Human Traffic
"Human Traffic" is a British film intent on shoving teen angst down the throats of moviegoers. The story follows a small group of friends who unite over drugs, sex, and dead end jobs.
Jip (John Simm) is a clothing store clerk whose sex life has been ruined by his prostitute mother. Lulu (Lorraine Pilkington) is starting to fall in love with the inaccessible Jip. Jip's best friend Koop (Shaun Parkes) is a record store clerk whose touchy-feely girlfriend, Nina (Nicola Reynolds) is about to introduce her little brother, (Dean Davies) to the trendy drug Ecstasy. Moff (Danny Dyer) joins this group as the smart, but volatile product of overly conservative parents.
They are a very articulate, and talkative group, who incessantly use profanity to express their unhappiness. Vignettes are used to punctuate their thoughts, imaginings, and frustrations.
The film moves at a frenetic pace with loud music in the background and images flashing by. Thus making it difficult to realize that there's no story behind all this moaning and groaning. Because of the film's pace it's impossible to become attached to the characters.
In the end, it boils down to another movie about disillusioned, drugged out teens. While their actions may seem disturbing, they're not out of the ordinary, leaving one to wonder what the point is.