THE CROW (2024) - Movie Review

Director: Rupert Sanders
Starring: Bill Skarsgard, FKA Twigs, Danny Huston, Laura Birn, Sami Bouajila, Josette Simon
Genre: Action, Horror, Romance, Drama, Thriller
Writer: Zach Baylin, William Schneider
Runtime: 111 min
Rated: R for strong bloody violence, gore, language, sexuality/nudity, and drug use
Buy This Movie: Blu-ray + DVD (Amazon), 4K Ultra HD Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV

This blog is supported by its audience. When you buy through links on my blog, I may earn an affiliate commission.

Synopsis:

Bill Skarsgård takes on the iconic role of THE CROW in this modern reimagining of the original graphic novel by James O’Barr.Soulmates Eric (Skarsgård) and Shelly (FKA twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.

Review:

"The Crow" reboot/remake was one of those projects you would hear about every year without ever being any closer to a release date. Scores of actors and directors were added, then removed since development started in 2008. It's hard to say where the idea for this movie started, how much was added, removed, or changed throughout the years, but a painful realization sets in when you think about the fact that after 16 years of development this is the best they could come up with.

Whether it's a reimagining of the 1994 classic film, or the original graphic novel by James O'Barr, one thing is clear. This movie is doing its own thing, a complete reimagining that only reuses two names, Eric and Shelly, and not much else. It's a new story, with new characters and lore, a complete reinvention intended to be less stylized and more grounded. It's a dramatic departure from the original's ultra goth aesthetic, which is unfortunately replaced with a very generic look. It's certainly well shot, with the visual sleekness of a commercial, or a music video, but it's nowhere near as original or edgy as intended.

The filmmakers thought it would be a great idea to spend more time exploring the doomed romance between Eric (Bill SKarsgard) and Shelly (FKA Twigs), while also interweaving a broader story that leads up to their demise and sets up a villain who uses demonic abilities to send souls down to hell in exchange for immortality. Two things are wrong with this approach. The story is overly convoluted and often sacrifices logic to fit the dramatic requirements of the plot, and the romance isn't compelling enough to justify spending all that extra time with the star-crossed lovers before the actual story kicks in.

The original film only hinted at the romance in flashbacks. It didn't need to show us the whole thing, just enough to understand the shattering tragedy of it all. It should be a simple, straightforward story. Couple is violently murdered by bad guys. Man is resurrected by supernatural forces to avenge their deaths and kill a bunch of dudes in violent ways to make things right in the universe. Simple, right ? The new film drowns in details as if trying to build a new cinematic universe, and ironically, the more we see, the less we care. After around 40 minutes of poorly constructed romance, the movie then gets bogged down in more exposition and world building pertaining to how souls and the afterlife work. It takes an eternity for Eric to get his powers and become the crow, and by the time he's ready to kick some ass, the movie's over.

The only memorable set piece is the third act opera house massacre. And when I say "massacre" I'm not being hyperbolic. The entire sequence is a blood bath. I enjoyed the over-the-top gore, and it would have been nice if this kind of violent energy and macabre glee permeated the entire film, but unfortunately it's just a 10-minute sequence, and then the movie switches back to more boring dialogue and a confusing ending that probably teases the possibility of a sequel.

It's not a good movie, but not necessarily the absolute worst of 2024, either. It's also hard to rank it as the worst the franchise has ever seen, considering how bad the previous three sequels were (two of which were direct-to-video). And let's not forget about the short-lived TV series "The Crow: Stairway to Heaven". The 2024 movie tried to branch out in different directions in an attempt to build up a brand new franchise, but it failed miserably. It's not a movie I can recommend, but fans who have patiently watched every installment of "The Crow" might want to give it a try to see how it ranks in the overall series.

SCORE: 5/10