A remaking ofThe Crow , the 1994 gothic furor classic star the late Brandon Lee , was always going to confront an acclivitous battle . The master is too dear , not only as a perfect encapsulation of the pulpy type of movie that defined the mid to late-’90s , but as a testament to Lee ’s natural endowment , especially after his prematurely passing as a result of an accident on the curing of the film . Still , Rupert Sanders’The Crow , starring Bill Skarsgård as the titulary antihero , is disappointing on pretty much every level , to the surprise of pretty much no one .
A familiar story
The Crowfollows Shelly ( FKA Twigs ) , a young woman who has find oneself herself with the wrong crowd . While running by from a would - be attacker , she gets arrested after the law rule drugs in her purse . While at a rehab facility , Shelly meets Eric Draven , a new , quiet , sullen man with whom she instantly bonds . They guide away together and enter a whirlwind romance that can only last so long , particularly with a target on Shelly ’s back . When the consequences of her action catch up with them , Shelly and Eric are killed , but he gets the probability to return as an undead version of himself and is tasked with fuck off retaliation .
Joining Skarsgård and Twigs is Danny Huston as the film ’s elementary adversary , Vincent Roeg , a flush , sinister gentleman with a fiendish closed book of his own . Supporting players include Josette Simon , Laura Birn , Sami Bouajila , and Jordan Bolger . Sanders , whose previous credits includeSnow White and the Huntsmanand the awfully misguided 2017 live - action version ofGhost in the Shell , directs from a screenplay by Zack Baylin and William Schneider .
A wasted cast
The film sees Skarsgård play a different , yet undercooked version of Eric , who here is an emo sad boi taken straight out of a My Chemical Romance video . Skarsgård has the animalism for the role and is quite attached to it , but his functioning is fundamentally split into two distinct halves that struggle to connect . During the first half of the movie , Eric is more vulnerable and relatable , as he ’s severely raise up by his undying status and the constant infliction he is exposed to . This is where Skarsgård shines the shiny , bringing the same easygoing , adorable , and jolly manic energy he so effectively used in motion picture likeVillainsandBarbarian .
However , once the movie decides ( quite clumsily ) to put the makeup on and change by reversal him into the ruthless action mechanism avenger from the poster , Skarsgård becomes stiffer , more detached , and less compelling . His drift get clinical , with his recollective soma almost puppet - like and preternatural . It ’s probably a deliberate choice to play up Eric ’s position as an instrument of vengeance without any human race left , but the movie does n’t lucubrate on that theme , and the functioning inevitably loses some steam . The Crow‘s lacking approach is disappointing because Skarsgård is a dependable fit for the role , and there ’s more than enough on the screen to imagine what he could have done with a more competent screenplay guide by a just director .
The same can be said for FKA Twigs as Eric ’s girlfriend , Shelly . To the movie ’s credit entry , it tries to turn her into a fuller character compared to the 1994 version ; unfortunately , it chooses the worst possible agency to do it , frame her as a near - ethereal , humbled rebel who is this close to being a gothic pixie dreaming girl . The Crowspends more clock time exploring Eric and Shelly ’s relationship , an interesting choice that redeem mixed results . Skarsgård and sprig have comely chemistry — it ’s not electrifying , but it ’s strong enough to support the half an time of day the film spends fixed on them .
unhappily , The Crowisn’t concerned in make a complete world for them . mass add up and go without so much as an introduction , their bearing patently meant to give the family relationship more linguistic context , yet only succeeding in proving the handwriting ’s weaknesses . likewise , the villain and his henchmen are barely characters . By now , Huston is an expert at playing forgettable bad guy cable with barely defined motif , so he ’s in his element here . His fellow villains are evenly underwhelming , barely getting a blood or two to justify their front .
A thin story and even thinner characters
The main trouble withThe Crowboils down to its underdeveloped screenplay . There ’s a noticeable ineptness to it , highlighted by clumsy dialog that seems taken out of an angsty teenager ’s diary . The Crowdoesn’t seem to intrust its hearing enough to lean into the subtext , instead feel the need to spell out everything . The line “ the crow will show you the way ” is echo a few too many times while the camera pans to a flying bragging because the movie being titledThe Crowis seemingly not enough .
It ’s also riddled with exposition for the floor ’s supernatural lore , which is presented in the most canonical manner possible . Huston and Bouajila get the most expositive line , and neither can lift them ; no one really tries , to be honest . twig also fuck off a few cringeworthy gem — “ I thought you were quite beautifully broken , ” she say to Eric — but she fares a lot better , probably because she brings a sure unassuming nature to her functioning .
Sanders is also creditworthy for many ofThe Crow‘s shortcomings , as his action sequences are mundane , unimaginative , and often tedious . Action requires a certain degree of chaos and muss to flourish , which is glaringly missing from Sanders ’ execution . The pic ’s big set piece , a showdown between Eric and multiple guards at the opera house , is impressively choreographed , queasily gory , and convincingly performed by Skarsgård . Yet Sanders ’ tv camera remains detached and monotone , create a separation between the activeness and his lens that makes the whole proceeding less impactful than it should be .
What ’s especially frustrative is that based on the first half hour , Skarsgård , Twigs , and even Sanders were all more concerned in enjoin a dark sexual love tale than the messy mixing of genres that isThe Crow . The film tries to be three things at once — a mediaeval romance , a revenge thriller , and a supernatural story of satanic ratio — and ca n’t do any of them DoJ . If it had chosen to be just one or even two , the resolution would ’ve been much in force . And yet , it ’s all watchable enough to warrant two hours of one ’s time . In fact , The Crowhas some actual hope as a future shamefaced pleasure , like previous movies that seemingly exuberate in their mediocrity — Van Helsing , Underworld , Michael Bay’sTransformers .
For hardcore fans only
In many ways , The Crowis the most 2000s movie we ’ve seen in a while : its visuals are Green Day circa 2006 , its soundtrack is desperate to seem rebellious and original , and its approach is something we would expect from the middling noughties comic book adjustment .
If onlyThe Crowhad lean more into the 2000s vibration , if it had choose to beTwilightwith slightly less chemical science and slightly more blood , then I would have probably given it a rave . Instead , what we have is an unimpressive , yet watchable remaking that is just like its protagonist : not entirely dead , but sure as shooting not awake .
The Crowis now playing in theaters everywhere .
