Crash (1996 film)

Crash
Crash
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	David Cronenberg
Screenplay by	David Cronenberg
Based on	Crash; by J. G. Ballard
Produced by	David Cronenberg
Starring	James Spader; Holly Hunter; Elias Koteas; Deborah Kara Unger; Rosanna Arquette;
Cinematography	Peter Suschitzky
Edited by	Ronald Sanders
Music by	Howard Shore
Production; companies	Alliance Communications; The Movie Network; Telefilm Canada; Recorded Picture Company (uncredited);
Distributed by	Alliance Communications
Release dates	May 17, 1996 (Cannes); October 4, 1996 (Canada);
Running time	100 minutes
Country	Canada;
Language	English
Box office	$23.2 million

Crash is a 1996 Canadian drama film written, produced and directed by David Cronenberg, based on J. G. Ballard's 1973 novel of the same name. Starring James Spader, Deborah Kara Unger, Elias Koteas, Holly Hunter and Rosanna Arquette, it follows a film producer who, after surviving a car crash, becomes involved with a group of symphorophiliacs who are aroused by car crashes and tries to rekindle his sexual relationship with his wife.

The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it received the Special Jury Prize, a unique award that is distinct from the Jury Prize as it is not given annually, but only at the request of the official jury (for example, the previous year, both a Jury Prize and a Special Jury Prize were awarded). When then-jury president Francis Ford Coppola announced the award "for originality, for daring and for audacity", he stated that it had been a controversial choice and that certain jury members "did abstain very passionately".^[5] It continued to receive various accolades, including six Genie Awards.

The film's initial release was met with intense controversy and opened to highly divergent reactions from critics; some praised the film for its daring premise and originality, others aimed criticism for having such a strange premise filled with graphic violence. It has since developed a cult following.

^ ^a ^b "Crash (1996)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
^ "Crash (18)". British Board of Film Classification. March 18, 1997. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
^ Dick, Leslie (June 1997). "Crash". Sight & Sound. p. 48.
^ "Crash (1996)". JPBox-Office. Archived from the original on February 16, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
^ Maslin, Janet (May 21, 1996). "'Secrets and Lies' Wins the Top Prize at Cannes". The New York Times. p. C-11. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.

[bfi-1] "Crash (1996)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved May 6, 2023.

[2] "Crash (18)". British Board of Film Classification. March 18, 1997. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2013.

[3] Dick, Leslie (June 1997). "Crash". Sight & Sound. p. 48.

[4] "Crash (1996)". JPBox-Office. Archived from the original on February 16, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2018.

[5] Maslin, Janet (May 21, 1996). "'Secrets and Lies' Wins the Top Prize at Cannes". The New York Times. p. C-11. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.

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