User reviews

Based on the comic book created by James O'Barr. The Crow stars Brandon Lee as rock star Eric Draven, who, precisely one year after his murder, returns from the grave to take revenge on the vicious criminals responsible for the rape and death of his fiancée and his own untimely demise.

The basic plot for this supernatural thriller is rather simplistic, holding very few surprises and delivering little in the way of genuine suspense, but a poetic screenplay charged with dark romanticism, a terrific cast (Michael Wincott is particularly memorable as head villain Top Dollar) and extremely stylish direction from Alex Proyas ensure that the film is far from forgettable. Proyas, a prolific music video director, nails the comic book aesthetic, delivering a stream of impressive visuals, with grandiose, sweeping cinematography, stunning lighting, and incredible set design, all steeped in Gothic neo-noir atmosphere and set to a cool alt-rock soundtrack.

Brandon, son of martial arts legend Bruce Lee, gives a charismatic central performance, and would most likely have become a major star in his own right had his life not been tragically cut short by an accidental shooting on the set of this movie, a fact that only goes to make the finished article an even more tragic and haunting experience.

I feel like this remains one of the best comic book movies of all time. While it's too well-received to be truly underrated, I feel like it's still deserving of more praise than it gets. It's unafraid to look like a comic book come to life, the visuals are bombastic and in-your-face, but almost always effective, and it takes place in a heightened, almost cartoonish word that always takes me a couple of scenes to adjust to. Once I do, this is the kind of film that never slows down or stops being great. Everything from Eric putting his make-up on (backed by The Cure) and onwards is top-tier stuff.

Brandon Lee is great, and I also think Michael Wincott and Ernie Hudson do amazing jobs at making their sort-of stock characters pop. The former is such an over-the-top villain, but in the best of ways, and the latter is a rebel cop with a good heart, trapped in an unfeeling institution, but Hudson makes him feel surprisingly human and real.

The tragedy behind the production unfortunately adds something to this. The film is both more unsettling and emotional than I think it would've ordinarily been; I don't want to say the film is "better" because of a tragedy, because what would have been better is if Brandon Lee had gone on to have the kind of career he deserved, but it's always something I can't shake. That, plus the fact he looks a bit like Heath Ledger and has a similar voice/appearance to the Joker (at least a little), whose passing also warped how The Dark Knight would feel and be viewed.

I'd be much harder on the editing in this film if I didn't know the behind-the-scenes stuff. There are some strange moments that I'm sure came about because they only had so much footage to work with. Also, I swear parts of the score sound a little like parts of The Last Temptation of Christ's score; that distracted me a little, but I still think the music - both soundtrack and score - do a great deal here.

This embodies the 1990s in a glorious way, features a simple yet well-told revenge story, looks stunning throughout, and was a great showcase for the late Brandon Lee. It's not perfect, but I do love it dearly.

Nearly 25 years ago the only son of Bruce Lees final film came out and became a sensation and changed the way comic book movies were aimed at mature audiences. The alt rock soundtrack along with an epic score by Graham revell that has been used for trailers for movies such as pearl harbor makes this movie a must own.

I approached this film after reading the hype and controversy surrounding its making and release, not really expecting very much. Surprised to find it an intelligent, beautifully-filmed, engrossing and touching thriller. I'd recommend it to anyone who has a fondness for weird gothic mythological stories. I didn't find the horror aspect overdone - in fact it was believable, and the script was superior to other films of this genre I've seen. As for Brandon Lee, this really was a superb performance and it is a terrible tragedy that his life ended so abruptly. This film is a fitting memorial to what could have become a major star.

The crow was quite amazing. A man comes back to life to serve vigilante justice on the men who raped and murdered his fiancé (and threw him out a window). Vengeance is served with gruesome takedowns and poetic justice as the crow and his walking corpse tear up the town. The cinematography is actually kind of beautiful its dark and ominous tone. The storyline flows well and the characters well developed. A killer Halloween tale.

This movie is fantastic. plain and simple. Brandon Lee delivers his lines to the point they were instantly memorable after seeing the film only once. The casting of both Michael Wincott and Tony Todd was inspired as these two guys have two of the most instantly recognisable voices in the movie industry. If i could ever be a movie or a lead in a film this would be it. I was initially put off the idea of the movie as i am a big fan of the graphic novel and there was an awful lot of hype around this film on its release. this proved to be my loss as i have only seen the film on the small screen. however i now have the 2 disc special edition DVD and watched it 3 times in succession the day i bought it and must have watched it at least 100 times since. my own personal opinion is that a movie should suspend disbelief, capture the imagination which this does in spades. it is truly a film that you can lose a couple of hours watching and at the end feel like you have spent a worthwhile couple of hours. would recommend this to anybody.

The only thing i can say is that when i left the movie theater then i had no comment to give... This movie got to me deep! I was 14 and now i am 25,and still i remember it so well and i still watch it sometimes.. Brandon Lee did a great job as an actor like everyone else, but the story about his death is totally insane, which made me worship the movie even more. What an irony. I like the movie cause it's dark, but also lighted up with true emotions..there is action, horror, love, even poetry for god sake! I have never seen so many genre's in one movie. Anyway for me it has been one of the best movies i have ever watched. And one more comment, lots of of other movies got ideas from The Crow, meaning the setting, the action, music, whatever it is the crow was their start up. I am not going to name them, Crow fans probably know what i am talking about.. My favorite quote: "Can't rain all the time" By the way the soundtrack's are awesome, The Cure's best song ever made is in it! P.S. The Crow II and III sucked, i hated it. They just ruined the conception of the first one.. totally..

I never had a goth phase growing up and I can't stand The Cure, but god help me, I love a good revenge flick. To that end, The Crow is as pure as they come; an attractive couple with a bright future, brutalized and murdered by a street gang; a kid with an absent mother; a good cop in a rotten system.

All of these characters exist in what is quite possibly the worst city there could be; an oppressively dark cesspool, somehow more dreary than Seven, more rainy than Blade Runner, cloaked in death. Just thinking about this depiction of Detroit is depressing, but it's what makes The Crow so well-realized, gives its antihero definition.

This is a movie I didn't want to like but can't help it. Brandon Lee personifies the roles, his life tragically mirroring that of the title character, all of this weaving into the film's tapestry. This isn't a movie, it's a cultural artifact, morose and impactful in its own right.

This is one amazing film, with a mesmerizing performance from Brandon Lee!. It's visually appealing, extremely well made, with amazing performances all around!. Loved the score, too, it fit with the film well, and there's plenty of action to go around as well. Michael Wincott is, very menacing as the main villain, and was perfect for the part. The flashbacks were very cool, however i wished, i could see more of Shelley's character. The Directiing is outstanding!. Alex Proyas does an outstanding job here, creating lots of, dark atmosphere, great use of the rain machine,cool visuals, and keeping the pace,action packed, and engrossing all the way!. The film is very violent, but not all of it is bloody. We get several knives in the chest, knife in the hand, lots of gunshot wounds, some bloody, some not, hole through hand, 2 slashings, slit throat,2 bloody impallings, sword in the neck and a crow pecks a girls eyes out. The Acting is WONDERFUL!. Brandon Lee, gives an Oscar worthy performance here, he is completely mesmerizing, creepy,kicks that ass and, just thought he was too cool, his AMAZING AMAZING performance here, will always be remembered, what happened too him was a tragedy, and i for one will never forget him!. Rochelle Davis is awesome here, and is very likable,her and Brandon, had very good chemistry and is one of the best kid actors out there!, especially since she hasn't acted since then!. Ernie Hudson, is terrific as the Sgt., very likable, and very convincing. Michael Wincott, is great as the main villain, i loved his voice, and he was very menacing!. Sofia Shinas, is very good as Shelley, however, she didn't have much screen time, but was great when on screen. Overall a MUST SEE at all costs!. ***** out of 5

It's said that The Crow of all birds is the one charged with the special mission of bringing souls to heaven once they've departed this mortal coil. But when one soul leaves behind some business that really needs finishing The Crow can bring you back. Such is the premise of the film The Crow where Brandon Lee is brought back to the mortal coil on a vengeance quest.

It's a simple plot not exactly anything original from many other vengeance films with a supernatural twist. The main problem with The Crow is that if you're not a follower of the comic strip on which it is based certain subtleties of the strip probably escaped by attention. Still the film can and was enjoyed by me on a different level.

The film did spawn several sequels, sadly though Brandon Lee was not in them. His accidental death in a shooting scene on the set of The Crow has passed into legend, to eerily familiar to his father Bruce Lee's death. Apparently though enough of the film was shot so that it could be released without having to be done over as was the case with Solomon And Sheba when Tyrone Power died, also on that set.

I could see also that Brandon Lee even through the pasty white makeup of his undead character Eric Draven that he was quite the charismatic fellow. That The Crow sparked a television series and several sequels is a testament to Lee's performance. Michael Wincott who played the leader of the gang of thugs who killed Lee and fiancé Sofia Shinas is also memorable as is Jon Polito as the pawnshop owner.

I'd check The Crow out if I could. Brandon Lee invested a great deal of character within the character and sadly his life as well.

What can I say. Each day I find myself quoting The Crow at least a dozen times. Usually people just give me strange looks. Sometimes (like when I say, "I got stabbed! I shot the sonnovabitch! I watched the bullet hole close by itself. And then my business gets blown up real good. Other than that, my day sucked!") people call security on me.

This movie is a one-of-a-kind. It's grunge, it's goth, it's dark, it's funny, it's touching and it's inspiring... even if it merely inspires you to slap mime makeup on your face and walk the streets at night yelling, "I guess it's not a good day to be a bad guy, huh SKANK?!!"

Seriously, as Roger Ebert said, it's an experience. Even though the plot is pretty straightforward (rockstar gets killed & comes back from the grave to seek revenge), it's done in a way that keeps you riveted every minute. The same way "Peewee's Big Adventure" is just about a guy looking for his bike, The Crow takes the same approach of using a minimalist plot and coating it in heaps of style, music and surreal visuals. Except The Crow has a few dozen more murders than Peewee.

What makes this film a visual feast is the way it stylistically mirrors the comic book that inspired it. Like the comic, it's very monochrome... almost black & white, but with some icy tints to it. It has a very wet look to it, making it seem glossy and muted at the same time. Like another favourite film of mine "City of Lost Children", it achieves a certain vivid appearance even though the colour palette is very limited.

As far as action flicks go, this is quite a literary extravaganza. Quotes from Poe's "The Raven", Milton's "Paradise Lost", Thackeray's "Vanity Fair" and who knows what else, lend an air of classiness and antiquity to the film. And of course the movie generates its own memorable quotes. Like "Greed is for amateurs. Disorder, chaos, anarchy... now that's fun!"

Paired with an entertaining script full of great zingers, the acting is first rate all around. Each & every character, no matter how large or minor, delivers a memorable performance. Of course Brandon Lee is the standout, playing the cold-hearted, vengeful killer but with a gentleness that makes you want to take him home to meet your folks. Conversely, the bad guys are brutal but so comic you can't help but love them.

A word about Brandon's death... yes, it's true that he was killed by a malfunctioning prop gun during the apartment scene. But that reel of film was reportedly destroyed by the director. The movie still had several scenes that needed to be filmed, and the director compensated by recycling other scenes with some very interesting effects. For example, when Brandon punches the mirror, it's actually a double punching the mirror with Brandon's "reflection" (from another scene) digitally imposed on the glass. Tricks like that are not obvious, and they add a certain otherworldly feel to the movie. It also makes the film feel more fragmented and incomplete (in a good way), leaving more to the imagination. If you're like me and you hate movies that over-explain everything, the minimalistic presentation of The Crow will be right up your alley.

Lastly, the music. If you were alive & remotely cool in the 90s you'll love the soundtrack. The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against the Machine, Violent Femmes, Stone Temple Pilots, Henry Rollins, the list goes on...

If you're familiar with the director Alex Proyas, you'll recognize this as possibly his greatest work (alongside "Dark City", "Garage Days" and some great, surreal music videos like Sting "All This Time"). The feel of The Crow is also reminiscent of director Frank Miller's work ("The Spirit", "Sin City"). And although I haven't seen it, I've heard the Batman film "Dark Knight" pays tribute to this film, particularly Heath Ledger's Joker who is hauntingly close to Brandon Lee's character. If you like artsy movies, this fits right in, reminding me of Jean Pierre Jeunet ("City of Lost Children", "Delicatessen") and the darker side of Tim Burton ("Sweeny Todd"). Maybe there's even a bit of "Blade Runner" thrown in.

If you get a chance, see The Crow on a rainy night with all the lights off. Lose yourself in the mood, the music and the memory of Brandon, the greatest star who never was. Halloween is coming up, so get your favourite Crow costume ready. If you live in a sheltered town like mine, chances are nobody will recognize who you're supposed to be. Although quite a few people think I'm Edward Scissorhands who is also pretty cool, so whatever...

Maybe my expectations were too low, but I actually didn't mind this. It's very 90s, unapologetic, and has more going on than you'd expect. Lee's performance is actually earnest, though performances are decidedly mixed, overall. It knows what it's going for and, heavily stylized, gets there.

Could be the 4K transfer did it some favours. 90s films were notoriously over saturated and had wildly heavy blacks, making some of the home video transfers absolute crap to watch. This was a pleasant surprise on that front as well. Practical effects hold up well and the details are good. I don't know that HDR was doing much. Maybe the original is so bad you'd only know if you'd seen it before on other formats.

Also, how dumb do you have to be to compare this to Joker. Yeah, the guy has face paint on, but that's about it. What, the city looks like Gotham? The character and story is nothing like it. Ignorance is bliss though, as I can see with how well and for what reasons that film entered the zeitgeist.

I can only guess at the age and experience of those who, in other reviews of this movie, have dubbed it "the best movie ever". Viewers be forewarned: it isn't, not by a long-shot.

What it is: a comic-genre film - and like most film versions of dark comics, it is enslaved to rain and shadows, candlelight and eyeliner aesthetics, pseudo-intellectualism and faux-poetic moments. It suffers greatly from an unbelievable premise (murderous super bad guys run wild in the streets, doing their will) and mind-numbingly dense dialog.

I watched this movie just recently for the first time - and had to check all the background material on it because I just couldn't believe it was actually shot in the nineties - it is an eighties movie in every way shape and form, hearkening back to the days of the early Cure, Bauhaus, Souxsie and the Banshees, etc.

The acting is flat all around (Brandon Lee spends the entire movie with his chin on his chest, glaring menacingly from underneath his furrowed brow) and what little there is of character is two-dimensional - a comic book view of the world, juvenile and meaningless, trying desperately to be "deep".

If Brandon Lee hadn't died during production, this film would be regarded as nothing more than an amusing goth fantasy - and not the goth cult classic it seems to have become. I guess I understand some people's emotional attachment to it, but back when I was being goth and under the influence of nihilist aesthetics, my friends and I read Baudelaire, Sartre and Dostoevsky. To us, a film like this would be as intellectually an emotionally fulfilling as the popcorn you might eat while watching it.

The "best movie ever"? Sorry. No.

The Crow is an excellent tragic film made even more tragic by the real life tragedies surrounding the film (Brandon Lee's death during filming, and the fact that the story is a result of James O'Barr's personal loss of his fiancée). Based on a very dark comic book, the film has the same dark feel. The movie does deviate from the comic book in some points, but in general is fairly faithful. If you can get it, I would recommend the DVD Collector's set with the 2 DVD version of The Crow (just to see the interview with James O'Barr is worth the price).

The story is a basically about revenge from beyond the grave, and how true love is forever. The movie has a good (but fairly basic) plot, excellent action sequences, and very good casting. Brandon Lee gives a good performance (not excellent, but good), as does Ernie Hudson. The supporting villains are excellent in their villainy, and you do feel better when they get it in the end. But the real star of this film is the mood and the feel. It feels gritty, bleak, and depressing, but surprisingly uplifting at the end. Alex Proyas did an excellent job of transferring this feeling from the book onto celluloid. All in all, one of the best comic book to film translations I have ever seen.

You do not have to be familiar with the comic book to thoroughly enjoy this film (like you do with some other comic book adaptations).

Rating : 4.5 out of 5

The crow is a 1994 supernatural superhero film based on the comic book series of the same name about a musician who is resurrected from the dead to seek vengeance against the gang who murdered him and his fiancée.

This is a great film with some horribly sad history for the fact that Brandon Lee was killed while making it. But as a whole, it's one of the absolute best movies from the early 1990's. It's a dark story in its subject matter, but so well done you can't take your eyes off of the screen. Brandon Lee's performance is captivating and grabs your attention never letting go until the end. The way it was shot is visually stunning, and it's definitely a movie you'll want to see more than once.

If you have never seen The Crow before, I would highly recommend giving it a watch.

This might be a very controversial thing to say, but I think that The Crow is one of the best films of 1994, it's after Pulp Fiction and Shawshank Redemption. One of the most tragic things about The Crow is that actor Brandon Lee died on set, he got shot in a scene that originally wasn't in the script, but was added last second. It was something that could've been easily prevented and the actor could have survived if the fire arm had been examined by the weapons examiner, except he was absent that day. It ended up having real bullets in the barrel and Lee ended up getting legitimately shot and dying during hospitilization. (Rest in peace.)

Saying that, Brandon Lee's iconic performance as The Crow/Eric Draven will live on for eternity. Some scenes had to be done without Brandon Lee because he had died on set, so they cleverly used light and shadow and/or special effects to cover up the fact that it's not Brandon Lee.

The makeup for Brandon Lee's Eric Draven is iconic and the ending is extremely moving. It also features one of the best sword-fight like battles of all time!

The script is fantastic, the cinematography for certain scenes is masterful. It's one of those films like The Dark Knight or Inception that lived up to my expectations and exceeded them. Literally everything about this movie is amazing, the gothic set design is beautiful, go check it out if you haven't, it's one of my all time favorites.

At first glance, THE CROW seems to be just another revenge saga, with an added goth twist to appeal to fans of KISS and Marilyn Manson. Thankfully I was mistaken, because this is an emotional roller-coaster of a movie that is both fun and moving, violent yet sensitive. It certainly strikes the viewer as a film in which opposing values gel together quite brilliantly. And, whatever critics may say, it will always be a strangely unique movie, in which the tragedy of Lee's on-set death runs parallel to the death and rebirth of his screen character. As such the movie has a spooky, almost legendary air to it, a real one-off to a film. But Lee's death – although deeply upsetting – is not a good reason to watch this movie, having nothing to do with the film itself.

Director Proyas (DARK CITY) keeps things dim and shadowy throughout. The film seems to take place over the length of one hellish night, so expect brooding darkness, silent alleys and many shots of Lee's surreal, mime-painted face. The plot is simple; he dies, is reborn, and takes revenge on the bad guys, but Lee's relationship with a teenage friend heightens the emotion, as does Ernie Hudson's sympathetic cop who understands the hero's inner feelings and understanding. The bad guys are mostly psychotic rather than evil, all presided over by the sinister yet suave Michael Wincott, one of my favourite underrated actors. Others such as Candyman (Tony Todd) and Sully from COMMANDO (David Patrick Kelly) flesh out the ranks of the victims. Many stunts, explosive action sequences, violent moments and shoot-outs keep the plot moving, but I found this film to be more of an appealing, romantic and deeply sad love story than anything else. Worth catching.

The Crow (1994)

There's no question this is a vigorous, crazy-violent, youth oriented, anti-establishment movie with a heart. It's utterly romantic in an almost childish way but thank god for that because parts of the movie--more and more of it as it goes--are about exacting revenge. For me, as exaggerated and fun as it is in a way, it still only goes so far.

But revenge is a good motive for action, and for bloody theatrical murder. Make no bones about it, the main character, this "Crow" person who has the worldly name Eric Draven (played by Brandon Lee) is a murderous hunk of a dude. He's an archetype of selfish lawless justice.

The film is dark dark dark. The mood is dark, the lighting is dark, and the sets are made of dark things--wet pavement at night, blackish brick and empty alleyways, and dark clothes. And that's part of what works amazingly well. Amazingly. You get pulled into this nightmare of Detroit before Halloween, and if all the bad guys are like comic book awful, that's part of it, too. Thankfully it isn't too realistic. Detroit can be scary--I grew up in the outskirts, and I remember being scared for real on Devil's Night, October 30--but Detroit's nightmare isn't silly, not at all. And it's a city filled with decency, too. As one reviewer said, this makes Batman's Gotham look like the Emerald City. Not quite.

It's tough to get too demanding about more ordinary things like acting, because the movie doesn't strive for realism. And it sure succeeds at avoiding it. But it succeeds also in keeping us outside of any real sympathies for the characters, except for the little girl, Sarah, who is a terrific and believable presence. Lee was obviously chosen for his body and his rock star kind of good looks (his make up is more Aerosmith than anything, which makes sense because Eric Draven is a rock star). But Lee can't act worth beans, and that's everyone's opinion. Whether you think it matters is another thing. Watch it and see. He has a following of sorts (not like his father Bruce, of course), so that might help. And it's his last film--he died at only 28 years old from an accident during the filming of the movie (a dummy or re-charged blank bullet hit him from a prop gun). Unfortunately that's part of the legend and tragedy of the movie to this day.

We are overdue of a really good book overview of the comic book movies, to put their style and different intentions into perspective. Some are zany and live on their plasticky otherworldliness, like maybe the first breakthrough "Superman" movie (1978) which feels bright and colorful overall, or the Tim Burton "Batman" which isn't bright, but it's wacky. Most of these are have fakey scripts that just do the job of getting across the plot. The worst/best example of this might be the visually astonishing and ultimately boring "Watchmen" (which is a live-action animation). "Then there are the very serious seeming Nolan movies, the trilogy (so far), which tries to almost make Batman possible. The Robert Downey Jr. "Ironman" fits into that mold. And I think "The Crow" is really a precursor to these dark and realistic movies. Notice that "The Crow" precedes the first Nolan movie ("Batman Begins") by a decade.

But the key difference now is that the believability of the main characters is worlds apart in the two movies--compare Christian Bale with Brandon Lee. Or just look at the scripts of the two movies. It's a wonder that "The Crow" holds up as well as it does. But it does. And it's mostly because of how it was made. Amazing, beautiful, dark visuals and moving camera and incredibly smart editing. And as one last bizarre twist--it was shot in North Carolina, not Detroit--Detroit was probably too dangerous.

Alex Proyas milks the plot for all its worth and places The Crow beyond an average thriller and into the realm of motion picture brilliance. A heart warming tale backed up with enough gore and action to keep hard core violence fanatics interested. This stands The Crow as a masterpiece of cinematic wizardry, that is sure to impress even the most critical of viewers.

I've always known this is a classic horror movie but I was avoiding watching it because I thought it might be tacky.

The crow didn't disappoint. It's stylistic and moral plot is great. The crow becomes a likable and relatable character for every kind honest man who loves a beautiful woman.

Although the film is a little cliche at times, this little bit of cliche seems to add to the horror metal kitsch that makes the film a cult classic.

This film is a must watch for any cult film or horror film enthusiast! It's good for an easy night in and a good one to watch with your partner. Although spoilers you partner has to have an open mind about what a relationship film can be. Maybe not want to show on the first date.

Although Brandon Lee did not have many films to his credit, this one turned him into a legend. With witty one-liners, and eye-popping action, The Crow was his best work ever. Whether its the scene where he embeds a crow-like design in Tin-Tin's chest, or leaves behind a fiery calling card after sending T-bird to his death, Brandon Lee left his mark. I was also impressed with the film's cinematography. With black being the picture's dominant color, I felt it was a perfect fit with it's storyline. Michael Wincott delivered an equally impressive performance as Top Dollar, the evil mastermind behind the two grizzly murders. Brandon Lee truly saved his best for last. Rest In Peace Brandon.

Terrible. Just terrible. There is so little, if anything good to say about this film. Poor acting, terrible script with childish attempts at wit, inconsistencies, complete lack of shock or confusion from any of the characters at seeing a man coming back from the dead. There's a reason Brandon Lee only did Martial Arts flicks before this, it's clearly all he was good at. Stephen Hawking could convey emotion and act more convincingly than this ham. Without a doubt one of the worst films I have ever seen. Don't get drawn into liking it just because it's a cult film and you think you'll seem cool if you do - watch it and judge it by its qualities rather than its style, and you'll see this film for the stinker it is.