Crash Into Me

I saw an interesting (for lack of a better description) movie this evening while my wife was at work; "Crash".

"Crash" has the kind of broad appeal that can draw large audiences and the kind of lingering emotional potency that can lead to serious soul-searching. It has an impressive ensemble cast that lends strong character to a cultural cross-section of Los Angelenos who are connected to each other through crime, corruption, obligation, indignation and chance, over a two-day period.

Possibly the most powerful storyline, Matt Dillon and Ryan Phillippe are beat cops, one jaded and abusive, the other fresh and idealistic (guess which is which), who pull over and harass a black yuppie couple (Terrence Howard and Thandie Newton) because the SUV they're driving vaguely fits the description of a carjacked vehicle.

Within 24 hours, these characters cross paths again in separate incidents of incredibly high tension that challenge both the prejudices that have formed between them and the conclusions we've been led to as an audience.

Although they do not meet again, similarly potent table-turning and judgment-testing events occur in the lives of the actual carjackers (an always engrossing Larenz Tate and rapper Ludacris, whose character is obsessed with being stereotyped) and their victims, an ambitious district attorney and his uptight wife (surprisingly played well by Brendan Fraser and Sandra Bullock).

These four are, in turn, are connected through other events to a young Hispanic locksmith (Michael Pena) desperately trying to make a better life for his 5-year-old daughter after moving out of a crime-ridden neighborhood, and to a struggling Iranian shopkeeper (Shaun Toub) desperately seeking to lay blame for the vandalization of his convenience store, and to a pair of internal affairs detectives (Don Cheadle and Jennifer Esposito), whose lives and jobs are complicated by politics, tested principles and personal secrets.

The emotional complexity and intricate, intimate narrative of these stories defy simple summary, but suffice it to say writer and first-time director Paul Haggis ("Million Dollar Baby") lays out many social and psychological issues that generally get swept under the rug of the mass American consciousness. The film doesn't just conjure up racially charged confrontations, but also shows almost subliminally how general prejudices are often prevalent in simple day-to-day life.

The uniformly compelling performances, most notably from Howard and Newton, help personify these characters as emblematic and familiar while being anything but archetypal."Crash" is not a film that will change the world or be permanently emblazoned on your mind...though there are a few poignant scenes you may carry with you...long enough to write a blog entry or two about it. But the movie does get at the simple truths of racial discord in society in a way that is absorbing, intelligent, thought-provoking, and yet entirely accessible.