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Features: DVD, Pan and Scan (TV Format), Aspect Ratio 1.33.1, Dolby Digital (5.1), Deleted Scenes, Introduction, Behind The Scenes, Commentary, Trailers, English, Spanish Subtitled
In this intense drama, several stories interweave together. Taking place over a stretch of two days in Los Angeles, the movie follows a collection of inter-related characters that take you for an unforgettable journey: a black police detective with a drugged-out mother and a thieving younger brother, two car thieves who are constantly theorizing on society and race, the distracted district attorney and his irritated and pampered wife, a racist veteran cop (caring for a sick father at home) who disgusts his more idealistic younger partner, a successful black Hollywood director and his wife who must deal with the racist cop, a Persian-immigrant father who buys a gun to protect his shop and a Hispanic locksmith and his young daughter who is afraid of bullets.
Editor's Note
A stellar cast collides haphazardly in this insightfully written roundelay of racism, rage, and redemption which takes place over the course of one day in LA and involves a circus of cops, robbers, and civilians. A detective (Don Cheadle) with a heroin addict mother and criminal brother investigates the shooting of a black cop by a white one. Two hoodlums (Larenz Tate and Ludacris) jack the car of the District Attorney (Brendon Fraser) and his angry, racist wife (Sandra Bullock). Terrence Howard and Thandie Newton play an upper-class African American couple harassed by a racist cop (Matt Dillon). And the chaos continues, with other roles played by Tony Danza, Michael Pena, and Jennifer Esposito. A propulsive Mark Isham score keeps the disparate narrative threads electrified from the get-go; when they finally connect, the results are explosive and beautiful. Everything is tied together with tight editing and artistic shots of car headlights cutting through dense morning smog. Writer-director Paul Haggis' (writer of MILLION DOLLAR BABY) Los Angeles is a world of alienated people struggling to connect across vast barriers of language, class, and culture; that they manage to do so is testament to their depth as characters more than some trite message of brotherly love. There are no easy answers, but this film is tough, intelligent, and gutsy enough to find some anyway; and for that it's a winner.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Director Commentary | | Interactive Menus | | Making-Of Featurette | | Scene Selection | | Trailers | | Full Screen Presentation | | Deleted Scenes | | DVD Introduction by Director Paul Haggis | | Subtitles: English, Spanish | | Crash Behind The Scenes | | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0 | | Commentary with Paul Haggis, Don Cheadle and Bobby Moresco |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Lions Gate |
| Release Date: 2/6/2007 |
| Running Time: 122 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2005 | | Catalog ID: 18342 | | UPC: 00031398183426 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Standard 1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Academy Awards (2005) |  | Paul Haggis, Winner, Best Film | | Paul Haggis, Winner, Best Original Screenplay | | Robert Moresco, Winner, Best Original Screenplay |
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| | Professional Reviews | New York Times
"Mr. Haggis's evident sincerity and intelligence are reflected in the conviction of the cast..." 05/06/2005 p.E30Rolling Stone
"The acting is dynamite, notably by Dillon and Newton....The film is a knockout." 05/19/2005 p.85 Entertainment Weekly
"The stunning, must-see drama CRASH is proof that words have not lost the ability to shock in our anesthetized society." 05/13/2005 p.65 USA Today
"The dialogue and scenarios are sometimes inspired....[With] intricate construction and intelligent, if melancholy, exploration of race and class warfare." 05/06/2005 p.8E Uncut
"As the interweaving plotlines throw unsympathetic characters together...the script makes many brave, original points about cultural clichés." 09/01/2005 p.142 Uncut
Ranked #15 in Uncut's Best Films Of 2005 -- "Haggis tackles this thorny subject matter with courage, wit and insight, unafraid to ask the tough questions." 01/01/2006 p.82-83 Entertainment Weekly
Included in Entertainment Weekly's Top Ten Films Of The Year -- "Paul Haggis has found an inspired metaphor with which to explore a modern-day L.A. snarl of race, class, and culture." 12/30/2005 p.120 Rolling Stone
Ranked #11 in Rolling Stone's "Top 25 DVDs Of 2005' -- "[T]he rage sticks, as do the emotions underlying it." 12/01/2005 p.98 Ultimate DVD
5 stars out of 5 -- "A superb interlinking ensemble drama..." 09/01/2006 p.212 FilmCritic.com 10 of 10
Superbly crafted and visually stunning from start to finish, Haggis's follow-up to Million Dollar Baby is on par with similarly structured ensemble stories like Robert Altman's Short Cuts, and Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia. All of the performances in Crash are first rate; to single out one would be an injustice to the others. Even those with the smallest roles generate a large impact. - David Levine
James Berardinelli's ReelViews 9 of 10
The best ensemble films are the ones in which the characters are given an opportunity to breathe (Magnolia, Short Cuts, and Nashville come to mind). With Crash, 105 minutes is barely enough time to let the numerous participants begin to inhale. The movie runs for long enough to allow Haggis to present the story, but we're left wanting a little more - a few extra scenes and an added conversation or two (especially between Newton's character and her husband, played by Terrence Dashon Howard). But I suppose it's always best to leave an audience hungry, rather than feeling overstuffed. - James Berardinelli
San Francisco Chronicle 9 of 10
"Crash," an ensemble drama about race relations in Los Angeles, has smart writing and taut situations. Writer-director Paul Haggis, who adapted "Million Dollar Baby" for the screen, puts characters into illuminating conflict and consistently devises turns of plot that are inventive and yet, in the best way, seem inevitable. Without doubt, it's a skillful effort, and it's also infused with passion. It's a committed piece of work. - Mick Lasalle
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