After managing to sit through Traffic, I tried to figure out why it was made. It seemed as though it was intended as a "serious" film, rather than a simple profit generator, but all of its subplots seemed simultaneously obvious and silly. I could only imagine that the director thought he was revealing some important truth about illegal drugs, or the "war" on them. Well, maybe if you were asleep for the last quarter of the twentieth century this movie might tell you something you don't know about the illegal drug trade, and the criminals and politicians whose livelihoods depend on it, but otherwise - I don't think so.
Anyway, it isn't a documentary, so maybe it is unfair to criticize it for not being informative. But it isn't even entertaining, despite some pretty decent acting, due to basic problems of structure and execution. There are too many plots, necessitating too many technical events (cuts, etc.) that make the whole thing look like a soap opera. That gimmick with the colors is embarrassingly corny, the more so because it is completely unnecessary. The only subplot that hangs together is Del Toro's; both Zeta-Jones's and Douglas's plots made me groan due to their implausibility.
All in all, I give it a 4, because I am feeling generous this season.
Anyway, it isn't a documentary, so maybe it is unfair to criticize it for not being informative. But it isn't even entertaining, despite some pretty decent acting, due to basic problems of structure and execution. There are too many plots, necessitating too many technical events (cuts, etc.) that make the whole thing look like a soap opera. That gimmick with the colors is embarrassingly corny, the more so because it is completely unnecessary. The only subplot that hangs together is Del Toro's; both Zeta-Jones's and Douglas's plots made me groan due to their implausibility.
All in all, I give it a 4, because I am feeling generous this season.
