Film Reviews

Crazy/ Beautiful

• Rating:
• Director:
• Starring: Bruce Davison
• Details: US / 100 mins / (15PG)

Predictable role reversal romantic drama in which Dunst plays Nicole, the spoilt daughter of a Democratic Senator (Davison) who has no sense of responsibility or self-esteem. One of her schoolmates is Carlos (Hernandez) is a poor but hyper intelligent Hispanic young man, who dreams of getting into the naval academy and dragging his family out of the LA ghetto. Needless to say, the pair fall in love and their lives are changed forever. While it pertains to offer both a new spin on mixed race relationships (see Stockwell's confused fumblings when it comes to Nicole attending one of Carlos' family gatherings) and teenage angst, there's an overwhelming sense of forced earnestness that's difficult to shake in Crazy/Beautiful. The two young leads do impressive work, but the story should be more demanding, with the plethora of supporting characters offering little more than a bunch of new faces to gaze at. It's not terrible, but in terms of offering a new or particularly inventive perspective on anything, Crazy/Beautiful fails to engage.

Review by Garreth Murphy