Sociological Analysis Of The Movie Crash
Crash is a film unlike most other films. It takes a group of people, less than 15 main characters, and actually presents a somewhat realistic representation of race relationships. The movie Crash is chock full of sociological concepts, examining issues of race, social class, and gender, as well as many others. Crash is one of those movies that make us rethink even what we think we know about the world we live in. All of the ethnic groups are striving for one thing, to over come their fears as they crisscross in and out of other people’s lives.
Throughout this movie, we discover what the characters in this movie think about each other. The best example of this in the movie might be when Jean Cabot grips her purse when passing by Anthony …show more content…
(Ludacris) and Peter on the street. She believes black people to be a threat. Before this event happens, Anthony was talking to Peter about how white people are always scared of black people when instead black they should be scared of the white people, being the only town in that part of town. Another example would be our expectations of Arabs to be violent terrorists. Farhad is not even Arab. Technically, he is Persian, but what the shop owner expects from him, he eventually gets when Farhad "shoots" the little Hispanic girl. Farhad believes the Hispanic man is ripping him off so when his shop is looted, the Hispanic man is blamed although he had nothing to do with the destruction. The characters throughout this movie are always at conclusions about one another based on each others race alone. It is the world around them and how they were brought up that makes them jump to these conclusions. There are many social issues in the movie Crash, among them stereotyping, racial profiling, and the need to feel emotionally connected to someone. To start off with, stereotyping was perhaps the biggest social problem in the film. It was a huge theme shared by most of the characters in the film. Racial profiling came into view when two white cops stopped a black married couple only because their car was similar to the one that had been stolen from the rich Caucasian couple but whose plates did not match. The black woman inside the car claimed that the cop only stopped her because he believed that she was white and was performing a sexual act on the African American driver of the vehicle. The cop of course was just angered by the fact that his father had been denied (by a black social worker) of the insurance necessary to visit another doctor for his prostate problems. The last social problem that was touched upon by this film dealt with social and emotional contact. The characters in the film felt like they had to crash into people just so that they could feel something; anyone would do. I believe that all of the racism and prejudice occurring throughout the film had to do in part with how isolated everyone was from each other. The character that I believe made the most significant change throughout this movie is Anthony.
We first see him with Peter, walking through a predominantly white neighborhood and they cannot seem to find somewhere to eat or go because they are African American. This starts to annoy Anthony. Peter asks what is bothering him so much and Anthony goes on his rant about them being black and how they should be scared in the white neighborhood, not the other way around. Just as he is almost done, Jean and her husband start walking up. I believe Jean was looking for something in her purse and was getting cold so she grabbed onto her husband to get warm. Anthony, taking it the wrong way, uses this as a prime example to Peter. Soon after, Anthony and Peter steal the couples car and drive away. In a later scene, Anthony and Peter run over a Chinese man. Anthony wants to just drive away, thinking that no one will know. Peter convinces him to drop him off at a nearby hospital. From that scene we can see Anthony is starting to change a little. By the end of the movie, he comes across a big white van and steals it. He tries to sell it to a friend, but they soon find out that there are illegal Chinese immigrants in the back. His friend tries to buy the people and not the car instead. Anthony then takes the van and the people back to where they were and sets them
free.
The movie was a learning experience for me. Although I don’t view myself as being a racist, there are certain instances where I use stereotypes to classify certain individuals. From watching the production, I realize that stereotyping and committing a hate crime go hand in hand. One seems more extreme than the other but the same type of thinking is capable of committing either one. I don’t believe that racism will completely go away, but I do believe that we can educate for the future so maybe it will not be as dominant.
Nicholas Wisniewski
Throughout this movie, we discover what the characters in this movie think about each other. The best example of this in the movie might be when Jean Cabot grips her purse when passing by Anthony …show more content…
(Ludacris) and Peter on the street. She believes black people to be a threat. Before this event happens, Anthony was talking to Peter about how white people are always scared of black people when instead black they should be scared of the white people, being the only town in that part of town. Another example would be our expectations of Arabs to be violent terrorists. Farhad is not even Arab. Technically, he is Persian, but what the shop owner expects from him, he eventually gets when Farhad "shoots" the little Hispanic girl. Farhad believes the Hispanic man is ripping him off so when his shop is looted, the Hispanic man is blamed although he had nothing to do with the destruction. The characters throughout this movie are always at conclusions about one another based on each others race alone. It is the world around them and how they were brought up that makes them jump to these conclusions. There are many social issues in the movie Crash, among them stereotyping, racial profiling, and the need to feel emotionally connected to someone. To start off with, stereotyping was perhaps the biggest social problem in the film. It was a huge theme shared by most of the characters in the film. Racial profiling came into view when two white cops stopped a black married couple only because their car was similar to the one that had been stolen from the rich Caucasian couple but whose plates did not match. The black woman inside the car claimed that the cop only stopped her because he believed that she was white and was performing a sexual act on the African American driver of the vehicle. The cop of course was just angered by the fact that his father had been denied (by a black social worker) of the insurance necessary to visit another doctor for his prostate problems. The last social problem that was touched upon by this film dealt with social and emotional contact. The characters in the film felt like they had to crash into people just so that they could feel something; anyone would do. I believe that all of the racism and prejudice occurring throughout the film had to do in part with how isolated everyone was from each other. The character that I believe made the most significant change throughout this movie is Anthony.
We first see him with Peter, walking through a predominantly white neighborhood and they cannot seem to find somewhere to eat or go because they are African American. This starts to annoy Anthony. Peter asks what is bothering him so much and Anthony goes on his rant about them being black and how they should be scared in the white neighborhood, not the other way around. Just as he is almost done, Jean and her husband start walking up. I believe Jean was looking for something in her purse and was getting cold so she grabbed onto her husband to get warm. Anthony, taking it the wrong way, uses this as a prime example to Peter. Soon after, Anthony and Peter steal the couples car and drive away. In a later scene, Anthony and Peter run over a Chinese man. Anthony wants to just drive away, thinking that no one will know. Peter convinces him to drop him off at a nearby hospital. From that scene we can see Anthony is starting to change a little. By the end of the movie, he comes across a big white van and steals it. He tries to sell it to a friend, but they soon find out that there are illegal Chinese immigrants in the back. His friend tries to buy the people and not the car instead. Anthony then takes the van and the people back to where they were and sets them
free.
The movie was a learning experience for me. Although I don’t view myself as being a racist, there are certain instances where I use stereotypes to classify certain individuals. From watching the production, I realize that stereotyping and committing a hate crime go hand in hand. One seems more extreme than the other but the same type of thinking is capable of committing either one. I don’t believe that racism will completely go away, but I do believe that we can educate for the future so maybe it will not be as dominant.
Nicholas Wisniewski