I’ve given up on the Academy– or on democracy, rather. With the exception of the awards for best lead and supporting actors and actresses, I was really disappointed all around.
Crash was not an exceptional movie. If the Academy wants to make penance for the awards American History X didn’t win, it shouldn’t go about that by giving undeserved awards to lesser films.
And, I’m sorry, but how in god’s name did Ang Lee win Best Director? I think, perhaps, the Academy voters were confused, and thought “best director” meant the same thing as “director who chose the most controversial subject matter.” There was nothing supberb and nothing sublime– hell, nothing even noteworthy about Ang Lee’s direction of Brokeback Mountain. ANY studio, B-movie director could have done an equally mediocre job with the same script and supporting cast and crew.
i can’t even give words to my frustration. i don’t know why i take the stupid awards so seriously.
I was rooting for “Good Night and Good luck” for best original screenplay and best director personaly, course, I didn’t see the Constant Gardner so its possible I just don’t know any better. At any rate, I have been a fan of George Clooney’s direction styles since “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” ( I think thats what it was called…)and I think he should have been recognized. Otherwise, I really don’t have any thoughts on the whole thing because I missed most of the awards… but from what I did see, John Stewart is still the man.
well i’m glad you have your opinions, but i thought crash was excellent. I watched it alone one night when amber was gone, and was just DRAINED emotionally at the end. Then, when amber returned, we watched it again and i FREAKING CRIED. I can’t think of many movies that made me feel the way i did when the cop was saving the lady, or when the handy man thinks his daughter was shot by the store owner. I don’t know, i don’t think i’m following the buzz crowd here because when i saw the movie i actually hand’t heard about it (not even once, which i find strange), but then again to each his own.
I agree, Jade– to each his (or her!) own. But let me explain where I’m coming from with my criticism of Crash.
Like you, when I left the theatre after seeing Crash, I was very emotionally drained. I’ll admit it– I cry during movies, and I cried a lot during Crash. And yeah– when I walked out of the theatres, I thought “wow, what an awesome film. This is one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time.”
And then I woke up the next morning and thought “gee, what was that movie about again?” Well, not those exact thoughts, but something along those lines. Unfortunately, what I now remember of the movie is only how emotionally draining it was– how heavy handed the script was. There was nothing subtle about the script. Nothing left unsaid. It was all about the raw emotionally impact of bigotry and discrimination– whether from a white majority or from other minority groups.
Or, look at it this way: it’s a movie written by white people and made by white people about the tragedies and hardships of being a minority group in America. Is it really any surprise, then, that the message of film starts to get blurred and eventually lost in the tumult of race-motivated hate and drama? One of the strengths of a movie like American History X is that, yeah, it’s a film about racism made my white guys, but it’s about white guys being racist toward African Americans, not a film by white guys about what it’s like to be African American and be discriminated against.
The film tried to take on too much, and in the end, accomplished too little, aside from emotionally impacting the viewer. If an emotional impact helps drive home the message of a movie, I’m all for it– but I’m afraid that the emotional impact was all there was to Crash.
Crash certainly isn’t the first film to address the problems of racism in America today, nor do I think it one of the best.
see waht it did for me, was it made me think of my own racial thoughts and emotions. While it was draining, and dramatic, it also in my opinion was thought provoking, and it provoked thought due to emotional response. THAT is what i look for in a movie. Perhaps it isn’t the conventional critique of a movie, but it’s what i like. That is why i’ll say (and perhaps, im’ not sure of your opinion but i’m willing to hear it) that the first matrix was an excellent movie, and that is why the preceding movies in the series were a flop.
I guess i watch movies to try and place myself in someone else’s situation, and i feel this movie is what did that for me. I try to fathom what it must be like to be in the situations these folks are in, and it blows my mind. Would i do the same thing? Would i have the same emotions?! I end up sprialing in an emotional/philosophical debate with myself that somehow always ends up in me questioning existance and life, but we won’t get into that 😉
What i ask is, what do you look for in a movie Mark? Is it the thought iof knowing that you saw a movie that conveys a genuine story (this is referring to your comment about white guys making a movie about being a minority)? Are you looking for a novel on film? Is it that you didn’t like the film because it provoked no thought? did you think that maybe it was just too emotional and those intense feelings are what left you feeling thoughtless about it? I just would like a more lenghty (hehe, asking for trouble here) synopsis on Crash by you, if you wouldn’t mind 😀