Leonard Maltin's 151 Best Movies You've Never Seen - Maltin, Leonard [15]
19. CRUSH
(2002)
Directed by John McKay
Screenplay by John McKay
Actors:
ANDIE MACDOWELL
IMELDA STAUNTON
ANNA CHANCELLOR
KENNY DOUGHTY
BILL PATERSON
CAROLINE HOLDAWAY
Does a movie have to be 100 percent believable to work? It all depends. I can think of many instances where I’ve allowed myself to go along with a story and put credibility aside for the sake of entertainment. If I’m having a good time, and I like the characters enough, that doesn’t seem so much to ask.
I can’t pretend that Crush doesn’t demand a certain leap of faith, but I think this British comedy-drama (by first-time writer-director John McKay) has what it takes to win over an audience that’s looking for a bit of escape. Predictably enough, the film divided critics, some of whom surrendered to it while others found it absurd. (Some couldn’t—or wouldn’t—even accept Andie MacDowell in the leading role, even though it’s explained that she’s an American living in England.)
MacDowell has one of her all-time best roles in this story of three forty-ish women who enjoy a weekly tell-all session. Kate (MacDowell) is the headmistress at an exclusive prep school, Janine (Imelda Staunton) is a local police detective, and Molly (Anna Chancellor) is a much-married doctor. Their jobs require all three women to carry themselves with a certain authority, so their get-togethers, where they let their hair down and talk openly over drinks and cigarettes, are a tonic.
Then Kate falls into a passionate affair with a former student—now all of twenty-five years old. What seems like a fling at first turns serious, and instead of cheering her on, her friends actively disapprove. Moreover, they take it upon themselves to bring Kate to her senses—whatever the cost.
One reason some viewers don’t like this movie is that the tone changes completely, from lighthearted, barb-tongued comedy to dark, intense drama—but I think it works, largely because of the empathetic performances. We’re meant to root for MacDowell, and we do.
Please note that this movie bears no relation to the 1992 film of the same name with Marcia Gay Harden or the 1993 movie The Crush, which stars Cary Elwes and Alicia Silverstone.
20. DARK DAYS
(2000)
Directed by Marc Singer
The story behind some films is more interesting than the films themselves, but in the case of Dark Days it’s a tie as to which is more compelling. It’s also difficult to separate the two because Marc Singer’s journey is inextricably tied up with the film he made.
Dark Days is a documentary about people who live in abandoned railroad tunnels under the streets of Manhattan. The first question one must ask is, “How would anyone know of such a community?”
Having recently left England to live with a friend in Manhattan, Singer took an interest in the homeless people he saw every day on the street…but unlike most of us, he began to engage them in conversation. With no career path of his own, he spent more and more time with homeless men. Eventually, one of them showed him the secret entrance to their underground shelter.
Here he discovered an amazing environment, populated by people who had fallen through the cracks of society. Some left loved ones behind; others admit that they ruined their own lives through drugs. They seemed content underground, by and large, having fashioned their own defined spaces using materials they scavenged off the street. They quickly educated Singer about the rules of survival, aboveground and below: where to find the best discarded food, how to trap rats, how to protect your possessions, etc. Some of them were downright ingenious in making something out of nothing.
Singer had never made a movie before—hadn’t even thought about it—but once he entered this