Everything GREAT About The Crow!
Welcome to FlickFrenzy!
Subscribe now and dive into a world where every flick is a new thrill!
Subscribe now and dive into a world where every flick is a new thrill!
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00All it takes is some shaky credits and a Miramax logo to let you know this movie wasn't made
00:09any time in the last two decades and that gives me the warm fuzzies.
00:13And a stylized cityscape with a mixture of miniatures and visual effects in the best
00:16way that adds to the otherworldly nightmarish feeling of this story.
00:20Not to mention it's a one-er leading to a broken window and the legend Ernie Hudson.
00:23That when someone dies, the crow can bring that soul back to put the wrong things right.
00:29And sometimes with a, let's say, a hard to swallow concept like this,
00:33it's best to just come out and say it.
00:35What's the count so far?
00:36143 fires.
00:38They're slacking off from last year.
00:40Three hours to go, maybe they're just slow starters.
00:42Also, if you thought this Gotham-y looking flyover was a little too aggressive with the
00:46fires, apparently this was a real thing that happened in Detroit in the late 80s early 90s
00:50and this movie actually helped put an end to it.
00:52News to me.
00:53No, it's Amelia Earhart.
00:54We found a detective and you missed it.
00:56I don't care what her name is.
00:57Love the implication that the detective doesn't know who Amelia Earhart is.
01:01I've read that the first time men often get flowers is once they're dead,
01:04so let's start giving each other bouquets, bros.
01:07Bold move to be pushing Mongo in public in the 90s.
01:10Good for you, Sarah.
01:11No onions though, okay?
01:13They make you fart big time.
01:14Also, they destroy your breath.
01:16Sarah knows what's up.
01:16You know, Lake Erie actually caught on fire once from all the crap floating around in it.
01:21I wish I could have seen that.
01:24Hard to argue with that character intro.
01:26No confusion about his particular deal.
01:32Waking up in a grave and having to push your way out sounds terrible enough,
01:35but then they give us this dope POV shot to really help it sink in.
01:38I've always liked that Eric is confused and freaked out for a bit before he becomes the crow.
01:42I mean, if I came back from the dead to take vengeance on my killers,
01:45it'd probably take a few before I was ready to kick butt.
01:47Brandon Lee's workout roof?
01:49Hey, can't see it that well yet.
01:54It's gonna be busted there, isn't it?
01:57Stop double pilots!
01:58I want to hate these guys, but jamming out to Big Empty is making it hard.
02:01Granted, it's not like SDP were some indie band.
02:04It would be like blasting Not Like Us in a movie from this year.
02:06Big Empty first appeared on the Crow soundtrack?
02:09We're all learning stuff today.
02:11Sarah has clearly never eaten a hot dog before,
02:13but she's forgiven because that looks like a sub role.
02:16And Albrecht is just blowing smoke into her food.
02:18I've said it before and I'll say it again.
02:20The 90s were a hell of a time.
02:21Brandon Lee's workout roots?
02:23Yeah, hey, still too dark to make a judgment.
02:28I'll probably say it a few times because this movie is full of killer moody shots,
02:32but the door slamming open, the crow flying in toward the camera,
02:35the brain in minimal lighting?
02:37Killer moody shot.
02:43This whole sequence is absolutely brutal and I've always hated it,
02:46which is the point.
02:52Hey, it's the Hannibal King swing, but actually even cooler.
02:54And some excellent show don't tell that he's almost invincible.
03:00A fair way to nail home that these guys are nuts and pretty stupid.
03:03You ain't even loaded, man.
03:04This one is.
03:06Which of you wants to bet me this one isn't?
03:10Like, just completely bonkers, all of them.
03:16If you ain't painting your face and vibing to the cure,
03:18what are you even doing with your life or death?
03:21Wait, they wrote burn for this movie too?
03:23Love the shots through the broken glass,
03:25and it's killer that we don't fully see him yet.
03:27I mean, we're 16 minutes in and haven't really seen the main character's face yet.
03:35Just a fantastic pullout shot.
03:36Child molesting, saprophyte, motherf***er.
03:39Look, there are a lot of insults in there, but saprophyte?
03:42Like the fungi that eats dead stuff?
03:44That's cold, man.
03:47I'm not gonna sit here and tell you that every movie you've ever seen with this vibe
03:51was inspired by The Crow, but I'm also not not pointing out that Trinity
03:54was not the first nighttime moody roofrunner.
03:56I mean, Proyas directed Dark City too,
03:58but my point here is that The Matrix gets a lot of credit for its effect on culture,
04:01and I think that's fair because it garnered a much more palatable,
04:04mainstream type of cyberpunk tech wear,
04:06whereas The Crow revived the freaking goth movement.
04:09I said what I said.
04:12Also, hearing Trent Reznor's voice singing a Joy Division song,
04:15only to look it up and learn that Nine Inch Nails
04:17also released this song first on the soundtrack.
04:19Again, more show-don't-tell with Eric singing through the eyes of The Crow.
04:28Yeah, I'd be pretty terrified.
04:29And I love that the first real look at his fully-lit face
04:31is not the most heroic moment.
04:33Yeah, yeah, right, okay.
04:34Halloween, yeah.
04:35Some do, some don't.
04:36Whatever, man.
04:37The disrespect in that slap.
04:39Let me tell you about this.
04:40It's fun, it's easy.
04:43You're gonna learn all about it.
04:45Lawrence Mason is so likable as Nikon and hackers,
04:47and so despicable as Tintin and The Crow.
04:49We never miss.
04:53Look, is Eric cheating by using Crow vision?
04:56No, not at all.
04:56He's undead.
04:57Screw you for even asking.
04:58But adding insult to injury by not just making Tintin miss,
05:01but miss three times.
05:03I know medicine because of this movie,
05:05and that makes them famous to me.
05:07I assume you're on the same page.
05:08Dad gave me this.
05:09Fifth birthday.
05:11He said childhood's over the moment you know you're gonna die.
05:15That's funny, because Jude actually said that to me on his fifth birthday,
05:18and then muttered something under his breath about turritopsis dornei?
05:21Kids, am I right?
05:22But also has a voice ever disturbed you as much as Michael Wincott's?
05:25You never learned.
05:28He picked the right letters to look through for maximum terror.
05:34Oh, s**t.
05:35S**t on me.
05:36S**t on me!
05:38Eh, appropriate response.
05:39Mr. Gideon?
05:40Who?
05:40You're not paying attention.
05:42I love that among Eric's revenge,
05:43he gives us a handful of goofier TMNT moments.
05:46Comeuppance.
05:47That's a lot of comeuppance.
05:49What the hell do you call that?
05:51I call it blood, detective.
05:53I suppose you write it up as graffiti.
05:55So much sass.
05:56The way he says graffiti?
05:58Each one of these is a life.
06:01A life you helped destroy.
06:03I know it's not actually the case with pawn,
06:05but that line kept me away from pawn shops for many, many years.
06:08Is that gasoline I smell?
06:10Straight up best line in the film.
06:12Probably the best line from 1994.
06:13I know, I know what you're thinking.
06:15There was another very important movie from 94 about overcoming insurmountable odds.
06:20Three Ninjas Kick Back, the much-anticipated sequel to Three Ninjas.
06:23The detail of the ring shooting out of the barrel is awesome.
06:26On the house, kiddo, you know that.
06:28Even dark, scary movies about vengeance have sweeties in them.
06:31Do you know someone named T-Bird?
06:33He had a friend who shouldn't have played with knives.
06:36Murder jokes.
06:36They're all dead.
06:38They just don't know it yet.
06:40What an amazing villain line from the...
06:42Is he a hero?
06:43At least he didn't do that walking against the wind.
06:46I always thought that was some weird goth music reference,
06:48but I'm finally realizing that it's a mime joke.
06:50Just inhaling some eyeball fumes, NBD.
06:53Also, this movie has a thing with eyes, huh?
06:54They take hers.
06:55This dude winks.
06:57Also, that is a mountain of cocaine.
06:58Somebody stuck his blades in all his major organs in alphabetical order.
07:03I think he's being facetious here, but if not, that's pretty impressive.
07:06Let's assume waist up, neck down.
07:08Probably something like heart, intestines, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas, skin, spleen,
07:11and stomach?
07:12Sounds about right.
07:13You forgot your skin was an organ, didn't you?
07:15And now you're very aware that it is.
07:17My bad.
07:17Well, gentlemen, by all means, I think we ought to have an introspective moment of silence
07:21for poor old Temtem.
07:23More murder jokes.
07:24I mean, that one was pretty good.
07:26He couldn't have stopped.
07:27Even a butt face.
07:28I could have made it.
07:29Should we win calling someone a butt face?
07:31Let me just check with the boss.
07:33Yeah, yes.
07:34Yes, we can.
07:35Excellent insult.
07:35Can't rain all the time.
07:36Pretty much always saying can't rain all the time because of this film.
07:39Also, I like that we don't know why that signals to her that it's Eric.
07:42Dope hero shot.
07:43There's a big bird over there.
07:45It's a squab.
07:47Love that neither of them are freaked out by the crow and also plan to eat it, apparently,
07:51since squab is just a culinary term.
07:53Eat it, fun boy.
07:57That would make you poop your pants if you were stone cold sober.
08:00Now imagine it high.
08:04Again, is he a hero?
08:05Who could say?
08:06Batman likes to scare people, too.
08:11Priorities.
08:14Look, I know fun boys pure evil and making a genitals joke, but he also does have a gun tattoo.
08:19Mother is the name for God on the lips and hearts of all children.
08:23True and heartbreaking line, depending on the context.
08:26Such a cool concept of him being able to just suck the drugs out,
08:29and she straightens up so quickly after.
08:31Based on Tintin's fate, we can assume Eric doesn't really believe in less is more.
08:36Muffins.
08:37Boxers and a t-shirt, but hat still on.
08:39I dig it.
08:39You still have your hat on.
08:40It's like he's still a kid playing dress up.
08:42Smart way to make me like him.
08:43Sister.
08:44She's supposed to be your sister.
08:46My father's daughter.
08:48In a movie where crows bring you back to life for revenge,
08:50we're able to let a lot of weird stuff slide because Top Dollar.
08:54His name is Top Dollar.
08:56Because TD seems like the type to have a little magic going on,
08:58and I don't care that his sister is Chinese.
09:00I only care that they have threesomes together.
09:02What was my point?
09:04Right, Bai Ling is very attractive in a terrifying way.
09:10For f**k's sake, die, will ya?
09:12Give me that thing.
09:13Brutal.
09:15It's not funny.
09:16He killed that guy.
09:16You're laughing.
09:17Someone was stabbed with a rapier and then shot, and you're laughing.
09:20Stop laughing.
09:22Brutal.
09:29Men only want one thing,
09:30and it's to play electric guitar shirtless on top of a building at night,
09:33and it's disgusting.
09:35And it's very realistic that the line felt familiar,
09:42but she wasn't sure until she heard it on the album.
09:44Ha, half-comeuppance.
09:46Stupid ass hair, you're hitting my car.
09:49Getting out of the car after obliterating someone and calling them ass hair
09:53is top-tier hilarious and insane,
09:55and an amazing insult I think we should all be using more.
09:58What in the crap?
10:02Another coffee, another burn.
10:03Due to Brandon Lee's untimely death during filming,
10:05some scenes had to be filmed with a double.
10:07Many of them have Brandon's face digitally superimposed over the stunt double,
10:11but sometimes it was dark enough to just let it slide,
10:13and this was one of the latter scenes.
10:14If you pause it quick, you can see the face of Chad Stahelski.
10:18That's right, Neo's stunt double as well as director of John Wick.
10:21What?
10:21What do you want?
10:23What is it?
10:23What?
10:24Speak to me.
10:25Speak!
10:26I know you.
10:27I knew I knew you.
10:28There ain't no coming back.
10:30We killed your dad.
10:31There ain't no coming back.
10:32There ain't no coming back.
10:33It's so on point that T-Bird isn't all that scared until he finally recognized Eric.
10:37Is it scarier to know you're going to die by the hand of a dead man,
10:40or is it just that you now know for sure that you're going to die?
10:43Abash the devil's son.
10:46I feel how awful goodness is.
10:48I love this callback, and I gotta say,
10:49David Patrick Kelly is killing it in this scene.
10:52If you're trying to place why you know him,
10:53he's the warriors come out to play guy.
10:57And if you don't know that reference,
10:58you might remember Barry saying it in Archer.
11:00The wave.
11:03The death.
11:05By far the coolest death in this film.
11:09Yep, bats are cool, but the crow did it first.
11:14And cool guys don't look at explosions.
11:16I love that the grave is just wide open.
11:18It's not something like he appeared from a spirit realm thing.
11:20He literally crawled out of his grave, and now it's all messed up.
11:23Way scarier.
11:24Oh, forget it.
11:26I never was too good at this mommy s***.
11:28Over easy.
11:29I like them over easy.
11:33Leave it to the little ones to bring you to tears.
11:35And look, Darla's boyfriend just got murdered,
11:37and she went cold turkey in one night, so she's doing okay.
11:40But still ditch the guilt trip, Darla.
11:42I do appreciate that Sarah notices after being understandably skeptical.
11:45He's fused to his own car.
11:46We're gonna have to ID his teeth.
11:47Fused to the car has always stuck with me.
11:49Rough way to go out.
11:50Good reminder to not be a rapist murderer.
11:52And you steal one of my case files from homicide,
11:54and you're saying this is just a f***ing automobile accident?
11:57Yeah.
11:58Good speech, though.
11:58I didn't want to interrupt you.
11:59It sounded good.
12:00You didn't gotta write the s*** down.
12:01Sassy Ernie Hudson-Byrne.
12:03Brie and Lee's work are redeemed.
12:04There, got it.
12:05Hell with you.
12:06I thought you cared.
12:07Sarah, I do care.
12:09Now that's an entrance.
12:11His shadow and silhouette coming into focus.
12:13Stellar.
12:14Hugging.
12:14He's all painted up white.
12:15T-Bird, he sent me in for some rope bands, right?
12:18And he's back, right, T-Bird?
12:19Oh, T-Bird!
12:21It's you, buddy!
12:22We ought to just videotape this.
12:24Play it back in slow motion.
12:26And now Michael Wincott's going for the Ernie Hudson sass throne.
12:32Disgusting.
12:37But also, hell yeah, just a dude being a guy being a dude.
12:40But even more also, these vibrant oranges and reds of sunset clearly rip right off the page.
12:45It builds the intensity to where it's not even a surprise when Eric starts trashing his gear.
12:49My Life with the Thrill Kill Cult?
12:50This film has the most bonkers underground 90s music cameos.
12:53Overhead gearing up shots are always a win, even if it's baddies.
12:57Seems our friend T-Bird won't be joining us this evening on account of a slight case of death.
13:01Even more murder jokes.
13:03Should Michael Wincott just play every villain from now on?
13:05I started the first bars in this damn city.
13:08Sometimes you'll see an awesome shot and think,
13:10dang, that looks amazing, like right out of a comic book.
13:12And then it is.
13:14Gentlemen!
13:18Look, I'd never take anything away from Heath because his performance still made the scene.
13:22But you're seeing it, right?
13:24Joker interrupts the mob.
13:26Here am I, the Avenger.
13:29Honestly, that could be dope.
13:30Kind of like Raven in Teen Titans.
13:31I just want him.
13:34Well, you can.
13:35This is why Ultimate Power is always stupid.
13:37Had Top Dollar just given up Skank, Eric would have killed him and been at peace,
13:40and then Devil's Night could have deviled it up.
13:42Maybe it's just me, but an invincible hero who still has to use weapons is inherently cool.
13:46Especially quippy ones.
13:47Must be why we love Deadpool.
13:49Skank is pretty pathetic and sad.
13:50You almost feel bad for him.
13:52Then you remember what he did to Shelly and Eric,
13:54and then we see him use this woman as a human shield.
13:56Mark him.
14:01Super hard to hear under all the awesomeness,
14:03but it's my life with the Thrillkill cult playing again.
14:07Stick flip.
14:10Ah, seeing some of those Bruce Lee jeans at work finally.
14:12Also, just in general, this entire shootout scene is off the wall and brutal.
14:16I can't even really show most of it, but Eric kicks all the butts,
14:19slicing throats, tossing pools out windows.
14:21They managed to make being invincible cooler than you'd expect.
14:24And I know I've been singing the needle drops praises all video,
14:26but you also can't sleep on Graham Revelle's score.
14:29It's eerie and immediately brings you back to the 90s while somehow also feeling timeless.
14:34Brandon Lee in this scene and David Patrick Kelly in this scene
14:36both definitely set a tone, but the score solidifies it.
14:39This is the really real world.
14:41There ain't no coming back.
14:42We killed your dad.
14:43There ain't no coming back.
14:45Guess it's not a good day to be a bad guy, huh, Skank?
14:47And iconically, there's a scene where Skank and his dad
14:51Now, some quick thinking from Skank, I'll give it to him.
14:53But yeah, Eric's been saying that all movie.
14:55Yeah, Muppets.
14:56Also, another criminal, another bang.
14:58Eric's quick little dance away from the cops is never not funny.
15:01He's having a frolicking good time.
15:03Even the Matrix rooftop jumps are in here.
15:05Although I'll say this one sounds like he actually shattered all of his leg bones,
15:08and it probably hurt a lot.
15:09He just heals fast.
15:10Lay down and spread your arms.
15:12Lay down and spread your arms.
15:13Lay down and spread your arms.
15:15Lay down and spread your arms.
15:17Lay down and spread your arms.
15:18Lay down and spread your arms.
15:21So many cops think they're giving away donuts.
15:23Ha, got him.
15:25Hey, wait a minute, aren't you?
15:26So kill the girl, then destroy the man.
15:31Checks out the candy man is immediately on board with all the supernatural stuff.
15:34What a perfect little respite for our death tycoon.
15:36It's Halloween, so his tattered outfit, makeup, and even the blood are all acceptable,
15:40and it's like he forgets who he is for a split second.
15:42It's not the same as any of his smiles or laughs from earlier
15:45when he was either reveling in his new power
15:47or trying to instill maximum terror in his enemies.
15:50It's genuine and peaceful and hints at a totally different Eric from before that night.
15:54I gave this to Shelly once.
15:57I think she'd like you to have it.
15:59It's quite cool.
16:01Her eyes are so innocent.
16:04Character continuity, but ew.
16:06Eric, you're too big!
16:09I like that the crow can alert him to stuff even when he's distracted.
16:12Would get annoying but also very useful.
16:14And again, even after everyone tried to kill Eric and he killed everyone instead,
16:18he was done with them until they took Sarah.
16:20Aragorn who?
16:21Because of the doors?
16:24Did you know Viggo broke his toe when he kicked that?
16:26Yo, pure gothic beauty.
16:28Quick impression for you.
16:30Caw, caw, bang, I'm dead!
16:33Again, this dude is inappropriately funny for how evil he is.
16:40There are dark movies that take themselves very seriously, and it works.
16:43There are dark movies that yuck it up the entire time, and it works.
16:46And then there's the crow that slips back and forth the whole time,
16:49keeping you guessing while helping us connect to Eric,
16:51because, like, this is exactly how I'd be as an undead revenger.
16:54Vanishing to thin air again?
16:56I thought I'd use your front door.
16:57Ha, and I mean, Albrecht's to the rescue!
17:01Gross.
17:02Eye for an eye, gum ovens.
17:05Let her go!
17:06Again, poor choice of words, which makes TD...
17:09Oh, the dark dollar?
17:12You know that final fights in the rain are always a win,
17:14but as far as epic final fights go,
17:16on the roof of a gothic church at night in the rain
17:19takes it to a whole new level of epicocity.
17:21And using a steeple as a sword?
17:23Wait, no, it's like the spire, the finial?
17:26Why do churches have so many components?
17:28Not to keep harping on who and what is taken from the crow,
17:30but now that Eric's makeup is completely washed off,
17:32the best thing they did with it is let Brandon Lee actually apply it
17:35so that it always looked like the crow had done it.
17:38Always distressed, never exactly flawless,
17:40but absolutely perfect for the character.
17:42You have put a smile on my face.
17:44I'm sorry, is anything not ripped right out of the crow?
17:4730 hours of pain, all at once!
17:51All for you.
17:52Do I understand how it works?
17:54No.
17:54Do I care?
17:55No!
17:55Is it an awesome way to kill the final villain?
17:57Yes!
17:58Extra points for Spike's going through his chest and his mouth,
18:01as well as an Olympic-sized swimming pool worth of blood.
18:04God, I need a cigarette.
18:07Look, smoking is bad, kids.
18:08Don't do it.
18:09There are no benefits.
18:10But also I love that Eric doesn't go all dare on Albrecht
18:12and actually grants his poisonous tar-filled wish.
18:15Oh, yeah!
18:17I'm quitting ISM now.
18:18My dad spoke too soon on the dare propaganda.
18:20Why don't you dare to stop lying, you liar?
18:23This is a pro-smoking channel now.
18:24What you kept in here saved me.
18:27That explains it a little more if he can take memories like he did from Albrecht.
18:34I saw her through your eyes.
18:36You stayed with her the whole time.
18:37Why not pass him along?
18:39At least it stopped raining.
18:40I don't want to.
18:40It can't rain all the time.
18:42Eyes and rain, folks.
18:43That's what this movie is really about.
18:44All the power in the world resides in the eyes, fellow.
18:47Want to tell me what's going on?
18:49Your vigilante's up on the roof.
18:51You missed.
18:52That's some solid cover.
18:56Love.
18:56And a happy ending.
18:59Hope she keeps it secret, keeps it safe.
19:01Buildings burn, people die.
19:03But real love is forever.
19:05Hell yeah, Sarah.
19:05Hell yeah.
19:06And a nice way to end it.
19:07The Eliza is Eliza Hutton, Lee's former fiancée.
19:10Sadly, Brandon's death on set wasn't the only real-life tragedy surrounding The Crow.
19:14James O'Barr wrote the original comic in part to deal with the death of his own fiancée.
19:18The movie is tragic, but the comic is even more so.
19:20But I gotta say, the filmmakers not only filled in the areas that weren't filmed with Lee
19:23seamlessly, they created a movie that honors the actor and really gave him a legacy and
19:27fandom that still exists today for good reason.
19:30Look, it's got some pretty apparent flaws, but The Crow holds up.
19:33I could list off the gripes, but none of it really matters because this movie rules.
19:36It nails the vibe.
19:38The heroes are cool and likable, the villains are despicable but entertaining, and the story
19:42is straightforward.
19:43It's not always the easiest thing to make us root for a guy whose entire purpose is
19:46sadistic murder, but T-Bird and his crew really land that plane for us.
19:50And even if Brandon Lee wasn't ever going to be the next John Wick, he nails the moodier
19:54moments and clearly had fun with the character's more sadistic behavior.
19:56I sang Ernie Hudson and Michael Wincott's praises enough, but they both add a level
20:00of sophistication to the whole thing that really stands out to me now.
20:03I could make a whole separate video about the soundtrack because dang, it's so good.
20:07It's a pivotal 90s soundtrack and really represents a specific time and place.
20:11It's also heartwarming that the original Crow comic had references to both The Cure
20:15and Joy Division who both have songs on the soundtrack even if Joy Division's is a
20:19cover.
20:19But it's even more heartwarming because Obar asked The Cure if he could use one of their
20:22already released songs, The Hanging Garden, and Robert Smith was like, nah, I'll just
20:26write a new song in two days.
20:27And that was Burn.
20:28Also, SDP was originally going to use Only Dying from 1992, and when they heard that
20:32Brandon had died, they decided to write Big Empty.
20:34Learning the history of vital art like this can really get you thinking, but hopefully
20:37not too much.
20:38Hey, next week, another older one.
20:41Dang, maybe I'll switch it up for those of you who're not stoked on Bronze Age
20:44masterpieces.
20:45That's what we call the late 1900s now.
20:46I'm young like you!
20:55Is that gasoline I smell?
20:57No, man.
20:58No!
20:58Is that gasoline I smell?
21:01Is that gasoline I smell?
21:02Gasoline I smell?
21:03Is that gasoline I smell?