No sooner had Million Dollar Baby put Paul Haggis on the A-List of screenwriters than he was exploiting his newfound status to have a bash at directing. The result is the "outstanding" ensemble drama Crash, featuring Matt Dillon, Don Cheadle and Sandra Bullock among a group of angst-ridden Angelinos who unwittingly affect each other's lives. It earned wide acclaim and, thanks to word-of-mouth, went on to become a modest box office hit.
Collision Course
After a very grateful introduction by Haggis, this DVD offers a small but thoughtful selection of extras. A behind-the-scenes featurette avoids all the usual waffle about casting and superfluous explanations of plot to talk about the social issues raised by the film. Co-writer Bobby Moresco is among the interviewees, explaining why the honest portrayal of characters excluded politically correct dialogue. "We just didn't care what it sounded like and we knew it was ugly," he says, "We just didn't allow ourselves to be put off." Of course the actors lend their point of view as well, like Don Cheadle who says that it's fine to laugh at those racist quips as long you examine why it is that you're laughing.
The Fast Lane
Cheadle joins Moresco and Haggis for a mellow but engaging commentary. "These characters just came to me in the middle of night," explains the director, but there's a little more to it than that. He reveals that ten years previously he was the victim of a carjacking and the memory still haunts his sleep. It was Moreseco who helped him to make sense of all the notes he scribbled in the wee hours of the morning and the first draft of the script was written in two weeks. Production lasted just 36 days.
Later on, the trio offer their philosophies of filmmaking with a great emphasis on telling "the truth" especially when dealing with humorous moments. On top of that, there are notes on character development, casting, music and editing.
Rounding off the extras is Kansascali's moody If I... music video. No doubt it's a slim package, but this DVD is truly rare in confronting difficult issues head-on.
EXTRA FEATURES
