SPRING SEMESTER 2009 311 GR 4 Galin Georgiev

SPRING SEMESTER 2009 311 GR. 4 Galin Georgiev Crash (motion picture) Review and Summary

Task 1. Write a Review. Discuss: - Genre and Setting - Characters - Topics - Ending 2. Write a Summary (60 – 80 words)

Sample Answers Topics n Racism n Cultural Conflicts n Corruption n Loneliness, Alienation and Frustration n Communication Breakdown n Intolerance n Hate n Compassion

Sample Answers Characters n Rick Cabot (Brendan Fraser) is the white District Attorney of Los Angeles who manipulates racial politics in order to further his career. n Jean Cabot (Sandra Bullock) is Rick's wife, whose racial prejudices escalate after the carjacking. At the end of the film, following an accident in her home, she realizes that the person who is the kindest and most helpful to her is María, her Hispanic maid, while her snobby friends are too busy with shallow pursuits to help her out. n Anthony (Ludacris) is an African American inner-city car thief who steals vehicles for a chop shop owner. n Peter Waters (Larenz Tate) is Anthony's friend and partner in crime. He is also Detective Waters' younger brother.

Sample Answers Characters n Graham Waters (Don Cheadle) is an African-American detective in the Los Angeles Police Department. He is disconnected from his poor family, which consists of his drugaddicted mother and criminal younger brother. n Ria (Jennifer Esposito) is a Latina detective, as well as Graham's partner and girlfriend. When a phone call from Graham's mother interrupts his sexual romp with Ria, she becomes upset with Graham for being disrespectful towards his mother and subsequently showing himself to be racially insensitive towards Hispanics. n Officer Tommy Hansen (Ryan Phillippe) is a Los Angeles police officer who, after observing his partner Officer John Ryan pull over Cameron Thayer and Christine Thayer and sexually molest Christine, requests a change of partner because of feelings of guilt over the incident.

Sample Answers Characters n Officer John Ryan (Matt Dillon) is a bigoted white police officer who physically molests Cameron's wife, Christine, under the pretense of searching for a weapon after pulling over their vehicle and accusing them of endangerment due to Christine performing fellatio on Cameron while he was driving. Meanwhile, Ryan is trying to get help for his father, who possibly suffers from prostate cancer but has been diagnosed with a bladder infection, despite the ineffectiveness of treatment. n Cameron Thayer (Terrence Howard) is a black television director. He witnesses Officer Ryan molesting his wife and later realises that the producers of his television show propagate racist stereotypes about black people. In an emotional moment, he fights off Anthony and Peter when they try to steal his car, takes away Anthony's gun, and argues fiercely with armed white police officers. Just when it is very likely that he will be shot to death, Hansen intervenes on his behalf and prevents any outbreak of violence.

Sample Answers Characters n Daniel Ruiz (Michael Peña) is a Mexican-American locksmith who faces discrimination from Jean and others because he looks like a gangbanger to them, when he is actually a devoted family man. After Anthony and Peter steal Jean and Rick's car, Daniel comes over and changes the locks on their home. Daniel seeks a safe environment for his young daughter, Lara, who had a bullet go through her window in their previous home. That is why he moved to a safer neighborhood and enrolled her in a private school. Near the beginning he gives Lara an invisible "cloak" that he says will protect her should someone try to shoot at her. Farhad shoots at Lara and Daniel but they escape unhurt, because the gun contains blanks chosen by Dorri earlier in the film. However Lara believes that this is due to the protective powers of the "cloak. “

Sample Answers Characters n Farhad (Shaun Toub) is a Persian store owner who is afraid for his safety. He is depicted as frustrated by the racial harassment he experiences in the United States (despite being an American citizen), as well as deterred by difficulties with speaking English. n Dorri (Bahar Soomekh) is Farhad's daughter, and is more acclimated than her father to American culture. She is constantly trying to calm her father down during his emotional outbursts. She is also an employee at the hospital; she escorts Graham and his mother to Peter's body after it is discovered in a field.

Sample Answers Genre: Social drama Setting: Los Angeles, nowadays Ending n Farhad (The Persian) thinks Daniel (The Mexican) looted his store, so he grabs his gun and goes to Daniel's house. He threatens to shoot Daniel and Daniel's daughter runs outside to protect him because she has the invisible cape. She jumps into Daniel's arms and Farhad shoots her. It turns out that the bullets were blanks and the family goes inside and Farhad is left to think what he did. Peter (Larenz Tate) and Anthony (Ludacris) try jacking Cameron's (Terrence Howard) truck. Peter is left behind as Cameron and Anthony speed off. They are cornered by police. Cameron is finally fed up with the prejudice he sees and steps outside and tries to get shot. Officer Hanson recognizes Cameron and orders the officers to put down their guns and forces Cameron back into the truck. Cameron drops Anthony off. Peter tries to get a lift later and Officer Hanson picks him up (off-duty).

Sample Answers Genre: Social drama Setting: Los Angeles, nowadays Ending n As they're driving, Peter notices the statue of St. Christopher that he carries along at starts to laugh. Thinking that Peter is laughing at him, Officer Hanson orders him out. As Peter goes to grab the statue, Hanson thinks it's a gun and shoots Peter. He dumps his body at the side of the road and burns the car. We end with the beginning, where Det. Waters investigates the crime scene. We find out that in fact Peter was his brother. Anthony ends up riding the bus but gets out when he sees the Chinaman's truck, keys still in the lock. When he takes it to the chop shop, they find out there's a bunch of Asian immigrants in the back. Georgie offers 500 apiece for the immigrants, and we cut away. When it returns, we see Anthony dropping the immigrants in Chinatown, and giving them some money.

Sample Answers Summary n Several stories interweave during two days in Los Angeles involving a collection of inter-related characters, a police detective with a drugged out mother and a thieving younger brother, two car thieves who are constantly theorizing on society and race, the white district attorney and his irritated and pampered wife, a racist white veteran cop (caring for a sick father at home) who disgusts his more idealistic younger partner, a successful Hollywood director and his wife who must deal with the racist cop, a Persian-immigrant father who buys a gun to protect his shop, a Hispanic locksmith and his young daughter who is afraid of bullets, and more.