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| Crash (Widescreen Edition) |
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List Price: $19.98
Buy New: $9.69
You Save: $10.29 (52%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $6.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 844 reviews)
Sales Rank: 94
Category: DVD
Director: Paul Haggis
Publisher: Lions Gate
Studio: Lions Gate
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
Label: Lions Gate
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: Unrated
Media: DVD
Running Time: 113 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
UPC: 031398179382
EAN: 0031398179382
ASIN: B000A3XY5A
Release Date: September 6, 2005
Theatrical Release Date: May 6, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Movie studios, by and large, avoid controversial subjects like race the way you might avoid a hive of angry bees. So it's remarkable that Crash even got made; that it's a rich, intelligent, and moving exploration of the interlocking lives of a dozen Los Angeles residents--black, white, latino, Asian, and Persian--is downright amazing. A politically nervous district attorney (Brendan Fraser) and his high-strung wife (Sandra Bullock, biting into a welcome change of pace from Miss Congeniality) get car-jacked by an oddly sociological pair of young black men (Larenz Tate and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges); a rich black T.V. director (Terrence Howard) and his wife (Thandie Newton) get pulled over by a white racist cop (Matt Dillon) and his reluctant partner (Ryan Phillipe); a detective (Don Cheadle) and his Latina partner and lover (Jennifer Esposito) investigate a white cop who shot a black cop--these are only three of the interlocking stories that reach up and down class lines. Writer/director Paul Haggis (who wrote the screenplay for Million Dollar Baby) spins every character in unpredictable directions, refusing to let anyone sink into a stereotype. The cast--ranging from the famous names above to lesser-known but just as capable actors like Michael Pena (Buffalo Soldiers) and Loretta Devine (Woman Thou Art Loosed)--meets the strong script head-on, delivering galvanizing performances in short vignettes, brief glimpses that build with gut-wrenching force. This sort of multi-character mosaic is hard to pull off; Crash rivals such classics as Nashville and Short Cuts. A knockout. --Bret Fetzer
Stills from Crash (click for larger image)
Description
They all live in Los Angeles. And in the next 36 hours, they will collide.
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Customer Reviews: Read 839 more reviews...
 I Was Bored June 30, 2006
I know that this movie has done very well critically and commerically, but I found it both preachy and boring.
Racism is ugly and despicable, no question about it. But the last thing I want is some "holier than thou" Hollywood filmmaker trying to hit me over the head with his politically correct message.
On the plus side, the film is shot well, with attention to atmosphere, etc. But please, if you're looking to be entertained or even challenged, look elsewhere.
 There you go! June 29, 2006
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
"Crash" demands we confront our prejudices. As requested, I did, and like everyone else on Earth I discovered I was fine with them.
 Exceptional Once June 28, 2006
2 out of 9 found this review helpful
I would be surprised if the critics did not love this movie. The acting is spectacular and the whole movie is some of the best drama I have ever seen. In fact I can find only one fault with it, and that is replayability. That is only because it is so real that when I walk down the street here in Washington D.C. I can see the same issues. Forgive me if this realism is not something I want to see in a movie on a regular basis. It stares me in the face everyday and I am not blind. This is a great movie to see once, but not something I would go back and review on a regular basis. So I highly recommned it for a rental but you need to be a great fan of drama and the darker side of human nature and society to be a steady watcher. I'm guessing this is like the "Butterfly Effect" in showing how what one person does can impact many other lives and our mental conditioning based on not only what we are taught but what we learn first hand. One excellent example is the case of the girl grabbing her husbands arm and moving closer to him when two black men approach them on the street. She has been taught that they are more likely to attack them because of what she hears on the media and from her social group. The irony is they do in fact attack them and reinforce her fear. What is funny is the black mens conversation before they attack and one is resentful that the girl draws away from them before in fact they commit the kind of crime that they are stereotyped or profiled for. Just a great job of showing how we are foolish and not so foolish for developing our defense mechanisms when dealing with others. What is truly bold is showing that whites are not the only racist. Racism runs in all colors and this movie shows that and puts us in touch with that fact that we all need to get beyond it if we are going to work out the problems that are truly important.
Un-believable... for various reasons June 28, 2006
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
Following the outcome of the latest Academy Awards with Crash surprising everyone by getting the Oscar for Best Picture, I thought I should perhaps see this film. I watched it with the best intentions and an open mind. I really thought I would like it because I knew it dealt with an interesting subject matter.
Unfortunately, the truth is that, while watching Crash, I really had the impression that I was simply watching a TV program, some kind of "bad cop/good cop" TV show. Nonetheless, I still found Crash to be an OK movie, a "movie with good intentions", but overall, just an ordinary made-for-TV movie. I thought it was too simplistic and, in some ways, childish in its treatment & development to be worthy of any significant praise. The first line uttered by Don Cheadle at the beginning of the film is so unnatural, unrealistic, and moralizing that my reaction was: "What?! Do they think we're stupid?" The problem with this film is that it is "pushing" a moral. It aims to carry a "message" and does so without finesse or subtlety. It is done so that the "not-so-bright" gets the message, i.e. "we're all racists, let's all love and accept one another, ... and, if necessary, let's crash into one another in order to touch one another"(!). I personally do not particularly like "preachy" movies and, Crash IS preachy. This film could really have been entitled "Racism 101", "Racism for Dummies", or even better "Racist Stereotypes - Advanced Level". Mind you, I do not live in LA nor in the US, and I realize that such a film is perhaps necessary.
I really thought that the storyline was "un-believable". This sequence of coincidences is so contrived and artificial that, after just a few minutes, you can clearly see the pattern established, you can predict the "surprises" and, as the film goes on, you then automatically expect the "unexpected". It seems like the makers of this film are simply trying too hard. It considerably reduces the credibility of the film.
It is un-believable that this film won the Oscar for Best Picture. How did that happen?! In any case, the Oscars have hit a new low.
It is un-believable, and sad, that the Academy actually fell for the persistent and aggressive Oscar campaign orchestrated by the producers of Crash. Actually, the simple thought that these awards are earned through of a pushy "Oscar campaign" makes me wince... So much for the credibility of poor old Oscar.
Let's face it, Crash did create quite a "coup" on Oscar night for a movie that had quickly sunk into oblivion last summer. After all, it only ranked 58th in the 2005 year-end compilation of film reviews in the March issue of Premiere Magazine and was not even nominated for Best Picture at the Golden Globes. Despite the fact that Crash addresses the touchy issue of racism in LA, many reviews in reputed publications, including the LA Times, were rather negative mentioning how manipulative and unrealistic it was, and how it "exploited stereotypes". After watching the movie, I personally felt as if I probably needed to be more wary of people of other races. I felt that it only "reinforced" and "validated" existing negative stereotypes. Now, was that the intention of the film? I doubt it, but facile stereotypes are used without any restraint throughout.
In the end, I think that host Jon Stewart summed it up pretty well on Oscar night when, in order to save time, he said "Whoever was NOT in Crash, please raise your hands". He simply reminded us that Crash is ABOUT LA, was shot IN LA, and gave work to A LOT OF PEOPLE FROM LA, and of course, all these people FROM LA voted for themselves, probably also getting the votes of their colleagues and friends in the film industry (everybody would have done the same). But, was Crash really the Best Picture of 2005? I think that the answer is pretty clear and obvious: NO.
After receiving over two dozens of Best Picture Awards around the world, the extraordinary and unforgettable Brokeback Mountain should of course have won the Academy Award for Best Picture which it truly deserved. An upset of this magnitude is without precedent in Oscar history and, it is simply unjustifiable and scandalous. Everybody seemed extremely surprised, even, of course, the Crash winners. The Academy has completely discredited itself. Brokeback Mountain was from the start simply outnumbered in this specific "LA-based" organization which is, as it just proved, very self-centered and preoccupied in glorifying itself. It was clearly demonstrated, once again, that in the Academy, "inside politics" and other dubious factors have more importance over true artistic value.
I personally think that, as Crash's big Oscar rival, Brokeback Mountain might have been too subtle, too true, too profound, simply too good for the Hollywood peanut gallery. The impact of BBM has been absolutely "historical" in scope. Brokeback Mountain will remain a milestone in cinematic history. This film has been talked about all over the world and has attained unprecedented international acclaim - the "Brokeback phenomenon" has significantly crossed borders and has reached numerous foreign countries. Rarely have we seen a film have such an impact on society, in the media, and with the general public, even on those who haven't seen it or did not have the courage to see it. In no way can Crash measure up to any of this.
Crash does have its merits but, by fetching the Best Picture Oscar through a desperate and very costly campaign, it showed that with money, you can make people believe anything. It also proved how irrelevant, unimportant and meaningless the Oscars and the Academy really are.
 People need to open up their eyes... June 28, 2006
1 out of 9 found this review helpful
It really scares me that some of the reviewers on Amazon are deeming this movie "artificial", "distilled", and "unrealistic". People need to open up their eyes. "Crash" brings forth a raw view of the racism that still exists in present-day North American society. I think some of the previous reviewers are living in a fantasy world. I live in a town that I always thought was full of friendly people open to change. However, now that we are becoming much more multi-cultural, the many negative comments I hear from people about race really floor me! Racism is still out there, whether you like it or not. I have lost respect for many people because of their views on race. I believe that "Crash" highlights the idea that racism still lies in neighbourhoods where you would least expect it. Although it may seem exaggerated at times, it sheds light on a very important issue that we should not ignore. Wonderful script and screenplay. The performances took my breath away, particularly Thandie Newton. Everyone should see this movie!
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