Crash (1996)

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.

Director:

David Cronenberg

Writers:

J.G. Ballard (novel), David Cronenberg

Stars:

James Spader, Holly Hunter, Elias Koteas

8 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited 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

Storyline

Since a road accident left him with serious facial and bodily scarring, a former TV scientist has become obsessed by the marriage of motor-car technology with what he sees as the raw sexuality of car-crash victims. The scientist, along with a crash victim he has recently befriended, sets about performing a series of sexual acts in a variety of motor vehicles, either with other crash victims or with prostitutes whom they contort into the shape of trapped corpses. Ultimately, the scientist craves a suicidal union of blood, semen, and engine coolant, a union with which he becomes dangerously obsessed.

---

Plot Keywords:

car crash | accident victim | sexuality | erotic thriller | bisexuality | 

---

Taglines:

Love in the dying moments of the twentieth century.

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated NC-17 for numerous explicit sex scenes

Details

Country:

Canada UK

Language:

English Swedish

Release Date:

21 March 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Crash: Extraños placeres

Filming Locations:

Graydon Hall Drive, North York, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$738,779, 23 March 1997, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,038,450

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alliance Communications Corporation, Recorded Picture Company (RPC), The Movie Network (TMN)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min 90 min (R-rated)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the United Kingdom, The Daily Mail newspaper led the calls for the film to be banned with a front page headline reading, "Ban This Car Crash Sex Film." To cover themselves against possible prosecution, the BBFC consulted a QC to determine whether the film contravened the Obscene Publications Act, a psychologist to see if it could potentially incite copycat behavior, and a group of disabled people to see if the character played by Rosanna Arquette would be considered offensive to them. After all three consultations proved to be successful, the BBFC were able to pass the full unrated version completely uncut.

---

Goofs

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.

---

Alternate Versions

The Australian and Italian version removes original title sequence with the film's title and credits set in metallic type, and replaces it with plain white titles on a black background.

---

Connections

Featured in 100 Greatest Sexy Moments (2003)

User Reviews

A daring film that didn't quite work

"Crash" had a lot of potential. I feel like I can criticize it harshly because I am a Cronenberg fan and this was nowhere close to his best work. The themes (sexual "deviance," violence, obsession) that Cronenberg was exploring are very relevant to today's post-modern society. However, this film didn't get the message across. Supposedly the book by James Ballard deals more with our obsession with fame and celebrities; that was not dealt with in the film and it should have been. It would have resulted in a more coherent piece of art. As you watch the movie, you feel like a kid watching late-night TV and stumbling upon something "dirty" that you know you aren't supposed to see. That's about it. As an adult, you know that there is supposed to be symbolism, an underlying metaphor or allegory, but the viewer is never really let in on the secret. Instead, we see a lot of strange sex scenes, car crashes and empty dialogue. I wanted to like this film, but it was boring, a little pretentious, and left me wanting more substance.

4 out of 10