Heavy Traffic

A twenty-two-year-old pinball player and aspiring cartoonist who dreams of a quieter life while living inside a brutal New York environment. He oscillates between a longing for escape and an entangled criminal reality, shaped by family drama and urban peril. His arc blends introspection, artistic instinct, and a reluctant plunge into violence, culminating in a hopeful reconciliation with Carole.

Michael's sleazy, struggling mafioso father who manipulates family ties and mob politics. He schemes to use his power for personal revenge, including a plan to kill his own son, which reveals the fragility of loyalty within criminal hierarchies. His fall from favor within the mob highlights the precarious nature of power.

Michael's Jewish mother, whose constant bickering with Angie reflects a fraught family dynamic under economic and social pressure. She embodies a tension between traditional family loyalty and the corrupting environment surrounding them. Her presence anchors the domestic dispute that drives much of the story.

Angie's mistress, a symbol of personal desire intersecting with mob life. Her presence intensifies the domestic conflict and highlights the allure and peril of forbidden relationships within a corrupt world. Her role helps propel the plot toward violent consequences.

A bar-flirt and Michael's ally who later becomes involved in crime to survive. She is also a taxi dancer who experiences the dangers and instability of the nightlife economy. Her relationship with Michael anchors the human element amid violence and chaos.

A cross-dressing bar patron with a masochistic streak who becomes entangled in the violence around him. His interactions with others provoke conflict and reveal the interplay between gender performance and aggression in the urban milieu.

Carole's violent, legless bouncer devotee who enforces loyalty through fear. He acts as the volatile enforcer figure in the bar environment and plays a critical role in the escalation of violence.

A tough drunk in a hard hat who assaults Snowflake, embodying the brutal, unregulated violence of the neighborhood. His confrontation with Shorty foreshadows the lethal volatility of the mob's world.