RATING:

Starring: Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, William Fichtner, Brendan Fraser, Terrence Dashon Howard, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillippe, Larenz Tate, and Nona Gaye. Written by: Douglas Adams, Karey Kirkpatrick. Directed by: Garth Jennings.

Rated: R for language, sexual content and some violence

If you don’t know the name Paul Haggis, quite yet you better learn it and fast.

Haggis could be the next big thing that movie-goers and film buffs have been yearning for.

Haggis has been a creative force behind some of the television’s more critically acclaimed and ground-breaking shows from “The Love Boat” to “thirtysomething”. Haggis is probably best known for creating the moderately successful crossing-borders cop show, “Due South”. But it wasn’t until the 1996 series “EZ Streets” that Haggis began to flex his directing muscles and show an audience what he was capable of. The series only lasted 9 episodes but for those who saw it, they still remember the name Paul Haggis.

Just last year, Paul Haggis garnered his first Academy Award nomination for his screenplay to “Million Dollar Baby” but lost. Some say he was robbed.

“Crash” marks the first time for Haggis to direct and write a major motion picture. The film covers multiple-angles in the day-in-the-life of some major players in Los Angeles. Each of the main players are influenced and have to deal with racism in our world. All the intertwining plots and multiple characters are very reminiscent of the kinds of films legendary filmmaker Robert Altman used to make. The film stars Don Cheadle as a LA detective, Matt Dillon as a racist cop, Brendan Fraser and Sandra Bullock as the district attorney and his wife. The film also stars Thandie Newton, Larenz Tate, Ryan Philippe, Jennifer Esposito, Ludacris and Keith David.

“Crash” is probably, hands down, the best ensemble drama since Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Magnolia” in 1999. The intricate plot, the evolution of characters, the all encompassing tension and the film’s perfect placement of music make this film a film buff’s dream come true. You have to see it to believe it.

Aside from the film’s amazing construction are the amazing lead performances from Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon and Thandie Newton. Then there are also incredible performances from supporting players like Larenz Tate and Ryan Philippe. But what was probably the most amazing about the supporting cast were the performances by Shaun Toub and Bahar Soomekh, who play Persian immigrants who watch their family store unravel as racial tension escalates. I was so blown away by their honest and forthcoming father-and-daughter character performances.

What I also loved about this film was how it challenges the audience to follow the storyline even if it’s probably not something you want to talk about. Racism is a touchy subject but Haggis handles the topic with intelligence, careful planning and brilliant execution. It is so easy to see how this film could have been a disaster but that is also part of its brilliance. In today’s world we need a film like this to speak to people and help us to better understand our cultural diversity.

“Crash” is the best film I have seen this year, thus far. So Says the Soothsayer.