Today’s Prayer Focus
Traffik
MPA Rating:
for violent and disturbing material, language throughout, some drug use and sexual content.
for violent and disturbing material, language throughout, some drug use and sexual content.
not reviewed
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience:
Adults
Genre:
Action Thriller
Length:
1 hr. 50 min.
Year of Release:
2018
USA Release:
April 20, 2018 (wide release)
DVD: July 17, 2018
DVD: July 17, 2018
Relevant Issues
FILM VIOLENCE—How does viewing violence in movies affect families? Answer
Sex trafficking
| Featuring |
Paula Patton … Brea Omar Epps … John Missi Pyle … Deputy Sally Marnes Dawn Olivieri … Cara William Fichtner … Mr. Waynewright Roselyn Sanchez … Malia Luke Goss … Red Laz Alonso … Darren Cole Lorin McCraley … Billy Scott Anthony Leet … Scoot See all » |
| Director | Deon Taylor—“Meet the Blacks” (2016), “Supremacy” (2014) |
| Producer |
Hidden Empire Film Group Paula Patton See all » |
| Distributor | Summit Entertainment, a division of Lionsgate Films |
“Refuse to be a victim”
Here’s what the distributor says about their film: “In the action packed thriller, ‘Traffik,’ Brea (Paula Patton) and John (Omar Epps) are off for a romantic weekend in the mountains. Isolated at a remote mountain estate, the couple are surprised by the arrival of two friends, another couple, Darren (Laz Alonso) and Malia (Roselyn Sanchez). Just when the weekend starts to get back on track, a violent biker gang turns up and begins to torment them. The foursome are forced to fight for their lives against the gang who will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.”
PLEASE share your observations and insights to be posted here.
Secular Movie Critics
…An effective weekend-from-hell thriller with a vital message, a terrific lead performance by Paula Patton and some unexpectedly dimensional storytelling from writer-director Deon Taylor (“Meet the Blacks”). …
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times
…It’s kind of hard to know where to begin with what’s wrong in Traffik, a movie where every scene takes about twice as long as it feels like it should, and the characters far too often make an escalating series of implausible and/or stupid decisions. …
Todd Gilchrist, The Wrap
…Noble intentions are derailed by deeply confused execution in writer-director Deon Taylor’s “Traffik,” which attempts to marry cheap genre thrills with an unflinching depiction of the horrors of international sex trafficking, only to cheapen the latter and cast a grimy pall over the former. …
Andrew Barker, Variety
…Deon Taylor seems uncomfortable with the escalating relentlessness of a siege film, eventually splitting Traffik off into a variety of other tangents and genres, diluting the potent subtext at the film's center. …
Chuck Bowen, Slant
…“Traffik” begins with that classic cinematic lie “inspired by true events” and ends with statistics for women who have been victims of human trafficking. Between these two bookends is a steaming pile of exploitative horse manure masquerading as a feature concerned with the sexual enslavement of women. …
Odie Henderson, RogerEbert.com
…“Traffik” isn’t a very good thriller, and if you aren’t two or three steps ahead of it, much of the time, you need more practice.
But writer-director Deon Taylor’s “Put Paula Patton in Peril” picture has merits. For one, there’s Patton, whom he and his cinematographer give the full “Damn, girl” treatment — extreme closeups of body parts, cleavage, Daisy Duke derriere, classic semi-clad female objectification. It’s why she’s a movie star, so OK, whatever sells tickets. …
But writer-director Deon Taylor’s “Put Paula Patton in Peril” picture has merits. For one, there’s Patton, whom he and his cinematographer give the full “Damn, girl” treatment — extreme closeups of body parts, cleavage, Daisy Duke derriere, classic semi-clad female objectification. It’s why she’s a movie star, so OK, whatever sells tickets. …
Roger Moore, Movie Nation [1½/4]
…Goes off the road… hackneyed suspense cliches… a cheesy, by-the-numbers action melodrama that takes itself seriously enough to pose as an exposé of sex trafficking…
Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter