A Beautiful and Richly Layered Character Study from the Screenwriter of 'Million Dollar Baby'

Rating: 9/10 (6 May 2005)

"We're Losing Touch." That's one of the very first lines spoken in the new great film by Paul Haggis. It is spoken by Don Cheadle's police detective, Graham, after a head injury resulting from a car crash caused by an overly eccentric Chinese lady. He's babbling all this random stuff, but it's not so random. That line is pretty much the whole basis for 'Crash'. We as a society are losing touch of each other. We don't care about each other anymore, and the day and age of chivalry has died in 2005. When we see someone in need or down on their luck we just turn the other way. We aren't involved with each other and we've become so callous and self-absorbed. We are torn apart the the racism, prejudices and differences of each other, that we almost don't even care anymore. 'Crash' takes that idea and spins a handful of interesting and beautifully layered vignettes that take place in the slums of Los Angeles during the course of two days.
The two days the film is set over follows eight different situations all eventually interlocking with each other. The first situation is about two detectives, Graham (Don Cheadle - Hotel Rwanda) and Ria (Jennifer Esposito) investigating the murder of a could-be dirty cop, and Graham helping his heroin-addicted mother find her hoodlum son. The second situation follows two L.A.P.D. police officers, Ryan (Matt Dillon - Drugstore Cowboy) and Hansen (Ryan Phillippe - The Way of the Gun), Ryan struggling with his dying father while Hansen struggles with having Ryan as a partner. The third situation follows a rich black television producer, Cameron (Terence Howard - Hart's War) and his wife, Christine (Thandie Newton - The Truth About Charlie) who try to keep their marriage together after an upsetting run in with two police officers. The fourth situation follows a wealthy and smug D.A., Rick (Brendan Fraser - The Mummy) and his self-centered pedantic wife, Jean (Sandra Bullock - Miss Congeniality) and how they deal with life and the political hardships that follow Rick after he's assaulted and car-jacked by two black street thugs. The fifth situation follows the two black street thugs/car-jackers, Anthony (Chris 'Ludicrous' Bridges - 2 Fast 2 Furious) and Peter (Larenz Tate - Dead Presidents) as they roam the streets of L.A. in the newly stolen SUV. The sixth story follows a lower-class Hispanic locksmith, Daniel (Michael Pena - TV's The Shield), who's trying to make ends meet while supporting his wife and daughter. The seventh story follows a Chinese-American couple in the ghettos of L.A., while the eighth story is centered around Islamic citizens, Farhad (Shaun Toub) the owner of a pawnshop and his emergency room doctor daughter, Dorri (Bahar Soomekh) as they try to get through life without being discriminated against. It's a very complex plot, but that's not an insult, it's actually a compliment. These days, it's good to see a film that actually requires you to think and examine life, then some mindless action lackluster of a film starring Britney Spears or Jennifer Lopez. 'Crash' is a unique opportunity to see a though-provoking and heart-wrenching suspense tale that you can learn a lot from.
'Crash' has some wonderful qualities to it. The acting of the film is spectacular with stand-out performances. Sandra Bullock actually turns in a good performance as the nasty housewife (for the very few screen time she has). Don Cheadle is absolutely brilliant in his role as a conflicted L.A.P.D. police detective, following his startling turn in last year's Oscar contender 'Hotel Rwanda'. Matt Dillon turns in one of the best performances of the film, as the bigoted and emotionally scared police officer, and I can't remember Dillon turning in a finer performance since 1989's 'Drugstore Cowboy'. Jennifer Esposito is good as Cheadle's partner, while Brendan Fraser is kind of so-so as the District Attorney of Los Angeles. For me, he wasn't very believable in that role. Terrence Dashon Howard turns in a very powerful performance, while Ludicrous does an actually all-right job with acting (I was a bit skeptical because he is a rapper, not an actor). Thandie Newton was amazing in perhaps the best acting performance of the entire film, and Ryan Phillippe and Larenz Tate played their roles with staunch authenticity and passion for the craft of acting. The newcomer, Michael Pena (who can be seen every Tuesday as the latest cast member of 'The Shield') does a surprisingly fabulous job, along with Shaun Toub. The film also contains bit parts played by Loretta Devine (Boston Public), Keith David (Barbershop), William Fichtner (Black Hawk Down) and most notably Tony Danza in a thirty second part. Paul Haggis does a phenomenal job writing along with directing. Haggis provides a script so rich and elaborate in that it keeps you deeply focused for the entire runtime of the film. His directing is exquisite and impressive, but not too flashy or pretentious. The only real flaws that are present in 'Crash' are that it is somewhat unbelievable or confusing at times. Like I said, you really have to pay close attention to detail while watching the film. It isn't one of those movies where you can take a trip to the restroom in the middle of it, come back, and ask the person sitting next to you, "What did I miss?". Because in those few minutes you spent in the bathroom, you most likely missed a plot revelation or new set-up. A lot of people will be turned off with how involving 'Crash' is, but for the few who truly appreciate the art of film, it will be like a dream come true. I enjoyed almost everything the picture had to offer, but I couldn't help but feel the ending was a bit inadequate of what the whole film was seemingly heating up for. In conclusion, I highly recommend 'Crash' even though it's ending was rather disappointing. Grade: A-
MADE MY TOP 300 LIST AT #124