Traffic (2000) Michael Douglas Robert Wakefield Don Cheadle Montel Gordon Benicio Del Toro Javier Rodriguez Catherine Zeta-Jones Helena Ayala Albert Finney Chief of Staff Amy Irving Barbara Wakefield Erika Christensen Caroline Wakefield James Brolin General Ralph Landry Dennis Quaid Arnie Metzger Benjamin Bratt Juan Obregon Jacob Vargas Manolo Sanchez Andrew Chavez Desert Truck Driver Michael Saucedo Desert Truck Driver Tomas Milian General Arturo Salazar Jose Yenque Salazar Soldier--The Torturer Emilio Rivera Salazar Soldier 2 Michael O Neill Lawyer Rodman Directed by: Steven Soderbergh Produced by: Richard Solomon, Mike Newell, Cameron Jones A patchwork of stories about various factions of the drug trade, including dealers, abusers and the law enforcement officials who pursue them. Mexican policeman Javier Rodriguez works on and around the border with his close friend and fellow policeman Manolo Sanchez, under Mexico's number one crime fighter, General Salazar. Confronted with temptations of power and money, Javier resists them but finds himself--and Manolo--caught in a web of corruption that leads to an untenable situation. Back in the U.S., Ohio State Supreme Court Justice Robert Wakefield is named by the president as the new antidrug czar. Collecting information, the uncompromising and conservative Wakefield prepares to supervise the country's task forces and partner them with Mexico's. But, at home, he and his wife Barbara must deal with their increasingly drug-addicted teenage daughter Caroline. In San Diego, undercover DEA agents Montel Gordon and Ray Castro work overtime to help the U.S. government build its case against the infamous Obregon drug cartel. Their bust of midlevel drug trafficker Eduardo Ruiz pays off when their new prisoner cuts a deal to testify against wealthy drug baron Carlos Ayala, who lives in the upscale suburbs. Carlos is arrested, shocking his unknowing and pregnant wife Helena. Helena and her son are quickly threatened by her husband's associates and tailed by the DEA agents. Enlisting the aid of attorney Arnie Metzger. Helena vows to get Carlos out of jail and keep her children safe--even if it means taking over her husband's business. ========== A modern day look at America's war on drugs told through four separate stories that are connected in one way or another. A conservative politician who's just been appointed as the US drug czar learns that his daughter is a drug addict. A trophy wife struggles to save her husband's drug business, while two DEA agents protect a witness with inside knowledge of the spouse's business. In Mexico, a corrupt, yet dedicated cop struggles with his conscience when he learns that his new boss may not be the anti-drug official he made himself out to be. ========== Intertwining vignettes frame this tale of America's escalating War on Drugs. Ohio Supreme Court judge Robert Wakefield has been appointed the nation's Drug Czar, his new position made more daunting by the discovery that his teenage daughter Caroline is a cocaine addict. Meanwhile, DEA agents Montel Gordon and Ray Castro are pursuing Helena Ayala, wife of jailed kingpin Carlos Ayala, as she seeks to the control the business that her husband had kept hidden from her. South of the Border, duplicious local constable Javier Rodriguez is fighting the battle with his own jaded, questionable ethical code.