Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Good start, but then it gets ruined

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

While picking up trash on the beach, as part of her community service sentence for robbing a "7-Eleven" convenience store, unkempt blonde "rich-girl" Kirsten Dunst (as Nicole Oakley) meets handsome Hispanic "poor boy" Jay Hernandez (as Carlos Nunez). The mutually attracted pair find out they go to the same high school, but have different groups of friends. She likes to go out and get drunk. He wants to get good grades and attend the US Naval Academy. He's on the football team. She's a skank. These differences lead to conflict, which threatens their love relationship. Complicating matters, her father is a Congressman..."Crazy/Beautiful" is interesting in how it switches what you may expect to be the "bad" and "good" characters. With her beauty intentionally toned down (but bouncy sexiness intact), Ms. Dunst identifies her bad-girl as the "crazy" co-star and Mr. Hernandez as the "beautiful" half. The labeling occurs in an amusing scene where Dunst aggressively moves her head down toward Hernandez' lower body, but is interrupted by her father (Bruce Davidson). Hernandez turns away, but Dunst isn't shy about having sex in front of dad because she has retrieved a condom from the kitchen cabinet. Director John Stockwell helms his sexy scenes well...Hernandez is intentionally more beautiful than Dunst. They do not impress as a high school-aged couple, with Hernandez suffering more. His eyebrows are plucked to perfection; obviously, each individual hair was carefully considered before removal. Hernandez' make-up is too delicately applied. With all the loving looks at Hernandez' beautiful chest, we wonder if the character would be more plausible as a professional model than a high school football player. In fact, Hernandez' character could have been a college student and Dunst a high school drop-out. That would have been more convincing. Still, they are great looking couple.***** Crazy/Beautiful (6/28/01) John Stockwell ~ Kirsten Dunst, Jay Hernandez, Bruce Davison, Lucinda Jenney

Certainly, one of the worst movies I have ever seen. I will disagree, however, with other reviewers who said the movie is bhoring: I was too busy cringing at the embarrassing behavior of Dunst's character, Nikki to be bhored. I really felt sorry for Hernandez's character, Carlos. We have all hung around with the wrong people for the wrong reasons, but when there IS no reason, like in this movie, then it is just 90 minutes of huge embarrassment: Having a drunk, promiscuous chick with no personality or depth, hanging all over you. Nikki's actions and words beg the questions, "Just how hollow and vacuous can one person be? How pretentious? How much self-awareness and identity can one person lack?" The screen writing is the most drab and lacking-in-quality that I have ever experienced. I managed to watch Crazy/Beautiful until they drove up to Carlos' house and the mother came out. Then, I was done. 90 minutes of a reminder of what the worst night of your life was like, when you were smashed out of your mind on booze. Then again, you had a personality. No one in Crazy/Beautiful does.Absolutely disgraceful, especially considering the potential of the base story.

In a role that almost earned her an Oscar nomination Kirsten Dunst is amazing as Nicole, a messed-up near manic-depressive rich girl who's intent on wasting her life away. When she meets poor but driven Carlos a beautiful romance develops, that threatens to bring down Carlos but ultimately saves Nicole.This is one of the most 'real' teenage movies around. Every character reminds the audience of someone they know. In the hands of a less-talented actress Nicole would become a one-dimensional character, but Kirsten brings such a subtle vulnerability to her otherwise tough character that you can't help but love her. Jay Henandez is equally as impressive as Carlos, playing him with just enough empathy that you can understand why he stands by this lost little girl.The film is beautifully shot, with an amazing soundtrack and unique cinematography. One of it's stand-out qualities is it's natural and very well written dialogue, which owes much to the fact that a lot of it is ad-libbed. There is a wonderfully fresh, real vibe to this film that sets it apart from the myriad of other teen dramas that are out there.With plenty of laughs evened out with beautiful yet heartbreaking drama, Crazy/Beautiful is a masterpiece that rises far above the 'Teen Drama' category it's often slotted in to.

If you're a white male living in North America in this day and age THIS is the movie you want to see to see how you're being manipulated into being a second class citizen.Yes, here we go again, another racist movie playing up to Hollywood views of racial purity. Yet another movie where we're all supposed to cheer because a white girl runs off with some excessively sleazy ethnic guy like as if such a sleazy guy is in fact "the key to solving her poor emotional problems." A second rate movie to be sure which escaped any harsh words from critics because its trumpeting modern societies view of racial superiority.Watch as the Kirsten Dunst character is sexually harassed on the beach by a gang of Mexicans and yet how the movie makers try to portray this activity as a good thing. OF COURSE its "cool" for ethnic guys to behave in aggressive manners that white guys are told are completely wrong.So soon after, as per usual with the interracial predatorial movies, Dunst is in the sack having casual sex with a high risk for venereal disease while her pathetic white father cheers her on. Bad parenting? Well of course, but the message is that its good to whore yourself for multiculturalism so bad parenting be damned.The real reason to watch this movie though is to watch the ultra loser white male characters that Hollywood wants white guys to be like. There is one loser who never does anything but stand with his Mexican friend. (The Mexican banging Dunst.) Totally selfless loser which is the creation of Hollywood and so defames white guys that the movie deserves to be sued. No, of course this guy himself could NEVER go after poor lonely screwed up Dunst himself, why that would rain on the "Ethnic guys are superior" Hollywood racist parade. Finally, look for the all-white party scene. Wow! A Mexican can run right into a party with a bunch of guys who look designed to look like at an Aryan convention and steal a drunken Dunst away from some guy making out with her in a hottub without anyone trying to stop him. Well, of course. Ethnic guys are cool and whitey is a loser.... this movie rates up there with the most offensive movies of all time and should only be watched to monitor the agenda of the Hollywooders who hate 70% of the American population.