“If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on is to never stop loving them. Buildings burn, people die, but real love is forever.”
Nearly three decades ago in the summer of 1994, moviegoers were introduced to the idea that sometimes love is more powerful than death with the film adaptation of James O’Barr’s 1989 comic book masterpiece, The Crow. Sadly this film brings an even heavier legacy to that meaning, as its star Brandon Lee was killed on set in a tragic accident while filming. Today we are taking a fond look back at The Crow and discussing why the film is still looked upon so fondly by comic book fans and critics alike almost thirty years after its release.
The Crow is the story of Eric Draven (Brandon Lee), a rock star that finds himself and his fiancé Shelly murdered the night before they were to be wed. It’s ‘Devil’s Night’ in Detroit, better known as ‘All Hallows Eve’ in most places, a night of mischief and mayhem. Draven and his fiancé are killed in cold blood by a ruthless gang of drug dealers out to cause trouble as ordered by their crimelord, Top Dollar (Michael Wincott).
One year after their unjust demise at the hands of these stone-cold killers, Eric awakens in his grave, disoriented and confused as to what happened. He stumbles his way back to his apartment, led by a mysterious guide in the form of a large crow that was awaiting his rise from the grave. Upon entering the apartment, Draven’s memory rushes back to him as he sets off to seek revenge on those that robbed him and his fiancé of the life they would have had together.
What follows is a dark and poetic trail of violence and bloody justice as Draven works his way through everyone involved with his murder until he finally takes on Top Dollar himself in an epic rooftop showdown. We get a few subplots throughout the film involving friends of Eric, like a streetwise girl named Sarah whose drug addict mother is involved with one of the gang members that murdered the formerly happy couple, and that of a compassionate cop who stayed with Shelly for thirty hours in the intensive care unit as she slowly died from the injuries inflicted upon her so she wouldn’t be alone.
Overall, the story is what I would personally call a ‘new classic.’ It’s one of those stories that will never really get old, and one that will very likely be readapted and retold time and time again. Hell, we’ve already got three sequels and a short-lived television series that did their best (well, they tried anyway) to emulate the same kind of themes as the first film, even though they are, for the most part, sequels in name only. Simply put, The Crow is a modern fairytale of a man come back from the dead to avenge the wrongful murder of his beloved. While the story in the film version differs quite drastically from that of James O’Barr’s brilliantly stylized comic, the key elements of the story remain the same and translate well to the live-action world.
This film is tragically definitive of Brandon Lee’s career. He is and will forever be the perfect incarnation of the Eric Draven character; flawlessly cast for the part of this tragic gothic hero. Really, the entire film’s cast is excellently well rounded. From the hauntingly beautiful Shelly (Sofia Shinas) to the honest cop Albrecht (Ernie Hudson), to the four members of Top Dollar’s gang (David Patrick Kelly, Angel David, Laurence Mason, and Michael Massee respectively), or even Top Dollar himself (Michael Wincott), each member of the cast feels right at home in their own skin. It’s certainly a rare treat that such a perfect cast comes together with a script that is actually worthy of them. The right cast combined with a timeless script like this one makes for an instant classic of a film that you will want to revisit again and again.
Following Brandon Lee’s death, the film was completed in order to give him one last film and secure his legacy. The cast and crew carried on to finish the movie in his stead and it was released to critical acclaim with many saying that it was some of Lee’s best work. It seems appropriate that a film with such haunting themes would be the final endnote to Lee’s career, giving him time to shine the brightest before his light was tragically extinguished. The completed film was dedicated to Lee’s memory, serving as one final act of love from those that worked with him; driving home the message that love is a much greater power than death.
While much of the film screams of the edginess of the ’90s, The Crow truly manages to set itself apart from most of the dark sci-fi action films of that era. Director Alex Proyas does a wonderful job balancing the dark poetic nature of O’Barr’s story with the grittiness of the time period to present a movie that transcends its genre to become bigger than the story it presents.
The Crow stands out as one of the defining films of the comic book movie genre, proving that not every superhero needs to wear spandex or get a happy ending.
If you liked this Rewind Review, be sure to check out the whole series as we take a look back at some of our favorite corners of popular culture from years past!
