Just saw "Crash".

Here's what I learned: 
That armed carjacker isn't really going to shoot you, but don't go laughing at that white boy cop.  Also,  there are only seven people in California and they are all giant assholes who use 'racism' as an excuse for their behavior.
Oh, except for the hispanics, every one of which is an angel in disguise.

I guess Paul Haggis didn't want to piss off his housekeeper.

Quite frankly, I think "Spanglish" told the tale better.  It wasn't as heavy handed and it was much easier to swallow by putting the whole story on one family.  Unfortunately it also had Adam Sandler.

I did like some of the story lines and some of the performances but all together it was too much for me.  And I mean "too much" in the "Oh for cryin' out loud!" sense.   For instance, the audience is supposed to believe that Thandy Newton's husband went, literally overnight, from being too scared to object to a cop feeling up his wife, to facing down three armed cops?  And Ryan Phillipe's character went (also overnight) from being disgusted by Matt Dillon's horrendous behavior to murdering a kid for laughing at him?  I couldn't decide whether  Don Cheadle's cliche'd family situation was supposed to be ironic or if the movie was unintentionally stereotyping.  Oh, and we'll just ignore the fact that the Persian store owner was guilty of attempted first degree murder.  And that his daughter apparently couldn't read.
 
If that seems realistic to folks in Hollywood, perhaps they should get out more.

Oh, the one thing I did find totally believable was that Sandra Bullock couldn't get anyone to pick her up off the floor.  I was hoping that the fall down the stairs had killed her.

On the other hand, it was far better than the only other movie I saw that was nominated for Best Picture; something about shepherds, I forget what it was called.

Cinderella Man and Everything is Illuminated are still my top two for '05.

 

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