Crash Explodes Into Theatres

In its tense and taut 107 minutes, Crash, a new drama about racism in Los Angeles, delivers one stirring scene after another. That Crash possesses uncommon power and intelligence should come as no surprise. It is the directorial debut of Paul Haggis, the Canadian-born writer who penned the screenplay to last year’s Oscar-winning picture Million Dollar Baby. As in that film, Haggis’s screenplay (co-written with Bobby Moresco) elicits first-rate performances. Here he receives them from everyone from A-list actors such as Don Cheadle to newcomers such as rapper Chris “Ludacris” Bridges.

Crash is a rare ensemble piece. It is magnificently efficient. It is a collage of brief scenes and verbal exchanges that are at times shockingly brutal. Crash is comprised of moments---moments of little detail but relevatory importance, for the power of what is clearly spoken and even what is not lingers well into the next scene. Crash is as much a study of how racism affects the lives of people in LA as a riveting display of the way inner angst triggers race-based acts that are shocks to humanity itself.

The film opens with insightful words from a detective played by Don Cheadle. He speaks about the various cultures and the disparate nature of life in his city just after his partner and girlfriend (Jennifer Esposito) is involved in a traffic accident with another racial ethnic woman. Later Cheadle and Esposito are called to a crime scene, from which the film then flashes back in time to the events of the previous evening.

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