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The Crow is a modern, gothic tale of a man who comes back from the dead to avenge his and fiancé's brutal murder. Somehow, he is brought to life by the spirit of a crow that follows him around. Once back from the dead, The Crow goes around after his killers one by one, killing them as gruesomely as he can imagine. Of course, they don't go down without a fight and they beat the hell out of him. In fact, our hero is stabbed through the chest with a sword, cut up by knives and shot approximately a million times, but since he is already dead, he can't be stopped. In the end, the bad guys all die and he goes back to the grave with his beloved. |
Showing off his own martial arts prowess, Brandon Lee (the son of acclaimed martial arts master Bruce Lee) tragically lost his life while making this move and, unfortunately, that is what is remembered most about this film. Michael Wincott, once again plays a smoky-voiced villain and Ernie Hudson plays a renegade cop who helps The Crow in his mission. Hell, he's only killing dirt-bags, right?
Between the main character's Alice Cooper-esque makeup, the dark and stylistic cinematography, and the heavy metal/gothic musical selections, this movie comes off more like a long-form Marilyn Manson video than a feature film. The transfer to DVD probably reflects the original print, but I found it just too dark and hard on the eyes. The soundtrack is more like 5.1 cacophony than a well thought-out sound design for multi-channel systems even though sound, as well as images, are used to assault and bombard the senses throughout The Crow.
I realize this rating is kind of an indecisive one, but I felt The Crow had some redeeming qualities that garnered at least a mention. Yes, it was highly stylized, but I like that in a movie. It shows some imagination and in an industry that churns out unoriginal and uninspired crap every year, I have to give the nod to the creators of The Crow for trying to do something better than the average. However, this updated tale of revenge from the grave seems to be geared toward audiences under thirty.
| more details | |
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sound format:
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Dolby Digital |
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aspect ratio(s):
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1:85:1 |
| special features: | French Language Track; Chapter Search |
| comments: | email us here... |
| reference system | |
| DVD player: | Kenwood DV-403 |
| receiver: | Kenwood VR-407 |
| main speakers: | Paradigm Atom |
| center speaker: | Paradigm CC-170 |
| rear speakers: | Paradigm ADP-70 |
| subwoofer: | Paradigm PDR-10 |
| monitor: | 36-inch Sony XBR |
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