THE CROW: 2 STARS. “‘The Crow’ is back, but, unfortunately, never really takes flight.”
SYNOPSIS: “The Crow,” a re-imagining of the classic gothic superhero series of the same name, sees troubled souls Eric Draven (Bill Skarsgård,) and Shelly Webster (FKA Twigs) become soulmates after escaping from a rehab center. On the run from bad man Vincent Roeg’s (Danny Huston) violent thugs, the pair form an unbreakable bond, even in death. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Draven navigates the worlds of the living and the dead to seek vengeance against her killers. “Kill the ones who killed you, and you will get her back.”
CAST: Bill Skarsgård, FKA Twigs, Danny Huston, Josette Simon, Laura Birn, Sami Bouajila, Isabella Wei, Jordan Bolger. Directed by Rupert Sanders.
REVIEW: “The Crow” is back, but, unfortunately, never really takes flight. Director Rupert Sanders and cinematographer Steve Annis create a beautiful, neo-noir gothic canvas as a backdrop to the story of the power of love as a tool for revenge, but no amount of atmosphere can make up for spotty storytelling and murky mythology.
The film’s first forty minutes, the story of star-crossed lovers Eric and Shelly, drags as the two meet, flirt and get to know one another. Trouble is, sparks don’t exactly fly. The basis of the story is immortal love, one that cannot be broken by anything, even death, and yet their courtship feels impetuous, not particularly romantic. That lack of chemistry blunts the effectiveness of the movie’s emotional foundation and delays the start of The Crow ‘s story until midway through the film.
As for the action, it does deliver some OTT John Wick style violence, but I wouldn’t call this an action movie. The action is used sparingly, relegated to two big set pieces. Of those, it’s the opera house sequence that delivers the cathartic, nasty kills fans might want. It’s gross and gory as Draven gives new meaning to the question, “Why don’t you smile?” (You’ll know what I mean when you see the movie.) It goes for it, delivering the straightforward revenge vibe you expect, but it also makes you wonder why the rest of the movie doesn’t have the same energy or comic book sensibility.
Skarsgård is suitably angsty, and can handle himself in the action scenes, but despite his best efforts, the specter of Brandon Lee’s indelible performance in the original cult classic looms large over this version.
“The Crow” suffers from a lackluster villain (the usually reliable Danny Huston) and slow pacing, but its worst crime is that for a movie about soulmates, with a baddie who dooms souls to hell, “The Crow” feels soulless.
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