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'Crash' is not a good movie.
I understand what the movie was trying to say, but it just didn't say it very well. The characters were weak, the dialogue was unrealistic and the acting was terrible (but I will lay the blame on this with the director, I have seen all of these actors in better roles, so maybe I should say this movie was poorly directed).
First and foremost, the film felt like it was written and directed by two people who have never experienced racism firsthand nor seem to know what it actually feels like to be on the receiving end of it. (There's a wonderful scene in the not-so-good 'Poetic Justice' where Maya Angelou and another older actress berate Regina King's character when the late-teens King says she's in love. One of the older women says, 'What do you know about love?') My question to these filmmakers is 'What do you know about racism?'
Now I'm not saying one should be a minority to write/direct a movie about racism. But what I'm saying is that it helps to know your subject matter. That is why 'Do the Right Thing' accomplished a lot more with fewer characters, a simpler story and smaller budget.
First off, in one of the first scenes we see Jennifer Esposito's chastize an Asian lady for the way she drives. Anyone in a high profile position would never, ever talk to someone like that and expect to keep their job. Yes, she might talk that way behind the lady's back, but never to her face. Sorry, that would never happen. And if it did, that person would have never gotten as high as she did in her dept without being exposed as someone idiotic early on in her career.
Secondly, Matt Dillon's character is beyond liking the moment the frisking scene occurrs. The director did get an effective performance in this scene from Thandie Newton. But it was so good that nothing, and I mean nothing, Dillon's character could do in the film could possibly redeem his character. Including saving her life later on in the film, including helping his father take a dump...
The dialogue in this film was so unconvincing that it became laughable. No one in LA, no one in the world talks like the people talk in this film.
At one point, William Fitchner's character says, 'Black people, huh?' in a wink wink knowing way to Don Cheadle. They were illustrating his bigotry, yes. But who talks like that? Someone might say, 'Typical' like it just slipped out. Oops. But what he said was diliberate and hokey. (Not to mention that he says it to an African American.)
And this happens throughout the film!
ie. An owner of a gun store calls Shaun Toub's character 'Osama' and kicks him out. Um, if he didn't like people from the Middle East, wouldn't he just refuse to help them period? But he does it well into a sale. Wrong. Not only this, but after that his daughter buys a gun from him anyway. Anyone who was treated like that would not buy anything from this man.
ie. Brendan Fraser's character stomps around saying, 'I'm the District Attorney of Los Angeles!' The script should show us that not have the character announce it. Someone should introduce him as the DA, not have the character tell us. That's just lame. (What's more is that Brendan Fraser is a 'George of the Jungle', he is an 'Encino Man', he is a Warner Brothers Security Guard... but a DA? I don't buy it.)
ie. Ludacris: 'I ran over a China Man.' Who says 'China Man'?
ie. Sandra Bullock's character is unaware of anyone else existing in her universe. To totally go off on a guy that's in the room without talking to him is weird.
ie. Bullock's maid's performance made her seem like English is her second language (yes, we get it) but also that she's somewhat mentally challenged.
The deal with racist people is that most of their racist tendencies are never overtly displayed to the people they are targeting. It happens inconspicuously. It's a snide whisper to a friend, it's a defiant look at someone, it's not listening to someone, etc. Yes, the in-your-face attitude comes out in anger directly to the target, but according to this film everyone in LA is a volcano and everyone targets everyone all the time. If that were the case, in anger management terms, the venting would be healthy for the venter and the victims would learn to just get over it just to cope. Racism is a problem because a lot of it is covert. If it were out in the open more, it would be easy to target and avoid the racist. Racist people aren't always out in the open.
(I also believe everyone has it in them to be racist. The one thing I agree with the filmmakers on. There are good and bad people in every color.)
And if this post weren't long enough already, I'd like to say that the scene between the locksmith and his daughter in her bedroom was fantastic. Great performances.
Oh, and Ryan Phillipe looked like he was twelve wearing a cop uniform...
I don't mind the intertwining stories and characters. It's cool. But you have to buy the premise first. If you don't, none of it works.
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