"C.R.A.Z.Y." is a real gem. It's a wonderful, wonderful movie that totally took me by surprise. I expected something like "Dazed & Confused", something that gives you a nostalgic 70's feeling and shows some young people smoking pot while listening to Led Zeppelin. "C.R.A.Z.Y." is so much more than that. The people in it listen to Pink Floyd! Just kidding, this movie really is something special. As it's telling the story of the main characters it takes us through three different decades, a little like "Forrest Gump" does, showing how fashion and the whole lifestyle changed over the years. The main focus, however, is on a boy called Zach, his coming of age, his ambivalent relationship to his family and the trouble with him and his father accepting that Zach is gay. The story is told so realistically and with so much heart that you really fall in love with those characters, although we don't get to know too much about any of them, except for Zach and his parents. His brothers and the girl next door are always just there without any explanation why they are the way they are. That doesn't really matter, though. One of this movie's big advantages is that it never ever points out more than necessary.
Somehow director/co-author Jean-Marc Vallée knows how to make every scene special. He really gets to the core of his characters. The cast, of course, is awesome, too, without an exception. Both actors that play Zach, Zach's father and mother, his oldest brother... they all turn in great performances.
Some said that "C.R.A.Z.Y." is a little too long. I agree that it seems long and epic, but for once it didn't bother me at all. Not in the way that "Pirates Of The Caribbean 2" or "Spider-Man 2" or "The Matrix: Reloaded" or any damn action sequel of the past 5 years were much too long. Once I was lost in "C.R.A.Z.Y." I didn't want to leave its world anymore, so I'm glad the makers took their time. I even thought the movie ended a bit too quickly.
So, I can only say it again. This is a real gem. A real important movie and - just on a sidenote - maybe the one movie next to "Brokeback Mountain" that shows homosexuality as something completely normal, that's still very hard to deal with for everybody involved. "C.R.A.Z.Y." isn't just about someone coming to terms with his sexual orientation, though. It's mainly about family. About love, understanding and acceptance. It's probably the best coming of age movie I've ever seen.
