Crash (1996)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

David Cronenberg

Writers:

J.G. Ballard (novel)
David Cronenberg (written by)

Release Date:

21 March 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The most controversial film you will ever see.

Plot:

After getting into a serious car accident, a TV director discovers an underground sub-culture of scarred, omnisexual car-crash victims who use car accidents and the raw sexual energy they produce to try to rejuvenate his sex life with his wife.

Plot Keywords:

Car | Sex | Car Accident | Car Crash | Infidelity

Awards:

8 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

James Spader	...	James Ballard
Holly Hunter	...	Helen Remington
Elias Koteas	...	Vaughan
Deborah Kara Unger	...	Catherine Ballard
Rosanna Arquette	...	Gabrielle
Peter MacNeill	...	Colin Seagrave
Yolande Julian	...	Airport Hooker
Cheryl Swarts	...	Vera Seagrave
Judah Katz	...	Salesman
Nicky Guadagni	...	Tattooist
Ronn Sarosiak	...	A.D.
Boyd Banks	...	Grip
Markus Parilo	...	Man in Hanger
Alice Poon	...	Camera Girl
John Stoneham Jr.	...	Trask

MPAA:

Rated NC-17 for numerous explicit sex scenes.; Rated R for accident gore, some graphic language and aberrant sexual content. (edited version)

Runtime:

100 min | 90 min (R-rated version)

Country:

Canada | UK

Language:

English | Swedish

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby | SDDS

Certification:

USA:NC-17 (certificate #34312) | Iceland:16 | Hungary:18 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:R | Canada:R | Chile:18 | Finland:K-15 (VET id: 99934) | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM18 | Japan:R-18 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/18 | South Korea:(Banned) (original rating) | South Korea:18 (cut) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (video rating) (cut)

Filming Locations:

North York, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Alliance Communications Corporation

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [David Cronenberg]The voice of the man watching/operating the car yard towards the end of the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: After Vaughan repeatedly crashes the left front bumper of his Lincoln into a junker James Ballard is sitting in, causing major damage to the bumper and the lights, Vaughan is soon shown driving on the highway with no damage to the bumper and both left lights operational.

Quotes:

James Ballard: You should've gone to the funeral.
Catherine Ballard: I wish I had. They bury the dead so quickly. They should leave them lying around for months.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "The Adam and Joe Show: (#2.4)" (1997)

Freaky and worthwhile even if it sickens you

James Spader seems to prefer roles in which his sexuality is dark or deviant (e.g. Secretary, a fine film). He and the gorgeous Deborah Kay Unger are a couple, although not monogamous. Through certain accidents they stumble across a cell of car crash fetishists. More stuff happens: I shouldn't get into it. This movie would have been more disturbing if it didn't have such a sense of humor. There is a nasty scene in which Spader is about to rub his willie against a long puckered vagina-like scar on the luscious Roseanna Arquette's leg. She wears an outfit that is a combination of leather bondage gear and handicapped leg braces. A truly weird flick, with good sex scenes but not for a first date unless the girl likes SM and looks at copies of that full-color British magazine featuring motorcycle racing showing the racers proudly displaying their often horrid scars and injuries. Yikes. Well, if you liked Secretary, and if you liked Cronenberg's other flicks and his orifice obsession and general grotesqueness, you'll like this. It has a similar tone vis-a-vis humor as Secretary and some of Videodrome. The title credits are exemplary and some of the shots are marvelous. The scene wherein the camera lovingly rolls over Spader's leg brace after his accident is stunning. I am happy to say that there is no amputation in this flick at least. That would have been too much.