Week 5 ITAP - Development of Ideas and Structure in Moving Image

Story Development- 3 Act Structure

For the purposes of this blog I am going to consider one of my favourite films, "Crash" (2004).

This is a film set in Los Angeles and explores the theory that we when the paths of different members of LA society meet, they in fact "collide" or "crash".   Peoples lives touch each other in dramatic and not subtle ways.  It also deals with the subject of racism and how all the racial groups in LA in fact stereotype each other.  Analyzing the film, I have tried to find the three main acts.

Act One

• The different characters are introduced through a series of events.  In each case the "equilibrium" of each character is disturbed by an event.
• Detective Waters finds a body and a piece of evidence which horrifies him.
• Persian shop owners is denied a gun on racial grounds but his daughter acquires one with ammunition.
• Local DA and wife are carjacked by 2 black youths (Peter and Anthony).  Fearing the house keys have also been stolen they hire hispanic locksmith, Daniel Ruiz.  He is later dismissed by wife who suspects he is a gang member.
• LAPD officers John Ryan and Tom Hansen stop black couple, Cameron and Cristine Thayer for an alleged driving offence.  Ryan conducts intimate body search of Christine to the disgust of his police partner.
• We find out that Ryan becomes main protagonist of film and we find out that he is a troubled soul caring for a sick father who may have prostrate cancer.  In order to obtain treatment for his father he crosses swords with black insurance worker who denies his request. She tells him that if his father had come she would have granted treatment.  
• Reflecting on how his racial abuse has prevented his father getting treatment, he starts on a path of change.

Act Two

The plots unfold.

• Blaming Daniel Ruiz for doing a bad job changing the lock to his shop after a robbery. Persian shopowner goes to Daniel's house and "shoots" Daniel's daughter by mistake.  It turns out, his daughter bought blank bullets for his gun.
• After and argument on the phone, DA's wife falls down stairs and is taken to hospital by her often berated and racially insulted housekeeper.
• Waters visits his mother to discuss his errant and missing brother. He promises to find him.

Act Three

We see how all the characters, including the main protagonist, Ryan arrive at a new equilibrium and the events which take them there.

• Christine suffers a horrific car crash. She is trapped and engulfed in flames.  The first officer on the scene is Ryan who without thinking for his life rescues Christine much to her amazement. Ryan has overcome his racism to save a black person's life. He has made amends for his earlier bad deed.
• After an attempted carjacking, Anthony and Peter separate.  Peter is picked up by officer Hansen and is offered a ride home.  Thinking Peter is about to pull a gun, Hansen shoots Peter and leaves his body by the roadside.
• Detective Waters arrives at crime scene (as in beginning of film) and recognises a "lucky charm" at the scene as belonging to his missing brother.
• Anthony returns to a white van he tried to steal earlier in the film and discovers the van full of Asian "slaves". He refuses money for them and takes them to Chinatown to be released.
• The black insurance worker has a rear end shunt  with another foreign driver. She exchanges racial insults with the other driver
• The cycle of abuse continues and film ends.