The Crow (1994)

Directed by: Alex Proyas

Written by: David J Schow & John Shirley

Based on a comic book series by: James O'Barr

A year after he was murdered, Eric Draven comes back to avenge the deaths of him and his girlfriend.

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I think I was about eleven or twelve year old when I went to a video rental store with my dad, and The Crow from 2005 caught my eye. My parents never let me see movies that weren't meant for my age, but I always liked to read the back covers and summaries of the movies I knew I couldn't watch until I was old enough. I guess it was the goth aesthetic of the Crow that drew me in, and the plot did seem very intriguing even then. 

Years went by and I didn't exactly forget about The Crow, but lost interest in the 2005 version because I learned about the mishap that caused Brandon Lee to die on set. It was clear the movie was to be tragic anyway, and that just made it even darker.

I've watched a lot of movies that are about revenge, and most of them are just action movies that don't really capture the darkness of revenge and the human soul in those kind of movies. The Crow is one of the very few revenge themed movies that is as dark as needed, and it doesn't exactly make revenge seem more glorious than it is. The Crow is brutal and violent, but there are also some really beautiful, comforting parts, which make the film stand out from the typical films of the genre.

The cinematography is amazing, it's like a beautiful comic book. There's a lot of contrast, loads of black, but still surprisingly much colour. The palette is breathtaking. The cinematography is gruesomely beautiful, considering what they show and what they don't show, and how it's shown.

The soundtrack is great, but a bit surprising here and there. Then again, of course such a goth classic would use The Cure in the soundtrack.

The Crow is an enchanting, beautiful yet brutal movie, and it's definitely worth watching. Even if you don't care about the genre or a story, what happened to Brandon Lee should be enough to pique your interest.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

10 / 10