CDI wrote:
Don't wanna completely hijack this thread but...
There are the obvious problems with Crash. Overdetermined characters, ridiculous coincidences/serendipity. Does every debased character have to be redeemed and every good character corrupted? What a stupid formula. So everyone's equally capable of good and evil. Does that tell me anything?
I agree about the overdetermined characters. Overdetermination and coincidence equals dumbed-down drama in most cases and it is a problem in Crash too. My feelings about Crash are quite conflicted actually, and for this reason I give it credit for what it is: a film that inspires a discourse on racism. I admire that because I think it is an issue that is ignored.
CDI wrote:
To me, the bigger problem is that it looks at racism as largely an individual problem, when it's just as much (if not more) societal and institutional. It's the ultimate can't we all just get along movie. It seems to be saying that if people stopped spouting racist vitriol at every social interaction, racism would disappear, when in fact racism is just as much a systemic problem, with schools and media etc. These things are not completely separate, but arguing that it's largely an individual and mental problem (we just need to stop stereotyping) will not solve it. It's about questioning stereotypical assumptions and seeing how they manifest in institutions.
I think at this point a lot of people don't have out and out racist views in this country, but racism still persists, and for a lot of people that's confounding, as evidenced by debates on affirmative action or reparations for slavery. I don't think Crash even conceives of this. And from my experience, it's not that people get in car accidents and spout racism, but the more the subtle assumptions and interactions. I think Crash does a disservice by showing racism as some big conflagration and not something small and somewhat insidious. MTV has a show on now, Rob and Big, where the black character doesn't have a name, but a physical description. He's called Big Black. I don't think it's a big deal, but it's somewhat ridiculous. (I'm thinking of Chris Rock's monologue at the Oscars about black films being solely locations Soulplane, Barbershop...)
And in terms of Crash, why is the latin character the only pure one? Why does he not have a fall or experience redemption like all the others? Also, Matt Damon's character gets redeemed, but Thandie Newton's doesn't.
Anyway, back to my original reason for posting earlier in the thread, if anyone can tell me the interiority or stakes they felt for marie antoinette's character, I'd be interested to hear it.
Lots of important points here. This past week we had "Kramer" flying into a rage colored with racial epithetes and worse. We actually don't see this much in the United States these days (a public figure shouting racist vitriol and so on.) This is the individual variety of racism: when someone feels threatened and they jump at the first chance to point out differences. e.g. different shades of skin color and cultural differences etc.
The bigger racism problem, I agree, is institutional. Racism is no longer about shouting vitriol (although it is still part of it). Since racism is more of an institutional problem it bares its ugly face in institutional settings: The resegregation of public schools, getting loans at the bank, the prison system, juvenal detention system and so on.. and also cultural and religious institutions. (marriage comes to mind) I think these are some of the themes that filmmakers should pick up and I agree that the filmmakers for Crash fell into the old school views on racism. We are living in a different time and racism is still with us, but as a culture, I think we are losing sight of what an anti-racist discourse might look like...The "can't we all just get along" kinds of stories just don't pose the kinds of questions that need to be posed in 2007.
...anyway, I think this is a good discussion to have. I still haven't seen Sofia's new movie and I have sworn off going to see films for a while so that I can focus on finishing some short films of my own..
Racism is a tough theme because it is a difficult process to map. I have a story on my pallette at the moment that deals with it quite a bit actually.
Steve