Breathtaking, horrifying, and yet probably the best film of the year!

Rating: 10/10 (31 December 2005)

In Hollywood, they should just look outside their walls and gates for a good story. They don't have to travel very far. The story of Crash is complicated to describe but it is an ensemble piece with an excellent cast like Matt Dillon who plays the racist cop with sick father at home fighting with an African American HMO representative for coverage. He takes his anger out on a successful African American couple. Thandie Newton is unrecognizable and believable as the light skinned wife of a successful television director who gets felt up by Dillon's character and humiliated but in the end, there is something called redemption that these characters seek and need to prove that they are not the cruel, heartless, caricatures of society. Matt Dillon's character is a veteran Los Angeles Police Detective but a racist filled with anger and hatred. I hope he is not overlooked for his performance in this film. By the end of it, I wanted more and I saw this film on an airplane screen but I was glued to every word and scene. Brendan Fraser is miscast as the Los Angeles District Attorney. He is just too young. I love William Fichtner who has been around for years and finally getting noticed. Sandra Bullock is wonderfully complicated as Brendan's wife. They both survive a carjacking and are distrustful. The Persian man who loses his place of business because of a break-in and vandalism is also heartbreaking but you end up liking him and feeling sorry for him in the end but who suddenly has hope for the future despite losing everything to hatred. This film is a lot about hatred, prejudice, racism, sexism, and it is also about redemption of the characters. Don Cheadle is also wonderful in his role. I hope the Oscars don't forget about them one bit. It's the film that is worth watching again and again. You want more when it's over and you wonder why Hollywood doesn't make films about life in Los Angeles. Finally, the Oscars votes came in and Crash won. The controversy over the other film is ridiculous and the most absurd. This film was not meant to win an Oscar for best film. It was the little film that could. When Haggis directed it, he was not thinking about how many awards this would win for him but the message of optimism in a pessimistic society. I'm glad Crash won over the other film. Roger Ebert named this film of the year in his annual top ten. The other film came in 5. In my opinion, I think the Academy was right in selecting this film. Yes, this film has just as much controversy as the other film does. I won't name it because it's not worth mentioning. It was the upset of the night and I would have loved to have watched it on television but I fell asleep and woke up to the news.