Back in 1994, the original version of The Crow hit theaters starring the late Brandon Lee. The movie itself was overshadowed due to Lee’s accidental death during the filming when a prop gun had a charge in it by mistake.
Nevertheless, the movie became iconic largely due to Lee’s performance and the overall visual style. Subsequent sequels were released until the reboot switch was hit. Now, 30 years after the original, we get this new version of The Crow, and needless to say, there was no reason to make this version at all.
The new movie somewhat follows the formula of the original. Bill Skarsgard stars as Eric Draven, a troubled youth who is sent to live in an institution. He meets a girl named Shelley (FKA Twigs), and together, the two form a common bond over music, which leads to their escape and falling in love.
Danny Huston plays a demonic crime lord who is after Shelley after she witnesses him committing a series of crimes. As a supervillain, his main power is whispering sinister nothings in people’s ears and controlling them.
Of course, Huston’s men catch up to Eric and Shelley and murder them. In the spirit world, Eric encounters a mentor named Kronos (Sami Bouajila) who is surrounded by crows and tells Eric that sometimes a sadness is so deep that his soul cannot rest until the wrongs are righted. He tells Eric to return to the Land of the Living to exact justice with the crow as his guide.
When Eric returns, he goes on his mission, looking like Jared Leto’s Joker and tracking down the baddies and picking them off one at a time in gruesome fashion.
There’s a lot of potential for a reboot of The Crow to be done well, but this version is completely squandered by sluggish pacing and visuals that are grungy and depressing from start to finish. The 1994 film also looked similar, but there was a sense of energy and intrigue that made it engrossing.
Skarsgard does what he can with the material, but the result severely lacks Lee’s charisma and poignancy. Instead, he’s placed in a very slow movie with uninteresting characters and needlessly gratuitous violence. Even John Wick would tell The Crow to cut back on the relentless gore factor during the climax.
I’m also comparing it to its theatrical counterpart, Deadpool and Wolverine. Both movies are based on comic books, complete with over-the-top violence and an R rating, but they’re as different as night and day. Deadpool and Wolverine has a sense of fun and even an occasional heart in between its violence. The Crow has a sense of joylessness and it’s too dark without a purpose. I think the target audience would rather be at the former again.
The movie is a cynical, hollow experience that’s much more interested in being overblown than a unique, standalone effort.
Grade: D
(Rated R for strong bloody violence, gore, language, sexuality/nudity, and drug use.)
