The State of the Crow 2000 Part I: The Salvation Deception

Crow fans began the year encouraged by the prospects of a new awakening for The Crow. A new Crow movie was headed for theatrical release. Talk of the series being resurrected abounded. It was surely a good time to be a Crow fan. But, as has been the case in recent years, fan optimism was dashed. In one deceptive act, Miramax managed to tear down that optimism and raise doubt about the future of The Crow. It seems, in January 2000, Miramax decided that Salvation would go directly to video, yet failed to let Pressman Films or the fans know. Based on the following information, "straight to video" was their intent all along. Miramax led Pressman Films and Crow fans into believing that Salvation would have a legitimate theatrical release. By leaking small, but encouraging, bits of information month after month, they managed to keep the deception going. They explained the delay of the movie release under the guise of pursuit of the best qualifying date to ensure that it would reach its core audience and the mass audience in general. Following their lead, Pressman arranged screenings of Salvation during Dragon-Con 2000 and Comic-Con. The attendance success of these events, along with positive fan reaction elevated hope among the fans that Salvation would be theatrically released in the near future. September 2000, Miramax announced a "test screening" of Salvation. The chosen site was Spokane Washington. Crow fans had already begun to have doubt as to the exactness of Miramax's proclaimed intentions. This announcement raised even more questions. What was the purpose of a "test screening"? And if there was to be a screening, why Spokane Washington? In reply, Miramax stated that Crow I and II had done well in Spokane. Along with the dubious location decision, Miramax failed to advertise the screening in an appropriate manner. To Crow fans, it looked as if The Crow: Salvation was set up for failure. Ultimately, that was the result. Salvation failed to bring in enough business to warrant a theatrical release in the eyes of Miramax. In keeping with what Crow fans regard as Miramax's master plan, Salvation will go video in January of 2001. Currently, there is a boycott against Miramax. The boycott proclaims that those participating will not purchase tickets for films made or distributed by Miramax. It further states that those participating will not rent or buy any of the movies made or distributed by the above. If you abhor the indifference and deception exhibited by Miramax, then let your voice be heard by participating in the boycott. Part II of "The State of the Crow 2000" will take a look at the serious issues that the Rated-R advertising debate has brought about. Take care LLcruize