Summary
2024’sThe Crowmovie has been received incredibly poorly, and here are 10 reasons why the film’s reviews have been so miserable. On top ofThe Crowbeing a box office failure, the 2024 franchise revival has also failed to be a hit with fans or critics, with many viewers pointing out all kinds of flaws. A variety of criticisms have been levied at the film, and for those wondering why the reception ofThe Crowhas been so bad, these are the 10 most commonly recurring points when discussing the failures of the 2024 movie.
2024’sThe Crowattempts to retell the story of the iconic graphic novel, with it pulling from the source material as well as the beloved 1994The Crowmovie adaptation. 1994’sThe Crowhas a massive fanbase, with it being considered one of the best comic book adaptations of the decade. Because of this, there was a lot ofconcern from fans when the idea of 2024’sThe Crowreimagining was being discussed, and as it turns out, these concerns were valid (according to reviews).
10The Crow 2024 Spends Too Much Time On The Origin
“Were this a brisk 90 minutes, it might have been fine, but between the convoluted character backstories and the meandering plot, it was just boring.” - Kevin Carr,Fat Guys at the Movies
2024’sThe Crowattempted to tell a similar story to the original graphic novel and movie, although it did expand on the origin of the titular superhero. While most versions ofThe Crowhave Eric and Shelly get murdered rather quickly, the 2024 movie spends a lot more time on their relationship. This shift in focus didn’t really work, and while it seems like it’s finally time for classicThe Crowaction upon their deaths, it takes even longer before Eric dons the iconic makeup that the character is so associated with.
This decision could have worked if handled differently, but the way that it is played out in the film,it makes it seem as if the first act ofThe Crowtakes up the vast majority of the movie. It completely throws off the rhythm of the classicThe Crowstory, and since the relationship between Eric and Shelly wasn’t all that interesting, it makes this new take on the origin a huge mistake.
Why The Crow’s Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score Is So Much Higher Than The Critics Rating
2024’s The Crow has a terrible critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes so far, but its audience score is a lot higher, though still not great.
9The Remake Isn’t As Stylistic As The Original
“While it does have good performances and a decent visual language, a clumsy script and inevitable comparisons to the original doom it on arrival.” - Doug Walker,Channel Awesome
While the story ofThe Crowis great,the real reason that the franchise stands out is because of its style. The style of 1994’sThe Crowis the most memorable part of the movie, with the goth tone, music, and visual flair making it one of the best examples of 1990s edge. Although the 1994 film is in live-action, its style manages to make it feel like the original comics, even if there are a lot of changes.
Unfortunately,2024’sThe Crowremakeisn’t nearly as stylistic as its predecessor, with this being one of the movie’s biggest flaws. The direction, cinematography, editing, and music makeThe Crowfeel much more like a bland superhero blockbuster, with it not standing out at all. While there are some nice moments, such as the bloody scene that plays during the titlecards, the lack of style is a huge problem in 2024’sThe Crow.
8The Performances Aren’t Great
“The Crow is a dreadful new take on the comic book character that is drab to look at, horribly written, filled with wooden performances, and fails to make the goth-drenched anti-hero look and feel cool in this day and age.” - Jack Martin,Film Feeder
2024’sThe Crowhas a talented cast, with Bill Skarsgård taking on the titular role and Danny Huston playing the villain, while musician FKA Twigs plays Shelly. It is possible that all of these actors could have given incredible performances in 2024’sThe Crow, as they have all done so in other places. However, they just don’t work here, with their deliveries ranging from bland to bad.
The chemistry between Skarsgård and FKA Twigs just isn’t there, which is a problem considering that 2024’sThe Crowtried to give their relationship an even greater focus than the previous film. Skarsgård’s accent is inconsistent throughout, Huston’s performance is campy, and it is hard for anyone to deliver the corny lines in the serious tone that the film tries to maintain. Thus, none of the actors are able to live up to the performances seen in 1994’sThe Crow.
All The Crow Movies, Ranked Worst To Best
The Crow movie franchise began back in 1994 and here’s all four entries ranked from worst to best; the films are based on the cult graphic novel.
7The Crow 2024’s Writing Needs Work
“It drags through a slow love story, lacks the original’s dark, gritty atmosphere, and misses the intensity that made the 1994 film a cult classic.” - Alan Ng,Film Threat
The writing is another major problem inThe Crow2024, as it needed some serious work before the film was made. 2024’sThe Crowis full of nonsensical dialogue and poorly written lines, with it being near-impossible for the actors to deliver some of these reads in a convincing way. The film isn’t stylistic enough to make a weirder writing style work, which is the only thing that could have saved this dialogue.
Writing is more than dialogue, however, andthe failures ofThe Crow2024 can also be seen in its story. The pacing is all off, the character arcs feel incomplete, and some storylines just don’t make sense, such as when Eric and Shelly easily escape a rehabilitation institution without it ever again coming up in the story. Theoritacly some of these writing choices could have worked, butThe Crow2024 unfortunately doesn’t manage to pull them off.
6The Pacing Is Too Slow
“The weak pacing and character development don’t support the film’s clever ideas.” - Korey Coleman,Double Toasted
Another major problem with 2024’sThe Crowadaptation is that the pacing is way too slow, making the entire film drag on. The choice to not haveEric fully become The Crowuntil well into the film makes the first half of the movie feel as if it never escapes the first act. Fans ofThe Crowalready know what is going to happen, and since most viewers are there to see the superhero action, the decision to hold off on Eric’s transformation makes the first section of the movie feel like it is moving at the pace of a snail.
Elements ofThe Crow’s mystery are drip-fed to the audience far too slowly as well, with a fairly simple plot getting stretched out over nearly two hours.Some reviewers have even claimed that the runtime could have been cut down, with a tightening of the film’s pacing being one of the best choices that the movie could have made.
5The Visuals Are Bland
“There’s about 20 minutes where the movie comes to life, but most of the time, this is a drab, unengaging new version of the story.” - Eric Goldman,YouTube
Another major problem with 2024’sThe Crowis that the film is visually bland. Nothing in the movie is shot particularly well, with things like the lighting and shot composition not standing out from other blockbuster movies. SinceThe Crow1994 was oozing with style, not going all in on an interesting visual identity for 2024’sThe Crowwas a massive mistake.
The only exception to this is the action scenes,which do boast some fairly impressive camera work. The fight scene that is set in a car and the fight scene at the opera are the best two parts of the movie, and that is because the camerawork and lighting clearly got an upgrade in these sections. Unfortunately, these action scenes are few and far between, with most of the movie’s shots not leaving a lasting impression.
The Crow 2024 Soundtrack Guide: Every Song & When They Play
The Crow 2024 has a soundtrack with FKA twigs, Enya, and more to help set the film’s gothic mood. Here’s every song and when they play in the movie.
4Most Of The Movie Isn’t As Good As The Third Act
“It does get a third-act boost from a gloriously violent and savagely gory opera house scene that is expertly shot, edited, and choreographed.” - Keith Garlington,Keith & the Movies
2024’sThe Crowmay take a while to get there, but it does eventually pay off in the third act. The aforementioned opera action scene is almost universally being praised as the best part of the movie, with it being the first time that the film fully delivers on its promise of gory, edgy, stylistic action.This is sure to be the part that viewers remember when they are leaving the theater, but unfortunately, nothing else in the movie is nearly as good.
It takes forever to get toThe Crow’s exciting third act, and there isn’t much to cling on to while waiting for the final few action scenes. The aforementioned slow pace, boring dialogue, and bland visuals plague the first two acts of the movie, with things only picking up near theend ofThe Crowwhen Eric finally fully takes on his identity as The Crow.
3The Crow 2024 Makes Very Weird Story Choices
“A turkey in crow’s clothing.” - Olly Richards,Empire Magazine
2024’sThe Crowchanges a lot from the original story, and many of these decisions are quite weird.The Crowagain changes Eric and Shelly’s origin, but nearly every decision that the film makes is worse than what is seen in the comics and the 1994 movie. Eric and Shelly’s deaths aren’t as violent in this version, and the decision to not make them victims of a random act of violence also makes the world of the film feel a lot less interesting.
Most versions ofThe Crowstart out with Eric and Shelly engaged,meaning that Eric’s deep love for Shelly is already established. However, showing how they first met means that the film has to take on the burden of making their relationship so strong that it literally won’t let Eric die, something that the 2024 adaptation fails to pull off. On top of that, things like the rehabilitation institution escape and the bizarre villain raise more questions than they answer.
2The Crow 2024 Just Isn’t As Cool As The Crow Should Be
“‘The Crow’ is the fifth attempt to bring James O’Barr’s work to the big screen, and perhaps the one that least achieves the gothic splendor of the original comic.” - Aglaia Berlutti,El estímulo
WhileThe Crowdefinitely stands out from other superhero stories, one thing that the franchise is known for is its coolness factor. WhileThe Crowmay seem a bit dated when looking through the lens of the 2020s,The Crowwas incredibly cool when it first released, with it leaning into the punk and goth aesthetics of the era. The 1994The Crowmovie managed to perfectly capture this, especially with its music.
Unfortunately, 2024’sThe Crowisn’t cool at all.The film’s lack of style and originality means that there is nothing attractive about the film. The edge thatThe Crowis supposed to have feels a bit immature in the 2024 version, and it simply doesn’t manage to capture what made the original graphic novel and movie so memorable.
2024’s The Crow Could Be Great, But I Wish This Earlier Reboot Attempt Happened
Before the days of the 2024 The Crow film, a titled reboot was in development, with it starring one of the biggest actors of the modern day.
1The Crow 2024 Is An Unnecessary Remake Of The 1994 Original
One of the most commonly cited criticisms of the 2024The Crowremake is that it is unnecessary after the 1994 original. Due to the tragic death of Brandon Lee while shootingThe Crow,the role of Eric Dravenhas forever been associated with him. Some have seen the decision to do another version ofThe Crowas a bit disrespectful, believing that preserving the legacy of the original film is the best way to honor Lee’s legacy.
The 2024 movie has attempted to get around this criticism, with many involved in the film claiming that it is not a remake, but rather another adaptation ofThe Crowcomic books. Unfortunately, the 2024 movie doesn’t do enough to justify its existence, with it clearly heavily relying on the tropes that made the 1994The Crowmovie great.
The Crow
Cast
The Crow (2024) is a dark and gritty reimagining of the original graphic novel. It follows Eric, who is resurrected from the dead to avenge his and his soulmate’s brutal murders. Armed with supernatural abilities, Eric seeks justice against the killers responsible, navigating through a corrupt city that is as much a character as he is. This adaptation introduces new elements to captivate the modern audience!
