HEROES + VILLAINS

Did ‘The Crow’ Need To Be Rebooted?

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‘The Crow,’ for those who aren’t aware, is a 90’s cult classic starring the late Brandon Lee as Eric Draven, a man who was murdered while his fiancée was being killed. He comes back from the dead to “set things right” by murdering the people responsible, with the help of a Crow, supernatural powers, and immortality.

 

Fast forward to 2024 – and a trailer just dropped for a rebooted version, starring ‘IT’ actor Bill Skarsgård in the titular role. While the film’s trailer seemingly suggests that they will be following a similar storyline, there are a lot of reasons to ask the question “Did ‘The Crow’ Need To Be Rebooted?’

 

 

 

 

HISTORY OF ‘THE CROW’

 

One of the reasons that ‘The Crow’ is held in such high regard long after its release, on top of the performances in 1994, is due to its tragedy. The previously mentioned Brandon Lee was shot on set during a scene, which consequently led to his death.

 

NPR describes:

“Lee, who was the son of martial artist Bruce Lee, died after his co-star, actor Michael Massee, fired at him with a prop gun during filming on March 30, 1993, in Wilmington, North Carolina. Although the revolver was loaded with blanks, the gunpowder in the blank cartridge ignited, leading Massee to unknowingly fire a bullet fragment at Lee, who later died in surgery.”

 

With a movie that might have been ignored by some, this elevated its importance as Lee’s last performance, and led more people to fall in love with the film over the years, while adding it to the pantheon of Goth-appreciated cinema.

 

THE MUSIC ELEMENT

 

What already is lacking, at least, so far based on the trailer: there’s been no mention of tie-ins to music throughout the newly rebooted flick by director Rupert Sanders. While the trailer prominently features 2019’s “Take What You Want” from Ozzy Osborne, Post Malone, and Travis Scott, one of the major draws to ‘The Crow’ in 1994 was the soundtrack of the film.

 

Songs that elevated the scenes of the movie, such as “Burn” from The Cure, Nine Inch Nails’ “Dead Souls,” and Stone Temple Pilot’s “Big Empty,” along with live music performances within the movie from bands like My Life With The Kill Thrill Cult, lovers of the original film will more than likely have a harder time stomaching the loss of this element. Also, let’s not forget that Eric Draven’s character was a former lead musician in a band, and he has a scene in which he plays a guitar on the roof of the building where he once lived.

 

The 90s were a big era for Movie Soundtracks, with ‘The Crow’ Soundtrack positioned on Top 10 lists from journalists and fans alike. The film was able to advance new music to different audiences, and the performances from the club cemented its era overall. However, at least as of the release of this first trailer, “Take What You Want” is the only musical tie-in to be seen.

 

 

Streaming services have changed the landscape of music and releases, and given this film has been in production hell with so many changes over the years of who was to lead, it might have been part of the plan before and could have potentially been scrapped. The fact remains that this trailer was released with a five-year-old song rather than something new, likely indicating that this film will care less about that integral part of its former design despite what the director had to say to Vanity Fair.

 

In an excerpt from the article:

 

“What drew me to this was the opportunity to make a dark romance, something that dealt with loss, grief, and the ethereal veil between life and death and reaching through that,” says Sanders, whose previous credits include 2012’s Snow White and the Huntsman and 2017’s Ghost in the Shell. Realizing he’s beginning to sound a little emo, the Brit laughs and adds, “Look, I grew up listening to Joy Division and the Cure, and this movie is a bit like a Cure song—the beauty of melancholy.”

 

THE SETTING

 

The original film takes place in Detroit, Michigan on Devil’s Night. For those that do not have context on Devil’s Night, in the Midwest (but predominantly in Michigan), people took to the streets the night before Halloween to create “mischief.” While it began as a light piece of fun, it expanded into becoming one of the most dangerous nights in the city, where people would commit arson, among other crimes. This real-life lore sets the stage for ‘The Crow,’ when the characters who ultimately meet their deaths at Draven’s hand, work for a crime boss in the area named Top Dollar (Michael Wincott), with Devil’s Night being the date for their biggest offense of destruction.

 

When you compare what we’ve seen in the 2024 trailer for ‘The Crow’ to its predecessor, there is a lot of daylight and bright sequences. We see Skarsgård fighting in what looks to be a theater, brightly exposed clips from his time with his fiancé Shelly (played by FKA Twigs), and in what looks to be an abandoned greenhouse. When you put that up against 1994’s version, everything is dark and creates a sinister feeling throughout the film, with the brightest clips being inside a police precinct with Officer Albrecht (‘Ghostbusters’ Ernie Hudson), and later inside his home.

 

Color grading and lighting are so important to the mood of a scene, and with a film that is so dark in subject matter, the design of these two things helps to advance the story. It seems though, according to the Vanity Fair article, it may be an intentional choice to go a different direction.  “While Eric’s and Shelly’s onscreen deaths occur in the opening minutes of the 1994 version of The Crow, Sanders says that he always wanted his version of the story to have a more even balance between light and dark.” Whether he meant that in subject matter or the color grade and lighting, we’re not entirely sure, given some of the darkest sequences in the trailer are also brightly lit – but we won’t truly know until the film is released.

 

PUBLIC RECEPTION

 

While many who love the first film already have their reservations, people who don’t have a frame of reference on the cult classic still have an opinion. The first look at Skarsgård as Eric Draven sent people on social media into a frenzy, and the reception was… well, many jokes were had. YouTube comments cite “Florida Joker,” the man who tattooed himself to look like Jared Leto’s interpretation of the DC Villain, comparing him to the Joker himself, and even a comment or two about being a Doodle Bear or a Soundcloud Rapper.

 

 

Rochelle Davis, who plays the role of Sarah in the 1994 film, had some thoughts, reported by TMZ, which included her reaction of saying “yuck” after seeing the first images of Skarsgård as Draven. TMZ also notes that “Rochelle tells us she does NOT plan on watching the remake, mainly out of respect for Brandon, and she’s calling on other fans of the OG movie to boycott the new version.”

 

Sanders states that this design was less influenced by the source material and Brandon Lee’s character, but was more from his own life, telling Vanity Fair “That look was me in the ’90s when we were squat-raving in London, [mixed with some modern influences] like Post Malone and Lil Peep.” So, I guess the people throwing in “Soundcloud Rapper” weren’t far off.

 

With the recent trailer drop, here are some of the reactions from X:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WITH RESPECT

 

While this writer has no issue with saying “Thank You” to those creating films and putting their heart and soul into acting out something that they love, given what we’ve seen so far from these releases, we have to ask the question, “Can Hollywood please produce movies that are more unique and aren’t reboots of films we know and love?”

 

After reviewing the information, reading the articles, and writing this all down, it might come down to preference. If you have love and respect for 1994’s ‘The Crow’ and that love makes it one of your favorite films, this might be the worst thing to happen to your favorite (aside from the lackluster sequels that were created after). If you viewed the trailer and liked what you saw, we hope it meets your expectations. For this writer, I’m on the fence if I will ever watch it, personally. My love for the 1994 version and all its elements leads me to feeling as if I will find nothing but disappointment.

 

The release date is June 7, so there’s still time to convince me, I guess.

 

 

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