Maybe tomorrow I'll find my way

The other night my old man and I were left event-less since the beer festival was sold out in Toronto. There was no music in town that looked any good and we didn't want to go to that Taste of the Danforth thing cuz it was too busy. And after several attempts, I finally found a movie that my dad didn't belittle or veto.

That movie was Crash.

The movie involves the stories of a group of very different people whose lives interweave without them really knowing it. This type of movie could've had a plot that lead in any direction, but the connections between the characters lead to a very tight plotline that takes place over two short days in Los Angeles.


The most prevalent theme in the story was the undercurrent of racism infiltrating every character's life in one way or another. This point was made brutally clear with the writing and directing of the film. Couple that with great acting performances (including Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Sandra Bullock, Brendan Fraser, Ryan Phillipe, and Ludacris) and you get a movie that really makes you think outside of your shiny little bubble of ignorance.

I'd go into detail with all of the races and skin colours examined, but think of every general classification in the global community, and that pretty much covers it. Asian, Black, White, Middle Eastern, South/Central American. Really cut and dried right? Well not really...

And I think that's the point the movie really tries to make. It puts a new spin on the old "fear what you don't understand" cliche, and does a damn god job of it. It also looks at the way we generalize people into one class or another, and how it always seems to be someone else's fault when things go wrong.

For me personally it wasn't so much a new thing to consider, but it did serve as a reminder of how much easier life can be if people took the time to understand one another. I come from a town where there's probably 100 "white" people to every "coloured person" in a crowd (and mullets are an unpleasantly common sight). We don't have to deal with the problems that most people do in places where many different people are interacting. And, I can say with pride, I do come from a country that is not merely tolerant of diversity, but incorporates it into every aspect of our society.

However, I know there are times that everyone thinks racist or prejudice thoughts. I caught myself doing that very thing as I drove aimlessly in Scarborough searching for a little shop today. "These fucking immigrants can't drive!"

Granted, they were terrible drivers, but who was I to say why? Maybe they were having a shitty day and couldn't focus. Maybe they just broke up with their boy/girlfriend. Or maybe they just ate a bad burrito and they were racing to the nearest shitter. Who knows?

At least Canada is a place where most people don't act upon such stupid thoughts. We don't pull guns on people based on their colour of skin, vandalize their homes because they support a certain religion, or assume that the guy with the shabby clothes isn't worth the air he's breathing.

And sooner or later, good people will take over the roles once held by the racist and ignorant. In time I'm convinced that our society will overcome alot of the bullshit that plagues us today. It's just a shame that you and I won't be alive to see that day.

I urge you to go and see this movie if you can; it'll wake you up to alot of things you wish weren't true in the world.

Oh, and finishing off the flick with Maybe Tomorrow by Stereophonics = Mint.