnati Police Officer (uncredited)
Valerie Hanna	Witness #3 (uncredited)
Christopher Rogers	Businessman (uncredited)
Dominic Koulianos	Reporter (uncredited)
Christie McNew	Restaurant Patron (uncredited)
Laurent Schwaar	Art Appraiser (uncredited)
William-Christopher Stephens	Drug Dealer (uncredited)
Clyde Tull	Cafe Patron (uncredited),Cafe Patron (uncredited)
Leo Rogstad	Stand-In (uncredited)
Joey Sotello	DEA Agent / Attorney (uncredited)
Anthony Hawkins Woods	Junkie (uncredited)
Jim Cody Williams	FBI Agent (uncredited)
William Young	Court Room Participant (uncredited)
Cliff Martinez	Composer

Technical Credits

Stephen Gaghan

Simon Moore

Steven Soderbergh	Director
Edward Zwick	Producer
Marshall Herskovitz	Producer
Laura Bickford	Producer
Mike Newell	Executive Producer
Richard Solomon	Executive Producer
Andreas Klein	Executive Producer
Cameron Jones	Executive Producer
Graham King	Executive Producer
Stephen Gaghan	Screenwriter
Simon Moore	Screenwriter
Paul Ledford	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Drug users, dealers, and smugglers mix it up with the law in Steven Soderbergh's highly acclaimed, multi-award-winning Traffic. Based on a British TV miniseries, the film features an ensemble cast that includes Michael Douglas as the newly appointed federal drug czar whose 16-year-old daughter (Erika Christensen) just happens to be snorting, smoking, and mainlining her way through a potpourri of illegal substances. Catherine Zeta-Jones portrays the wife of a drug lord (Steven Bauer) whose world crumbles around her when he's arrested. Oscar winner Benicio Del Toro is riveting in his supporting role as a Mexican policeman who is enlisted to help bring down a Tijuana drug cartel. Also outstanding are Don Cheadle, as a DEA agent, and Dennis Quaid, as Bauer's high-priced lawyer. Traffic moves briskly back and forth between its various stories and locales, both north and south of the Mexican border, with characters and situations that are not so much original as archetypal. There's just enough philosophizing to be provocative and just enough action to get your pulse racing. Even though the film struggles to achieve a comprehensive overview, the result is never less than entertaining and absorbing. Certainly, Traffic is an impressive feat for Soderbergh, who not only directed the film but did all the gritty, handheld cinematography as well, giving each story line a distinctive palette: icy blue for the sequences involving Douglas and his wayward daughter; a sun-blasted brownish hue for the Mexico scenes. He was amply rewarded for his efforts, winning the Best Director Oscar. Traffic is Hollywood filmmaking with a distinctively personal stamp, a film that flirts easily with a host of clichés without succumbing to them.