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Crash

reviewed by Lena

Lena
09/25/2009

Crash 3

This film is well-acted, but otherwise quite overrated.

In a desperate attempt not to be misconstrued, Crash's storyline ends up feeling quite forced. In order to prove its thesis that racism comes in all forms, it includes far too many strands to deliver any meaningful character development. The fact that these plots must all then intertwine causes the characters themselves to feel more like cogs in a machine than in control of their own destiny.

As a viewer, one must suspend disbelief for the duration, and that achieves the opposite effect I suspect the director intended...distancing the viewer from the characters rather than enabling us to relate closely and examine our own prejudices.

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FranksWildYears commented 66 days ago.
That's an excellent review. The movie never clicked for me and I could never put my fingure on why. I found it a little dry and thought it was trying to be preachy and subtle at the same time. But you're right, the characters and their stories were too tightly played to feel natural. It was like a failed Robert Altman knock-off.

Lena commented 66 days ago.
Thanks :)

Trying to be preachy and subtle at the same time sums up this film perfectly.

You also make a great point about the attempt and failure to embody Altman. He, apparently unlike Paul Haggis, recognized that a too-tight story ultimately and obviously feels constricted and unnatural, and avoided that trap with his films.

FranksWildYears commented 66 days ago.
I always thought that was the best part about Altman films. He didn't work at making a point, just let the story and characters flow past the camera. In the process he acheived WAY more than anything that was ever elaborately written. Maybe he just trusted the intellegence of his audience.
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By the Numbers