Side Effects (2013)

Side Effects (2013)

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Writer: Scott Z. Burns

Why I Watched It: I am a fan of several of Soderbergh’s previous films, and I was curious about this one.


My Reaction, In a Nutshell: Never has my reaction to a film gone downhill so dramatically. At the beginning, my response was: “Hey, this is going to be great!” I was captivated by the interesting characters and masterful cinematography. Later in the movie, my response shifted to occasionally rolling my eyes and muttering, “Um … seriously?” By the end, I’d devolved into repeatedly shouting “Oh for fuck’s sake!” at the screen. I guess if I really wanted to reframe that nicely I could say, “It was a hell of a ride.”

Film Review: Traffic

Year Released: 2000

Directed by: Stephen Soderbergh

Written by: Stephen Gaghan, based on the British television series Traffik by Simon Moore

Rating: (4.5/5 Stars)

Recommended by: Alex


Spoiler Free Review:

In the middle of a desert, a drug enforcement officer tells his partner of a nightmare about seeing his mother brutally murdered. A group of privileged high school students sit around doping. At a storage rental facility, two cops descend on a drug dealer. A conservative judge defends the confiscation of a family farm over a small patch of marijuana. And a pregnant woman mingles with her wealthy friends at a golf course, blissfully unaware of what awaits her when she gets home. These scenes open this film, which tells four interconnected stories about greed and addiction, illuminating the futility of America's "war on drugs."