olekfilm

Traffic is a social drama with a plethora of storylines, laced with elements of black comedy, satire, persiflage, and stereotyping. It might sound like a recipe for disaster, yet it all harmoniously blends together. Surprisingly, this complexity enhances the film's naturalism - after all, isn't life itself disjointed?

The cast is outstanding, with a particularly stellar performance by Anamaria Vartolomei. Even though the film isn't centered on inner conflict, a minute-long close-up of Natalia near the end quietly reveals how deeply we're shaped by our predicament.

Keep your eyes wide open: this film doesn't offer answers to the social issues it raises, but it makes you feel and understand them on a deeply profound level.

This is truly a little masterpiece, executed to perfection. Cinematography, acting, editing, setting and the sparse use of music -all combine seamlessly. It feels effortless, revealing just how much love and effort went into it. There is a natural blend of Flemish and French unseen in Belgian cinema. But this is exactly how kids talk in the affluent communities around Brussels. And yes, don't they all struggle with German.

This film is so delicate that even the verb in the title throws it off balance. Simply 'Julie' would suffice. And yet, each bounce of the tennis ball feels like the dynamite straight out of Clouzot's 'Wages of Fear'.