TV movie

Rating: 4/10 (15 April 2006)

An Oscar-winner. Of course. What would I expect from the Academy Awards, who's only choice that coincides with mine is 'The Unforgiven'... the rest, in the past 20 years or so, is just a large 'whatever'... (from the nominees to the outfits they wear at the ceremonies...). I guess I am not wired like these people. That's OK, I wouldn't fathom or want to be a part of any 'cinematic' jury, but... OK... this movie, to me, is not a great movie. And even if the other nominated movies weren't that great either, I would have picked any one of them. It isn't a bad movie... It is entertaining, there is action, there is suspense, there is some overtly-manipulative tragedy and a general comic undertone to ease the supposed 'blows', a great little concoction I'd say... for TV! It reminds me of an NBC drama!!! It is void of what I'm looking for in a movie: presence, spontaneity, the fact it searches for an audience and that it isn't just something mass-produced for a prefabricated one. That on the stylistic, narrative side. On the thematic level, I found it simplistic. The treatment of racism... well, it's funny. It feels like the authors are trying to speak about a very complex and difficult, bothersome topic for themselves, but represent it by way of their own stereotypes (first of all), and by way of the relationships, or the racially stunted non-relationships they probably conduct in their short-minded US metropolitan lives, taking as a given that the sheer cosmopolitanism of LA is capable of teaching us (and them) things about racial interaction. It feels autobiographical in a silly way. And lopsided. This is evident in the fact that the better, more developed characters are Matt Dillon and his ex-police partner. It is they who are really being examined, there is a lot of care put into their plots... they are the tragic characters, in a sense, and the black couple is clearly secondary. That would be OK, but there is a pathetic attempt to give them that same importance, and here the film fails miserably. Past these, the rest are just backdrop, (much like in TV where you have a million subplots) they are used for laughs, or for action and suspense, they are pretty much faceless and it feels like they are there to keep all possible age-groups intrigued - so as to 'appeal to all audiences'. I mean, all other character development is sparse, or just plain easy. Once we get to the Persian family... well, there we are really treading on It's-A-Small-World-After-All territory. But see... I wouldn't have mean things to say about this movie if it would have stayed in the format it belongs. But, since it comes out flaunting itself as a gutsy 'film' about racism... it falls prey to its own narrow capsule-minded self. It is unable to tap into the discussion it suggests, it remains hidden in the categories it starts off with. It is childish in this sense. A real film would have been more adventurous. A real + award-worthy film, I mean.
I just think a lot more could have been done. Or perhaps, a lot less. It was sadly crowded with weak plot lines (don't tell me its inspired on Altman... that influence is very much watered down on this one... the direct inspiration would be the much more immediate CSI episodes), 'logorheic' scenes that don't teach us anything, like the ones in the court with Don Cheadle that are supposed to make us despise 'the system' or something. On the other hand, the scene when Dillon is to rescue Tandie Newton... there was something provocative in that, having them look somewhat romantic even, which in my opinion was a touch of grace, probably the best moment in the movie. That was a very intelligent move, and helped the scene a lot... of course, it didn't last (not the moment, but the inspiration in general). In conclusion, I enjoyed it when I saw it. The movie addresses a certain sore that the U.S. has built a whole nation upon, (perhaps all nations do so similarly), something that definitely should be addressed, why not... there were many thoughtful moments. But this to me is a TV film, or a first draft/attempt at something ambitious. And on some level, I feel it was unnecessary to make it about 'racism'. On the other hand, maybe that is what got it the Oscar.