|
|
 |
Heavy Traffic
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Shout! Factory Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (20th September 2013). |
|
The Film
 It’s been a long time since animation was dangerous. The majority of animated films produced today are aimed squarely at kids, with above-their-heads jokes included for the adults in attendance. Can anyone recall the last time an animated film got a "PG-13" rating? Exactly. Yet, back in the 70's Ralph Bakshi was toiling away on animated projects that garnered an "X", and these still managed to get shown in theaters. Of course, this was also a time when the grindhouse circuit was still going strong. There were plenty of patrons lined up to see how salacious and exploitative an animated film could get, and chances are if they were about to see something groundbreaking, it was being done by Bakshi. A veritable auteur of the animated film, Bakshi had originally intended for "Heavy Traffic" (1973) to be his first animated feature, but had trouble finding financing due to his limited experience in making films, as well as the graphic content of the proposed picture. Instead, he made what might be his most infamous work, "Fritz the Cat" (1972), an animated film based on the comic strip by Robert Crumb. "Fritz the Cat" was a commercial and critical success, and anyone who knows anything about Hollywood knows that’s all it takes to get a producer interested in your next picture. "Heavy Traffic" introduces us to 24-year-old virgin Michael Corleone (Joseph Kaufmann), a cartoonist living in New York City who spends his time playing pinball. From there, the live-action film fades to Bakshi’s animated world, which is full of colorful characters that are a hyper-stylized version of those found in the city. His night starts off with some drinks at the local watering hole, where he’s got a bit of a crush on the no-nonsense bartender, Carole (Beverly Hope Atkinson). When Carole is fired after her manager confronts her when her legless bodyguard, Shorty, kicks out a drunk who had beaten up a transvestite prostitute named Snowflake (Jim Bates). Michael and Carole leave together, but his father, struggling mafioso Angelo “Angie” Corleone (Frank DeKova), has a big problem with the relationship because Carole is black. What follows is a wild night as Angie tries to hire a woman to take Michael’s virginity, Michael pitches his comic ideas to a decrepit, dying executive, Carole begins dancing and, eventually, turns to prostitution, and Angie decides to try taking a hit out on his son for dating a black woman. It’s extremely hard to describe the events of the film because this is a picture that needs to be seen and experienced. Even today, 40 years after it was released, the film contains incendiary subject matter and crude, offensive caricatures that might surprise even the most contemporary, desensitized of viewers. This kind of stuff just isn’t tackled anymore. At all. And to see it done with such flair and unvarnished bravura, all these years ago, turns the act of watching it into seeing a world that no longer exists in many ways. The film certainly earns its "X" rating. It is volatile-charged both sexually and racially. The unflinching manner in which something like a transvestite being brutally beaten (and the pleasure which both participants derive from it) comes across as rather shocking, since nothing like that would ever be produced in this day. Genitals pop up (literally) around almost every corner. Michael’s sexual escapades are shown in amusingly graphic detail. In fact, Bakshi has stated that many animated scenes had one-to-three passes done on them, with each being a bit tamer than the last. Watching the film now, it’s hard to believe anything was considered to offensive for inclusion. Rather than rely on traditionally animated backgrounds, Bakshi and his team combine animated characters with photographed and live-action city streets. The result makes for a truly unique viewing experience. The animation style used for the characters is intentionally crude, and overlaying them on a real, grimy street provides a gritty canvas to paint on. Some sequences even feature rough animation sketches, giving the film an even more stripped down appearance than it already possessed. Once things wrap up in the cartoon world, we segue back to Michael, still toiling away on his pinball game. Bakshi has said that he used pinball as a metaphor for life in this film. You get bounced around, running into all types on the playing field of life, and only you are in control of where things wind up. But even then, there’s always an element of chance that can kick you out at any moment. In the real world, we see many of the people that influenced Michael’s animated daydreams. They’re less exaggerated versions of his fantasies, but his desires remain the same. Bakshi says a lot about life and how different people live it. "Heavy Traffic" might not produce the same levels of shock it did back in the 70's, but the themes of race and frank sexuality are just as prevalent as ever, adding a timeless quality to his work.
Video
Shout! Factory has graced the film with a 1.66:1 1080p 24/fps AVC MPEG-4 encoded image that appears quite strong given the elements at play. The marriage of cel animation with live-action backgrounds means one thing: optical degradation. This is unavoidable, as it is on virtually every picture that uses opticals. That being said, the presentation is likely the best the film has ever looked. The opening and ending live-action segments are appropriately vintage, with aged 70's color aesthetics and a moderate amount of detail. Many of the city shots appear drenched in darkness, however, leaving little room for any finer details. The animated characters are a kaleidoscope of colors, allowing much of the palette to pop on screen. Line work looks mostly sharp throughout the film. The numerous optical shots lend much grain to the image, though it never looks noisy or obtrusive.
Audio
The soundtrack comes in the form of an English DTS-HD 1.0 mono track that does a commendable job when you consider how much “noise” Bakshi has crammed into the sound field. In particular, Sergio Mendes and Buffalo ‘66’s constant theme, a reworking of “Scarborough Fair”, perfectly suits the film. As with many mono tracks, the range can sound limited since, well, it is due to only having one speaker to control. At least it’s a clean track, with no hisses or pops despite a 40-year vintage. When the action ratchets up things can sound a bit distorted and fuzzy, but these occurrences are far and few between. Generally, the track is a little flat and lifeless, but, again, it sounds in keeping with the film’s overall aesthetic and encrusted underpinnings. There are no subtitles.
Extras
Unfortunately, 40th anniversary or not this disc has nothing included. Not even a trailer. Ouch.
Packaging
The single 25GB disc comes housed in a standard Blu-ray keep case. As with virtually all Shout! releases, there’s some nice artwork adorning the inside cover.
Overall
Rude, crude, and very lewd, Ralph Bakshi’s animated tale of urban decay is a still powerful all these years later. Shout! did a fine job putting it out on Blu-ray, I only wish they’d seen fit to include a generous helping of extras with it.
|
|||||
|