10 Overly Pretentious Movies We Should've Walked Out Of

8. Crash

Paul Haggis first came into the Hollywood spotlight after being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Million Dollar Baby, a movie which could be said to presage his aspirations for pretentious noteworthiness. Taking on the role of director and working from his own script, the multi-award winning Crash certainly fits the bill. Featuring an ensemble cast of interweaving characters, Crash's pretensions of being a deep and meaningful portrayal of racism in present day Los Angeles were clear from the start. Described as a "passion piece" by Haggis, he somehow manages to cram in every possible cliche under the sun - Crash features a procession of one-dimensional characters all of whom exist primarily to crudely hammer home the "racism is bad!" message. Crash represents Oscar-baiting movie making at its most obvious, and sure enough the Academy lavished the film with awards across the board - after all, this is precisely the kind of self-congratulatory material that Hollywood loves to praise as a mark of its liberal aspirations. Far from offering a richly textured portrait of the vibrant multi-ethnic mix of L.A. life, all Haggis offers is simplistic avatars lacking in subtlety and depth.