On David Cronenberg‘s birthday earlier this year, many were sharing their favorite films from the Canadian director, so I chimed in, naming his 1996 erotic drama Crash as his greatest work. The controversial J.G. Ballard adaptation follows a group of people who are consumed with their fetishes for car crashes. Quite divisive upon release, over twenty years later, a new video essay now makes the case that it’s one of Cronenberg’s best.
Created by our friend Scout Tafoya over at RogerEbert.com, the piece explores how the director captures our pre-occupation with technology and how it may destroy us, and how the film’s characters find dangerous ecstasy in their desires. To wrap up, Tafoya says the film marks the “strongest, freest, and most giving chapter” of Cronenberg’s career, a sentiment I’d certainly agree with.
If you haven’t seen the film yet, we’d encourage one to seek it out, then check out the video essay below and watch an interview with Cronenberg around the time of release here.