'TRAFFIC' LIGHTS UP THE SCREEN

Drug-War Epic Right On Target

As Byzantine as any spy thriller, as heartbreaking as any Greek tragedy, as
relevant as any rap lyric the establishment doesn't want to hear,
''Traffic'' aims its unblinking camera eye on the War on Drugs and finds
the enemy - us.

This tri-level story shows the drug business, those it serves and those
trying to shut it down in an entirely new light - harsh, sometimes nearly
blinding, always revealing.

This year's hottest director, Steven Soderbergh - who so skillfully blended
humor and drama in ''Erin Brockovich'' - finds little humor in ''Traffic,''
just a lot of biting irony.

And with a big cast in which every performance is on target, ''Traffic''
manages to sell its questioning message about waging a ''war'' on such a
people-oriented tragedy while still managing to deliver a first-rate drama.

Oh, did I mention that some of ''Traffic'' is in Spanish with English
subtitles? And that it's those scenes, featuring a riveting Benicio del
Toro, that will likely get de Toro an Oscar nomination?

Del Toro's not alone. The movie and director are locks for Academy Award
attention, of course, but Catherine Zeta-Jones is also a revelation as a
Southern California woman who doesn't know her husband's a drug dealer
until he's dragged out the front door. She then m akes a remarkable
transformation in order to preserve her upper-class lifestyle.

In fact, Ms. Zeta-Jones' performance outshines her new husband, Michael
Douglas, who is at the heart of this drama in the role of a tough Ohio
judge who's just been appointed America' s drug czar.

Speaking all platitudes, all the time, Robert Wakefield (Douglas), thinks
he is really going to make a difference in the War on Drugs by trying to
bring down one of Mexico's biggest cartels.

Moving with the shadowy grace of a stalking cat, Javier Rodriguez (del
Toro) is the Mexican state policeman who is scheming to do just that.

Both men may actually win that battle and still lose the war, as we see in
the ''Traffic'' stories sandwiched between them.

Wakefield's daughter, Caroline (Erika Christensen), for instance, is
falling into drug addiction in the comfortable Cincinnati suburb of Indian
Hill (actually, Hyde Park acting as Indian Hill), and the so-called drug
czar doesn't even notice it.

And, Helena Ayala (Ms. Zeta-Jones) may watch her husband dragged away by
agents - realizing for the first time that their upper-class lifestyle is
financed by drugs. But that only inspires her to do a better, more
ruthless, job than her husband.

The only people scoring any victories in ''Traffic'' appear to be a couple
of Drug Enforcement Agency agents, Montel (Don Cheadle) and Ray (Luis
Guzman), who, through sheer persistence, manage to make some busts. And
even though some of the charges don't stick, you're left with the clear
sense that these guys will stick to their targets until justice is done.

And no movie has done such a complicated story such justice as ''Traffic.''
From the tragedy of a gifted, wealthy girl spiraling into prostitution to
score drugs while her father declares her the unnamed enemy in the drug
war, to the chilling transformation of a suburban housewife to amoral drug
smuggler, this movie takes hold of you and will not let go.

Irony after irony piles up. One moment the drug czar is talking about
fighting drugs at a party where everyone is swilling booze, the next moment
two DEA agents of color are talking about their dreams of busting the real
power in the drug trade - rich white people. Then comes the realization
that to catch all those involved in drugs might require selling out your
best friend, or busting your own daughter, or neighbor.

''Traffic'' is tough stuff, but so dramatically entertaining it might get
everybody to open their eyes and consider whether the War on Drugs deserves
a new look.

''Traffic''

A

USA Films

2 hours, 27 minutes

R: violence, language, drug use, sexual situations