“In L.A., nobody touches you. We're always behind this metal and glass. It's the sense of touch. I think we miss that touch so much that we crash into each other just so we can feel something." –Detective
Graham
Crash (2004) is a movie directed by Paul Haggis, starring Sandra Bullock, Brendan Frazier, and many others. It explores the impact one person’s perceptions and preconceptions can have on others. As you watch the movie, think about whether or not this movie is an accurate portrayal of life in
America today.
Audience: Assume that your readers have seen this movie (so they don’t need much summary to understand you- a few sentences at most). Use specific examples from the movie to support your claims. DO NOT SUMMARIZE THE ENTIRE FILM. Just give us the most important points about the communities or characters that you wish to discuss.
For this paper, you have two options.
Option One:
Crash contains several examples of "profiling." Write an essay in which you show how profiling is a central problem in Crash. Give examples from the film and be sure to include groups other than
African Americans in your choices. Conclude your essay with suggestions about how to reduce or lessen the problems associated with profiling.
Option Two:
Write a summary of one of the story lines woven through Crash. For the character that you choose, describe whether they have learned anything through the experiences shown in the film. Have they learned not to be prejudiced?
Option Three:
In a review of Crash, Roger Ebert says, “One thing that happens, again and again, is that peoples' assumptions prevent them from seeing the actual person standing before them”
(rogerebert.com). Choose one scene, summarize the scene, and point out the specific assumptions that prevent one character from “seeing” another character as an “actual person standing before him.”
Regardless of the option that you choose, I will be evaluating your ability to:
 Demonstrate accurate comprehension of a written assignment.
 Complete various stages of the writing process, such as prewriting, drafting, and revising.
 Produce a multi-page essay incorporating or analyzing text (in this case Crash)
 Produce a thesis-driven essay with paragraphs, including an introduction, body and conclusion.
 Compose an essay with no pattern of verb errors or sentence-boundary issues
A thesis statement:

 tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion. is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
 directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself.

 is usually a single sentence somewhere in your first paragraph that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.
Your assignment asks you to take a position or develop a claim about a subject, and you need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement near the beginning of your draft.
Cast:
Don Cheadle/Graham
Jennifer Esposito/Ria (Graham’s partner)
Brendan Fraser/Rick (DA)
Sandra Bullock/Jean
William Fichtner/Flanagan (DA’s assistant)
Chris “Ludacris” Bridges/Anthony
Larenz Tate/Peter
Terrance Howard/Cameron
Thandie Newton/Christine (Cameron’s wife)
Matt Dillon/Officer John Ryan
Ryan Phillippe/Officer Tommy Hansen
Michael Pena/Daniel (locksmith)
Shaun Toub/Farhad (store owner)
Assignment Specifics:
 Title your assignment
 Times New Roman, 12 point font
 Double-spaced
 Essay must have a clear, coherant thesis that drives the content of your essay
 Essay must have a clear introduction, body, and conclusion
 Length: at least 500 words