Unlikely summer movie hit draws students, upscale adults, urban, women

[DeepModem Mom]

DUers who've seen this film, please comment --


CNN/Reuters/Hollywood Reporter:
The most unlikely hit of the summer
'Crash' made unorthodox strategy work
Friday, June 3, 2005

LOS ANGELES, California (Hollywood Reporter) -- "Crash," a film about race relations in Los Angeles with a cast including Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock and Matt Dillon, did not seem the obvious choice for an early summer success story.

But with the box office experiencing a slump this year, Lions Gate Films' pickup from the Toronto International Film Festival has become one of the season's few bright spots.

Its success can be credited to a bold release plan, an emotional marketing campaign and an aggressive screening program. For "Crash" has been able to do what few movies accomplish nowadays: It has attracted four very distinct demographic groups -- college students, upscale adult audiences, the urban market and females....

***

The other component to Lions Gate's marketing plans was a widespread screening program, targeting racial groups nationwide, both to get early feedback and also to spread the word about the film. Hegeman said Haggis, Cheadle and Dillon hosted screenings around the country to offer a "platform for people to talk." The film also received endorsements from such community leaders as Los Angeles Mayor-elect Antonio Villaraigosa, the Rev. Al Sharpton and NAACP leaders.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Movies/06/03/film.crash.reut/index.html

[slor]

1. Sound good! n/t

[alcibiades_mystery]

2. I saw Crash...thought it was a bit over-the-top

Don't get me wrong...it's a good movie and you should see it, but I'm guessing you'll find, as I did, that it lacks nuance. Each of the characters have to bash you ove the head with the "meaning" of their roles in the film. This leads to some extremely unlikely dialogue and plot twists that border on the insulting, if not downright stupid. Yes, I know, some of the interconnections are supposed to be unlikely (we're all connected yada yada yada), but it still gets a bit pedantic and tiresome.

Another criticism: the city of Los Angeles, strangely enough, does not really play a role in the film. It's usually only a great film that can make the setting a breathing character, and this one, despite its hyper-Angelino pretentions, does not manage to pull it off. In fact, I think a mediocre thriller like Collateral was much better at making Los Angeles a character in the film than Crash was, even though Crash is clearly trying to do so, while Collateral almost picked it up by default. Very disappointing on that score.

[DeepModem Mom]

3. Thanks, a_m! nt