Crashed at the end

Rating: 8/10 (5 September 2005)

What a good movie! Notice the use of good rather than great. I was really enjoying this one. There was a broad range of characters played by a more than able cast of varying experience and backgrounds. There were some great moments of dialogue, tension, humour and emotion where the audience were held at the edge of their seats, wondering if this time tragedy would strike. There was an intricate web of a storyline, weaving strands of interconnectivity to each thread of this tale of racism in LA and delicately pulling it all together. Alas it was in the drawing together of these tales that the film went wrong for me. Elements that had more emotional impact seemed to be finalized first, leaving more trivial, less weighty aspects to the very, very end which meant I was leaving the cinema not feeling very much about the whole thing rather than leaving with stronger feelings. It seemed to blow its load prematurely and a little reordering at the end would have made this a better movie for me. Despite this fudging, it's still one of the best movies in theatres at the moment and if you miss it there, do make a point of seeing it on DVD/TV.