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The Crow, a supernatural fantasy horror hybrid that doubles as a superhero movie, turns 30 this year. Coincidentally, the first feature-length remake of the film is also set to hit theaters this year – and Bill Skarsgård has some pretty big shoes to fill.
When the remake was officially greenlit two years ago, I asked the reader (and myself) if we truly needed a new version of this story, a story that has remained virtually untouched for three decades. Sure, there have been three Crow sequels, but each film tells a different story about a different man who has been wronged and is brought back to life to put the wrong things right. The story of Eric Draven died onscreen alongside its actor, the incomparable Brandon Lee, and attempting to tell it again almost feels like desecrating a grave.
However, I was, and still am, down to give the 2024 remake a chance. At the heart of the franchise is a comic book of the same name, written and illustrated by James O'Barr. First released in 1989, it's a gut-wrenching tale of grief and what comes after. O'Barr's fiancée was hit and killed by a drunk driver while on the way to pick him up from work, and The Crow was created as a way for him to cope. The story follows a man named Eric Draven and his fiancée Shelly who, while taking a post-engagement road trip, are murdered by a merry band of criminals after their car breaks down. A crow brings Eric back from the dead in order to avenge their deaths – so both of their souls can rest.
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With a unique, superhero-esque character like Eric Draven, one who symbolizes both the rage and helplessness we feel in the face of loss, casting wasn't going to be easy – but it needed to be perfect. Christian Slater and River Phoenix were initially considered for the role, before Brandon Lee came into the mix. At this point in his career, he was known, much like his father Bruce Lee, for being a skilled martial artist with action and Kung Fu movies under his belt. It seemed like a strange casting choice to O'Barr, who was initially resistant, but Lee supposedly won him over with just one audition. Decades later, it's still hard to imagine anyone else but Lee on that screen, crawling out of a grave, breaking a mirror, and furiously applying that black-and-white makeup while 'Burn' by The Cure rages on in the background. Just like it's also hard to imagine anyone else standing in the rain and telling little Sarah that it "can't rain all the time."
Many people seem to regard The Crow as "the one where Brandon Lee died," when it's so, so much more than that. Lee was killed on set after a prop gun malfunctioned and shot a bullet straight into his abdomen, during the scene where he comes home and finds T-Bird, Skank, Tin-Tin, and Funboy assaulting Shelly. With three days left of filming, a few scenes were reshot with Lee's face superimposed onto a body double (none other than John Wick franchise helmer Chad Stahelski). The film was completed for Brandon, for his widow, and he deserves to be remembered for his beautifully powerful performance, for creating this beloved character that has stood the test of time and gone on to garner the most dedicated cult following.
Lee’s Draven has become an iconic entry into pop culture history. He speaks in riddles, is maniacal and insane, and ruthless when carrying out revenge, but is still prone to breaking down at the mere memory of his beloved Shelly. The bullet holes close in real-time, and he laughs at the horror on his victim's faces. But even while carrying out his revenge, he still stops to take care of Sarah (Rochelle Davis), who was sort of like their adoptive daughter when he and Shelly were alive. He, without even meaning to, fixes Officer Albrecht's (Ernie Hudson) marriage by simply telling him that "nothing is trivial."
Something new
The new Skarsgård-led film out later this year is meant to be a new adaptation of O'Barr's comic, a reimagining if you will. That said, the first-look images and trailer don't seem to ring true to those black-and-white pages. Though the classic Crow makeup suits him well, Skarsgård's Draven is decorated with tattoos that drew comparisons to Jared Leto's Joker.
The most jarring thing, to me, is the subversion of Eric and Shelly: rather than be innocent, everyday people, they are reimagined as criminals – and it's their criminal activity that gets them killed. This kind of lessens the significance of Eric's resurrection: a normal, kind man who would never hurt a fly is brought back from the dead and transforms into a cold-blooded vigilante killer – pushed to the edge of madness by grief and loss. Being a killer when he was alive and continuing to be one while he's (un)dead doesn't really hit the same.
The trailer doesn't give too much away, but so far there doesn't seem to be a Sarah, Officer Albrecht, or a fluffy white cat named Gabriel. The thugs that Eric hunts down don't seem to be "a jolly band of pirates with jolly pirate nicknames," as Lee's Draven calls them. It seems like an entirely new story loosely based on the source material, which is honestly great – a new story born from that universe is so exciting. But because it bears little to no resemblance to the original film and comic book story, I wish they would've been given new names... instead of Eric and Shelly. So far, those character names are the only thing keeping it in the remake/reboot category.
The remake has a lot to live up to then, and I want so badly for Skarsgård's modern-day Draven to match Lee’s performance. But at least, I hope that it will bring readers to the work that inspired it all and experience O'Barr's comic for the very first time. And I hope that you, dear reader, open up Prime Video, attend an anniversary screening, or fire up your VHS/DVD player and watch Alex Proyas's The Crow. Buildings burn, people die, but real love is forever.
The Crow is streaming now on Prime Video. The remake is set to hit theaters on August 23. For more, check out our list of the most exciting upcoming movies in 2024 and beyond.
