Crash is probably best known as being the most undeserved Best Picture Oscar winner in history. The preachy, melodramatic, farcical tone of Paul Haggis' film misrepresents the complexities and nature of racism, defining everything as clear cut and unbending, ignoring the ambiguity of prejudice in favour of a pretentious, self-righteous moral message. Everything in the movie is dialled up to 11, completely defying the art of subtlety, preferring to hit you over the head with a sledgehammer. The film thinks it has something clever and insightful to say through its ensemble cast and multiple storylines, but it ends up more like the horrid Babel than the masterfully delicate Magnolia. It really should have been called 'Racism for Dummies'. Despite saying all that, Crash is applauded in many circles, with much of its acclaim focused on the explosiveness of the piece. Many of the positives aimed at the film are exactly the same as the criticisms, showing how truly divisive the movie is. It has an over reliance in slow motion and the attempts at emotional manipulation is sometimes laughable, but the excellent acting and pure drama is what makes it enthralling to a whole load of people. And Academy voters.