'TRAFFIC' A COLLISION OF HUMAN PAIN, PLEASURE.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

Anyone concerned about teen-agers in the United States should go see ``Human Traffic'' and take comfort in the fact that they're nowhere near as drug-addled and foolish as British youth. Of course, ``Human Traffic'' isn't geared toward anyone over the age of 30, so this thin, energetic film won't ever register on the radar of parents or geezers who didn't come of age in the past decade. That's no loss, as you probably have to be of a certain age (and mindset) to appreciate this movie.

``Human Traffic'' follows five Welsh kids through a weekend of club-hopping and drug taking. On the surface, you could make an easy comparison to ``Trainspotting''; just substitute Ecstasy for heroin as the drug of choice. The movies also share a loose, episodic style that's heavy on surrealism and dream sequences and backed by an ear-splitting soundtrack. ``Human Traffic'' is more modest, though, in both budget and ambition, meaning to be taken as an ode to friendship and not pharmaceuticals.

First-time writer-director Justin Kerrigan introduces (rather shakily) his five friends in the movie's opening moments. There's the impish Jip (John Simm), the principal character and narrator, who'd dealing with impotence - or, as he puts it, ``a monumental case of Mr. Floppy.'' Koop (Shaun Parkes) works in a record store, selling hard-core rap that would ``turn Hare Krishna into a bad boy.'' He's insecure, though, believing that his flirtatious girlfriend, Nina (Nicola Reynolds), is cheating on him.

Elsewhere, the wispy blond looker LuLu (Lorraine Pilkington) suffers through a string of loser boyfriends, while harboring a crush on Jip. And Moff (Danny Dyer), the biggest ``pill monster'' of the group, goes through some rather extreme machinations just to masturbate, while ``having the best time being off my pickle.'' Pickle, in this case, meaning brain.

There's a lot of Brit-speak in the movie, which has become a cult favorite in England. Kerrigan, a native of the film's Cardiff, Wales setting, makes no apologies about the drugs, but neither does he shy away from showing their effects as he takes his characters from euphoria to paranoia in a weekend's time. Mostly, Kerrigan presents drugs as a rather incidental part of a disaffected youth's life. The message: How can one endure a dead-end, 40-hour-a-week McJob without a little help from your friends, chemical and otherwise?

Kerrigan, a mere 25, gives ``Human Traffic'' plenty of style and attitude. Plot is incidental; the movie's failing comes with its characters, which are a rather thinly drawn lot. The fantasy sequences are rather hit-and-miss, but there's some great energy here, and some good dialogue, too, as when Moff and another Ecstasy user pontificate on how the ``Star Wars'' movies are all about drugs. Whether the filmmaking force is with Kerrigan will be seen when he makes his second movie.

The facts

--The film: ``Human Traffic'' (R; for pervasive drug content, language and some strong sexuality).

--The stars: John Simm, Lorraine Pilkington, Shaun Parkes, Nicola Reynolds, Danny Dyer.

--Behind the scenes: Written and directed by Justin Kerrigan. Released by Miramax Films.

--Running time: One hour, 29 minutes.

--Playing: Laemmle's Sunset 5 in West Hollywood; Laemmle's Playhouse 7 in Pasadena; Landmark's NuWilshire in Santa Monica.

--Our rating: Two and one half stars.