Crash (1996)

Crash Officially Sets New Record for Can of Worms.

I know what you’re thinking –  No, this is not 2004’s Crash with Matt Dillon.  I don’t blame you though, I initially thought the same thing.  This is 1996’s Crash, starring everyone’s favorite Blacklister, James Spader - a psychological thriller, written and directed by David Cronenberg.  So for a moment, forget everything you were just thinking about discrimination and reparation, and tune your brain in for something very much the opposite – a disconcerting sexual fetish.  

James Ballard (James Spader) and his wife Catherine (Deborah Kara Unger) are losing interest in their sex life.  They are in an open marriage and frequently discuss their separate sexual encounters with one another.  After a disastrous head on car collision, James finds himself staring straight into the eyes of the passenger from the opposing wreckage, Dr. Helen Remington (Holly Hunter).  Over their curative healing process, the two are confused by the sexual arousement brought on from the accident and begin an extramarital affair.  To learn more about their new erotic fixation, the pair attend a cult meeting and are introduced to Vaughan (Elias Koteas), a man who presents automotive performance pieces by reenacting famous motor vehicle fatalities.  With the help of Vaughan and his groupies, James delves into a world of vehicle paraphilia with the hopes of revitalizing his intimate relationship with his wife.  

Critic’s reviews of Crash range all over the place.  Clearly this is a controversial movie due to the explicit sex scenes which are all prompted from violent situations.  I was not negatively provoked by the nature of this movie – I’ve seen way more messed up shit than people getting it on.  With the combination of David Cronenberg’s direction and the subject matter of sexual fetishes, the end product of this film was exactly what I was expecting.  I mean, who would have thought that a movie about fetishes would depict a lot of sexual acts… lots and lots and lots of sexual acts.  Isn’t that a given?  In fact, every character in this movie, has sex with every character in this movie - the combinations are just endless.  

The main distressing thing to me about Crash, was the lack of emotion the characters had for each other.  The characters were obviously less interested in each other, and more interetested in their “auto” erotic props.  Their actions came off cold and distant - even when participating in the utmost intimate acts - which seems very characteristic of Cronenberg films.  If you are not a Cronenberg fan this movie may not strike your fancy.

As previously mentioned, Crash gave a “first timer” to the Can of Worms’ list.  Of all the movies I have watched.. and all the naked girls I have seen.. and all the tit after tit after flopping naked tits that have been shoved down my throat,  Crash is the first movie I have watched on this list, that shows two men having intercourse.  And now I supposed I’ll have to watch 45 more movies to see it happen again.  

So thumbs up David Cronenberg - you have apparently done the impossible and proven that all humans, male or female, can be viewed equally as sexual objects.  And now I will never quite look at James Spader the same way again!

#25 - Crash (1996).  You can digitally rent Crash on Google Play, or watch the DVD via Amazon DVD or Netflix DVD.