Post by The Candyman on Aug 28, 2005 16:53:05 GMT -5
I went to see Crash last night at the campus cinema.
Wow. Great movie. Paul Haggis' is one heck of a writer (he also wrote Million Dollar Baby) and his directorial debut indicates that he's here to stay. The story weaves effortlessly between the lives of people of various races in LA, and shows how their lives connect and "crash" with each other. It's definitely one of the few films I've seen in recent years that deals with the problem of racism so well and so masterfully. In fact, off the top of my head it's the only film I've seen which deals with racism in general, rather than racism of a particular race. Sure, we've all seen movies about the discrimination of African-Americans. But what about Hispanics? What about Persians? This movie shows us that blacks aren't the only people affected by racism - the problem goes much wider than that.
The movie has a large cast of characters, and Haggis manages to develop most of them. There are a few characters that aren't quite as fleshed out as much as I would have liked, but they're developed enough so that we understand their basic motivations and thoughts. And speaking of the characters, the actors do a very good job. Sandra Bullock manages to hold her own, surprisingly, against people like Don Cheadle and Matt Dillon. Terrence Howard is most likely going to have a very promising career in Hollywood after this and his supposedly magnificent performance in Hustle and Flow. Even Thandie Newton, who was probably the weakest cast member, does well enough that there are very few instances we question her character.
The film also works well in terms of mood. At its core, it's an intense drama, and yet some of the dialogue and characters had people rolling with laughter. Which is good. Some of the moments in this movie are extremely dramatic (read: tearjerker), so the comedy needed to be really funny in order to balance that out. Haggis is a skilled enough writer to make that happen. He's also smart enough not to have all of the characters meet the same fate. I wouldn't call this movie a downer, but I wouldn't call it a happy movie either. Some of the characters find tragedy, others find redemption. This movie is at times extremely dark, and yet manages to pull off moments of spirituality that are breathtaking and refreshing to see in a Hollywood picture.
If you're looking for a good drama that has something important to say about how we relate to other people, check out this movie. It's the most perfect blend of drama, comedy, realism and the miraculous that I've seen in a long time. My only complaint would be that its most dramatic scene (you'll know what I'm talking about when you see it) is too long before the end of the movie, and as a result the rest of the film isn't as emotionally exhilarating. But pacing problems aside, Paul Haggis is a force to be reckoned with.
Have any of you seen this movie? If not, go see it. It's one of the best movies to come out this year.
Wow. Great movie. Paul Haggis' is one heck of a writer (he also wrote Million Dollar Baby) and his directorial debut indicates that he's here to stay. The story weaves effortlessly between the lives of people of various races in LA, and shows how their lives connect and "crash" with each other. It's definitely one of the few films I've seen in recent years that deals with the problem of racism so well and so masterfully. In fact, off the top of my head it's the only film I've seen which deals with racism in general, rather than racism of a particular race. Sure, we've all seen movies about the discrimination of African-Americans. But what about Hispanics? What about Persians? This movie shows us that blacks aren't the only people affected by racism - the problem goes much wider than that.
The movie has a large cast of characters, and Haggis manages to develop most of them. There are a few characters that aren't quite as fleshed out as much as I would have liked, but they're developed enough so that we understand their basic motivations and thoughts. And speaking of the characters, the actors do a very good job. Sandra Bullock manages to hold her own, surprisingly, against people like Don Cheadle and Matt Dillon. Terrence Howard is most likely going to have a very promising career in Hollywood after this and his supposedly magnificent performance in Hustle and Flow. Even Thandie Newton, who was probably the weakest cast member, does well enough that there are very few instances we question her character.
The film also works well in terms of mood. At its core, it's an intense drama, and yet some of the dialogue and characters had people rolling with laughter. Which is good. Some of the moments in this movie are extremely dramatic (read: tearjerker), so the comedy needed to be really funny in order to balance that out. Haggis is a skilled enough writer to make that happen. He's also smart enough not to have all of the characters meet the same fate. I wouldn't call this movie a downer, but I wouldn't call it a happy movie either. Some of the characters find tragedy, others find redemption. This movie is at times extremely dark, and yet manages to pull off moments of spirituality that are breathtaking and refreshing to see in a Hollywood picture.
If you're looking for a good drama that has something important to say about how we relate to other people, check out this movie. It's the most perfect blend of drama, comedy, realism and the miraculous that I've seen in a long time. My only complaint would be that its most dramatic scene (you'll know what I'm talking about when you see it) is too long before the end of the movie, and as a result the rest of the film isn't as emotionally exhilarating. But pacing problems aside, Paul Haggis is a force to be reckoned with.
Have any of you seen this movie? If not, go see it. It's one of the best movies to come out this year.