Crash

Too schematic and artsy, too eager to sell its message, this is nonetheless a well-made film on an essential American subject, race and racism in the stirred-up melting pot of L.A. I had some of the same problems with Paul Haggis’ directorial debut that I had with his screenplay for Million Dollar Baby -- too overt, too scripted. But he attracted an undeniably excellent cast -- Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, and all the rest. And while the motif of interlocking City of Angels stories is very familiar -- from Short Cuts, Grand Canyon, Magnolia, and even What’s Cooking? -- it is neatly handled here, too neatly in fact. Such a big theme needs more real world messiness. This film may want to leave audiences arguing, but does so not so much from genuine ambiguity as from contradictory self-assertion. So the racist cop is also a father-loving hero, etc. etc. And the film mistakenly tries to go for elegance rather than grittiness, with its swooping crane and tracking shots, and its hypnotic, soaring music. So in the end, it’s a highly watchable movie, but not as smart as it wishes to be. (2005, dvd, n.) *7-* (MC-69, RT-77.)