Heavy Traffic (1973)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Ralph Bakshi

Writer:

Ralph Bakshi (writer)

Release Date:

17 November 1973 (Sweden)

Genre:

Animation | Drama

Tagline:

Heavy Entertainment!

Plot:

An "underground" cartoonist contends with life in the inner city, where various unsavory characters serve as inspiration for his artwork.

Plot Keywords:

Cartoonist | Jewish Mother | Jewish | Adulterous Husband | Combined Animation And Live Action

Cast

Joseph Kaufmann	...	Michael Corleone
Beverly Hope Atkinson	...	Carole
Frank DeKova	...	Angelo "Angie" Corleone (voice)
Terri Haven	...	Ida Corleone (voice)
Mary Dean Lauria	...	Molly (voice)
Jacqueline Mills	...	Rosalyn Schecter (voice)
Lillian Adams	...	Rosa (voice)
Jamie Farr
Robert Easton
Charles Gordone	...	(voice)
Michael Brandon	...	Voice characterization
Morton Lewis	...	(voice)
Bill Striglos	...	(voice)
Jay Lawrence	...	(voice)
Lee Weaver	...	(voice)

Runtime:

77 min | Argentina:79 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian | Yiddish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Canada:14A | West Germany:18 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (edited for re-rating) | USA:X | Argentina:18

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Trivia:

Half way into production as Bakshi was fired (before being re-hired). A different director stepped in and animated a train sequence in which Michael goes to visit his brother-in-law. He is on a subway and witness' a woman sleeping while two men begin to undress her. Michael just watches. As the woman wakes up, she screams "rape" toward Michael. This was in the original script. But was scrapped when Bakshi returned to the project.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Michael: What makes you happy? What makes you happy? Where do you go? Where do you go? Where do you hide? Where do you hide? Who do you see? Who do you see? Who do you trust? Who do you trust? Who do you screw? Who do you screw? What kills the pain? What kills the pain? Game up, game win. Bug around, set it straight. Transaction. Play it hard, hurts so bad. Gotta win. Everyone loses. Everthing loses. Gotta win big. Sick and tired of losing. Where does it all go? Where does it all go? Where does it lead us? Where does it lead us? Tilt City, Pinball Alley. Blinkin' lights shot to Hell, fuck it all!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Cool and the Crazy (1994) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Take Five

Get out of your Ghetto.

Breathtaking. Get past your own discomfort with relating to racial stereotypes and realize that this film is genius. A love story at heart, and perhaps one of the most profoundly honest and insightful films to date, Heavy Traffic broke the barriers of 'political correctness' before the people who coined that term were even born. If nothing else consider what is being said about settling for the familiar and not venturing outside of your personal neighborhood. Awe inspiring, Ralph Bakshi should be canonized.