Not horrible, but quite shallow.

Rating: 5/10 (3 April 2006)

Caught this movie the other night, as I was curious to see what Hollywood deems "Best Picture" material these days.
Crash is an uneven film. It was mildly engaging, well shot and had an enjoyable musical score. The constant cutting between various characters in dramatic situations kept the film moving along at a brisk pace, and the acting was above average. However, the message Crash tries to convey seems to amount to:
1. The City of LA is filled with racists. 2. Racism is bad. 3. Are you sure you're not racist? Even a little bit?
The dialog was borderline absurd; there was virtually no one in the film who was able to interact with another person without the topic of race immediately entering the situation. In the Crash universe, a typical elevator conversation would play out thusly:
A professionally dressed white man and a black youth with baggy jeans and bling enter an elevator.
Racist white man: "Hello young black man. I notice you are black. Would you happen to be carrying a handgun?"
Thuggish-looking black man: "Mr. White man, I am offended! Just because I dress like the gangsters you see on MTV does not qualify me as a gang-banger! You're just perpetuating a damaging stereotype about young black men in America today! You should be ashamed of yourself. But to answer your question, yeah, I'm packing."
The women in the film are shrill, demanding and hysterical, the men are degraded, bitter and fit their stereotypes a far too well. Oh, and everyone is racist.
I just can't see this as being Best Picture material, but then again, neither could I with "Chicago". I suppose in today's culture, any film that broaches the subject of racism, however ham-fistedly, must be considered edgy and bold.
I didn't rate Crash a total disaster, but if I wanted an enlightening look on race in America today, I'd watch Chappelle's Show. So should you.