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It's the second day of production on The Crow: Salvation, my first day on the set, having just arrived in Salt Lake City from Los Angeles and hour ago. I've yet to meet the film's star, Eric Mabius, and while his bio says that he was on a nationally ranked luge team during high school (where he began to study acting) after witnessing his off-the-cuff fight choreography, I figure that they left off the part about the kung-fu lessons. I guess his PR people didn't want to confuse the issue, since Eric has already been tagged by critics as a young actor to watch. Having cut his teeth in the world in independent cinema with credits like Welcome to the Dollhouse and I shot Andy Warhol (his first two films) to this years Lawn Dogs and Black Circle Boys (both new tape releases). Eric's biggest mainstream exposure to date is the recent mean-teen hit, Cruel Intentions. by Jeff Conner/ transcription/typos/fuck ups by BCampo
Eric Mabius, how plays the new, younger Crow in CROW III: SALVATION, avidly read Shattered Lives and Broken Dreams, and anthology of new Crow short stories from Del Rey Books during production, and seemed to have a solid take on the mind set of O'Barr's dark angel. "After my death, when I come back, it's a clean slate because of the force of what happens to me and the process of being brought back to life," said Mabius. "I go from being an infant to being an avenger of all these things. It's like this Crow is the one that returns all of my memories. It drives me mad but at the same time it beings me back to my humanity. "The pleasure that this character derives from exacting justice is also something that appeals to me. In one scene he opens his arms out, with two fully loaded guns ready, and he lets these guys have their shot and they just open their clips up on me. That was an amazing experience to be squibbed like that and then come right back into it and drop them and they fall like dominoes. It's just one of my favorite scenes from a purely action stand-point." Mabius has been a fan of O'Barr's comics for years. Born in Pennsylvania, he moved around a lot while growing up back East, including stays in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and sic years in Manhattan before attending Sarah Lawrence College in California, He actually auditioned for one of the bad guy's roles in the first CROW film, when he was fresh out of high school. Still he didn't quite appreciate the fan base that supports this franchise until the public relations people on SALVATION presented everyone associated with the film with a bound version of the script, which included notes on the history of the series. "I had no idea that the first film had grossed over $150 million [CITY OF ANGELS barely grossed $30 million] and the soundtracks had done so well [they both went platinum]," admitted Mabius. "That's when I got a little nervous." "But all that did was make me dive back into the work I was doing with more responsibiliy. I felt the need to to bring something even more true and more believable to the part. My feeling was if I don't buy it, no one else is going to. That's how I think." Mabius went on to explain that in gearing up for the role of The Crow he concentrated on acting techniques more than real life experiences. He stated, "In preparation for this character, I wasn't going to watch someone be executed. I just wouldn't because that;s going to burn something into my brain that I'll never be able to get out. But I can look to actors who impress me, who've had similar roles, actors like Sean Penn, people who are all about the work." A key to relationship that helped Mabius in his quest to create a believable Crow came in the form of a kick boxer from Malaysia who served as his fight choreographer. "I spent every other day for sex weeks with this guy," Mabius said of David Lea, who has worked with the likes of Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes and Sandra Bullock and who appears in the film as a bouncer who gets into it with The Crow. "I did all right," said Mabius. "I was really pleased in that it became something that I sort of absorbed through my pores. His impact on me became apparent one day when we got to the set and there was a problem where we couldn't do the stunt." "They were going to have a stunt guy run up a wall, flip over, and on the way over pull two guns out of these guys' hands and land behind them and shoot them. But the rig wasn't working and it was physically impossible to get that kind of height in order to do that kind of stunt. So, I said, 'Well, Bharat we could save four hours if I just do this. And I slid back, spun around, came down, hit this guy's wrist, grabbed his gun, then came across and hit the other guy's wrist, took his gun, then came across and hit the other's guy's wrist, took his gun, spun back and shot them both. They ended up filming my suggested movements and it saved a lot of time." The suggestion not only saved the production time and money but it helped Mabius gain a little clout with the stunt crew. "The only reason I was able to suggest that sequence was because this guy had instilled problem-solving in me," continued Mabius. "A confidence and an awareness of manipulating someone else physically. And I have to tell you that it did not boost my ego when a lot of the stunt guys thought I was trying to be cool when I said I hadn't any training before. But the truth is, I just hadn't."  Mabius Interview
Wednesday, March24, 1999 -- The "hello" on the other end of the line sounded decidedly groggy. No, Eric Mabius claimed, he wasn't asleep, but he hadn't talked yet that Sunday. Clearly, although it was early afternoon in Utah where he was staying, the call had missed waking the former Amherst resident by minutes. It was his only day off from filming "The Crow: Salvation" that week, he explained, and one can hardly blame the actor for taking it easy. His days on the set for this second sequel to "The Crow" are grueling. Mabius plays the main character, who is framed for murder and executed, then comes back to life and fights, knifes, shoots and wreaks havoc on those responsible for his death. One day he hurled a lead pipe at a fellow actor. On another he was fitted with 14 squibs, small explosive charges used to simulate bullet hits on a body. "It was my first time being squibbed," he said enthusiastically. It's a long way from the days he played Paris in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" at Amherst Regional High School. Paris is a character notable mainly for being Romeo's last victim before he commits suicide. That first role came his way when Mabius, now 27, was a sophomore. In the dozen years since, Mabius has racked up a string of roles on film and television, including the indie movie hit "Welcome to the Dollhouse." Most recently, he had a guest-starring role on an episode of "Millennium," and he can be seen currently on the silver screen in "Cruel Intentions." Just as Mabius' character will be resurrected in "The Crow," so, he hopes, will the series find new life. This dark fantasy, based on a comic book published in Northampton by the now-defunct Kitchen Sink Press, took wing in 1994. That first film, starring Bruce Lee's son Brandon Lee, who died tragically during filming, made $100 million on the strength of the story and star Lee's final performance. Filmmakers thought they had a surefire hit in the sequel, "The Crow: City of Angels," which starred Vincent Perez. Though it opened well, this film failed to approach its predecessor's status. Now, Miramax Studios hopes the series will soar again with "The Crow: Salvation." The burden of those hopes rests in part on the shoulders of Mabius, who discovered his love of acting on the stage at Amherst Regional High. "The soundtrack's gone multiplatinum, VHS sales are 2 million in the U.S. alone, and it's a $100 million franchise. It's staggering," he said. "To follow in the footsteps of Brandon Lee is no easy task." Growing as an actor The Mabius family, which includes Eric, his older brother, Craig, and parents Elizabeth and Craig Mabius, moved to Amherst when Eric was in ninth grade. The following year, remembers teacher John Warthen, Mabius took an oral communications class. Warthen, who taught the course, recalls that Mabius really liked getting up in front of the class to do public speaking. Warthen suggested to him that he might enjoy acting. Later that year, Mabius played the role of Paris in "Romeo and Juliet." He was instantly hooked. "It was like a virus," he recalled in a Gazette interview in 1995. Warthen was impressed by Mabius' enthusiasm and talent. "He liked assuming the part. He has a romantic nature. He can get into the mindset of something being the most important thing at the time," Warthen said, a skill that helped Mabius in his acting. Mabius was also an athlete during his time at the high school - he trained seriously in luge for many years - and his athletic build got him a lot of tough guy and regular guy roles in those days, Warthen said. Mabius always seemed to be amused at playing these macho roles. After he graduated in 1989, Mabius went to Sarah Lawrence College, near New York City, where he lived for several years after graduating. While in the city, he began acting on stage and screen. His first major film role was in John Duigan's "The Journey of August King." Last year, he went west to Santa Monica and moved his parents to Los Angeles, too. Mabius, who is single, will have quite a bit to tell his former high school classmates should he make it to his 10-year reunion this year. In 1995, he received good reviews for his work in groundbreaking director Todd Solondz's "Welcome to the Dollhouse," as hunky Steve, the object of nerdy Dawn Wiener's affections. In addition to "The Journey of August King," he also had a role in Duigan's "Lawn Dogs." A role in the television series "Millennium" came his way recently through his work on "The Crow: Salvation." Chip Johannessen, who wrote the script for "Crow," created a part especially for him in the Jan. 15 episode of the TV show. Mabius played a mysterious man who always seems to be around when people die. Investigators suspect him of being a killer. Eventually, it becomes clear that he's taking people's lives in exchange for others, said Mabius, who described the character as part angel of mercy, part angel of death, who's on a sort of mission. "I earn my wings," he said. Warthen, who saw the episode, liked it and was particularly impressed with the last five minutes of the piece, which had Mabius underwater. Holding one's breath and acting, Warthen pointed out, are not easy to do. Larger than life Currently, Mabius can be seen in theaters in "Cruel Intentions," where he has a small part as a closeted gay football player manipulated by a pair of scheming step-siblings. It is a teen version of "Dangerous Liaisons" that stars Sarah Michelle Gellar of television's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Ryan Phillippe of "54." Mabius said the finished film lacks the cruelty that drew him to the original script . "It was a teen piece, but the writing was vicious and wicked," he said. "They ended up toning down a lot of the writing." His character, Greg McConnell, is blackmailed into helping Ryan Phillippe's Sebastian with his nasty plot to seduce a virginal new girl at their school. In one scene, he's caught in bed with a man by Phillippe. In the version seen onscreen, the exchange is verbal, with Greg pleading for mercy while Sebastian threatens him. In the original version Sebastian physically attacked Greg and taunted him, heightening the emotion of the moment. "It was so good. I wish they hadn't cut that," Mabius said. The filmmakers, feeling that the audience wouldn't accept something bad happening to a nice character, also added a scene to make Greg less appealing, in which he graphically describes a sexual experience with a girl. "I appear to be a rapist in the making," Mabius said. He hopes that people interpreted it as he did, as the football player's clumsy bluff to hide his true sexual orientation. A new crow takes flight Although "Cruel Intentions" is out now, Mabius' head is in an entirely different universe these days. For the past six weeks he's been in Salt Lake City, Utah, shooting "The Crow: Salvation." He expects to be there another month. Utah has been an experience, he said. "It's one big church. The state is ruled by Mormons. It's a different feeling. People complain about the blue laws in Massachusetts. Here, stores are closed on Sundays, at 6 p.m. on weekdays - and then there's me, walking around with my demonic mask," he said, bemused over the paradox. "The Crow: Salvation" is a grim tale. "It's the eve of my 21st birthday, and I'm on death row. I've been framed for the murder of my girlfriend," he explained. Mabius refers to the characters he plays in the first person, a habit that is jarring when he discusses "his" botched execution. "My face melts and I eventually die," he said. His innocence and gruesome death are important elements in Johannessen's script. "It's a neat anti-capital punishment statement he slides in there," Mabius said. After the character's death, the myth of the crow kicks in. "If a soul is left in a violent, unsettled state, it can't rest," he said. That's when the crow appears "to act as usher," and help the soul right the wrongs done to it. There's an image of a taxidermist mounting a crow, and as he puts the last piece in place, Mabius' character comes back to life, gruesomely disfigured and with a face bearing the scars of the execution. With the help of his girlfriend's younger sister (Kirsten Dunst, of "ER" and "Interview with a Vampire"), Mabius' character unravels the conspiracy that led to his death. Unlike the main characters in the other "Crow" pictures, this character doesn't know at first what's happened to him or what new supernatural powers he possesses. "In the other 'Crows,' the powers don't take (the characters) much by surprise," Mabius said. His character, though, "is like a kid with a new toy" when he discovers his strength and his empathic powers, something Mabius thinks is a more realistic conception of how a person might react to such unusual gifts. Mabius is a little like that, reveling in the physical demands of the role, for which he's doing "as much (stunt work) as I can safely get away with." It won't be him leaping from the rafters or crashing through plate glass, but he did train for weeks with a martial artist to learn the rudiments of kicking and knife-fighting, and described in detail one stunt that had him defending himself against a phalanx of attackers. This is Mabius' first supernatural thriller and one of his biggest roles to date, and the hiring process was tortuous. He met with a casting director, with producer Ed Pressman (who also has producer credits for "Badlands" and "Platoon," among others), and director Bharat Nalluri, an Indian making his American debut with this film. They liked him, but officials at Miramax needed convincing that they should cast Mabius instead of a name actor. Ultimately, however, Mabius got the part. "The whole process took five weeks," Mabius said. "It almost drove me nuts. Every actor thinks they're the best qualified (for a part), and when you live with something for that long, it seems so wrong for them not to choose you." According to Warthen, people who knew him when he was just starting out will root for him every time. "Everybody who knows him has kept an eye out for him with a smile, because whatever he gets, he probably earned," Warthen said. Carrying on the franchise in the tragic shadow of Brandon Lee
Eric Mabius, who serves as The Crow in the third installment of the series, sat quietly on a couch watching a journalist's frustration with a tape recorder. After a few minutes of drama Mabius quipped, "It's THE CROW curse!" The entire room broke into laughter. It was a great little joke that served quite effectively as a tension reliever. But it does belie a very real issue. And that is simply: from its inception this franchise has had its share of problems. The story of The Crow was conceived and written by cartoonist James O'Barr, when his fiancee was killed by a drunk driver. The emotionally distraught creator spent years agonizing over the loss as he drew the original comic book. He was quotes in Relieving The Pain in 1994 as saying, "I thought it would be cathartic, but as I drew each page, it made me more self-destructive, is anything. There is pure anger on each page, little murders. I was more messed up by the time I was done with the book." Brandon Lee, who played The Crow in the original feature film production, bought the curse to the public's attention when he was killed on set. His death was the result of an undetected dummy bullet being left in the barrel of a fun subsequently loaded with blanks that was used for a flashback sequence where Lee's character was murdered in the film. The dummy bullet hit him in the abdomen and mortally wounded him. The accident was linked to the fact that the on-set weapons master was sent home early in order to cut production cuts. Consequently the film was destroyed out of respect to Lee. What could not be destroyed was the impact those two incidents have had on this successful production. Unlike the replacement of James Bond or Batman, the replacement of Lee's Crow has never been fully accepted by fans of this series or, it would seem, the cast and crew. "I think the difference is that Sean Connery didn't die," said Mabius, about the difference between Agent 007 being replaced and The Crow being replaced. "Something was torn away from the audiences. In a sense, the very thing that brought about the creation of the character is what the audiences had a taste of. "Not that Brandon was a close personal friend of theirs. But it also goes back to James' fiancee having her life end so tragically. James had created a character, a face to the kind of angst and the turmoil that everyone goes through. Especially so for people experiencing love for the first, at the most important time in their lives, when they're in their teens and twenties." Although journalists were forbidden to ask questions concerning the direct impact of Lee's fatal shooting, the shadow of his presence continually rose during every interview. Mabius especially referred to Lee during the more routine inquiries. "I would have liked to have a conversation with Brandon about what he was thinking about during his scenes," admitted Mabius. "I'd be willing to wager he was playing the truth of the scenes, the situation of Eric Draven, as opposed to trying to extract buts from other people's performances and other texts. "The energy is what drives me. It's hard for me to find enough adjectives that describe the kind of energy, the labor of love, the passion that's behind this. It's a big task. Especially since the second one [which starred Vincent Perez as the second Crow] didn't do that well. And a lot of people were upset by them trying to replace Brandon Lee. And I can respect those people for the kind of love they had for Brandon." Even during a post production interview, producer Jeff Most eluded to the fact that this film had been free of any mishaps. He stated, "We're delighted to say that this is our first CROW production that we delivered on time, on schedule, on budget and without a single accident to any of the crew or cast or anyone involved . And we attribute that to a great deal of preparation and forethought, a desire to be proactive in making certain that we took every opportunity to ensure the swift moving of the production. "Everyone just pulled together and it was really smooth sailing. We had to obviously invest ourselves tremendously energy wise to make a film that for all intents and purposes looks at least two times the budget. We are very proud that we did that successfully at the same time that we maintained a strict watch on our budget and time schedule and precautions for safety for all the various aspects of shooting special effects and stunts. It all can be done if the team puts their collective mind to it." Mabius, when questioned about a particular scene were he was riddled with bullets, could not helped but be relieved that the stunt did not cost him anything more than a cheap thrill. "I'm excited that one of those squibs didn't blow up into my chest," revealed Mabius. "It's like, can I really do this? Because in that split second there is a taste of what it's like to have something explode in your chest. The nice part is to have it not hurt." The stylish horror comic franchise targets the teen set.
The Salvation of the new millennium is at hand. It will come with the release of THE CROW: SALVATION through Miramax, the accompanying CD by Coch Records and the continuation of the television series STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN, all via Pressman Films, run by Edward R. Pressman and Jeff Most. The only question is whether the public will buy it. Miramax opens the eagerly awaited third installment in the movie series nationwide March 31. The proclamation of THE CROW franchise has been successful in its endeavors thus far, with one blip. The first film was an industry kicker. Both of the previous CDs were unadulterated sidewalk melters. But the second film in the series, CITY OF ANGELS, was a financial bomb. Test audiences reviews for SALVATION are reportedly through the rood. The artists on the CD are mega-stompers. Even creator James O'Barr, who has had his disagreements with the producers in the past, commented on how much he enjoyed the sneak he got of the new film. And that more of than anything may be an insight as to the health of The Crow Corporation because the kids do care what the old man thinks. "We always take great pains to involve James at every level of development," said Jeff Most, who, along with Pressman, has produced all three CROW films/ "This was a promise I made to James when I first optioned the comics back in 1989. James has always been a vocal participant in the process as we have gone through everything from the selection of writers to the development of the scripts in their various stages and treatments, as well as the process of choosing a director and the casting process. "I keep constant contact with James. And I look for his input and insight. He is kind of our guiding light in many, many respects. We've taken great pains, I think, well beyond what is normal in Hollywood in terms of how writers and creators of material have been treated in the past to insure James is satisfied with our notions of what is the strong approach to the various elements of putting the feature together, as well as the television show. "And in every respect we want James O'Barr's thumbs up stamp of approval, 'Hey you guys are right on the money! This is inherently exactly what I'd like to see up there!'" said Most. "We want James' involvement. We always have. Without it, I think, THE CROW series would suffer because James has such a heartfelt, emotional soulful tie to this material. He is an extremely important person to THE CROW. Perhaps the most important single element in terms of an ongoing presence." The rumor mill has been running rampant for the last three years concerning the anticipated production of the third installment of THE CROW series. Speculations abounded that the next Crow would be a woman: it would be written by Rob Zombie (lead singer of the heavy metal/alternative group White Zombie): it was being filmed in Prague: and that it would involve a storyline where amid an apocalyptic war The Crow would be swayed by both Satan and Jesus Christ. "It's true we brought in Rob Zombie," said Most. "Rob, along with 50-odd other talented writers and directors, met with us regarding proposed stories for a third CROW feature. And we found Rob's version to be phenomenal." The premise of Zombie's story involved a dark priest of the Fallen One murdering a young boy and his mother in the year 2010. The boy's spirit is returned to earth one year later by The Crow, only to forget the horrors of his past life. Twenty seven years later as bounty hunter he remembers his past and sets off to exact revenge. "Ultimately Rob put in a a great deal of time and effort into writing a script that we very much wanted to produce," said Most. "It was an idea he had that was a non-CROW story that he had been working on that he adapted to be a CROW story. Rob and I scouted all over the Czech Republic and Slovakia for a kind of future-gothic, post-apocalypic Crow because one can take a Crow story anywhere on the time line, anywhere in the Universe. "After going through the screenwriting process and the scouting process, we ultimately found that he storyline was perhaps better meant for its own handling as a non-CROW feature. It's something that Pressman and I would relish doing in the near future with Rob. Quite frankly we envisioned his story as its own franchise. We find him to be an incredible talent. But one has certain adjustments to make when you're following in the footsteps of sequels." The producers eventually found a storyline that they felt fit in with the modern-day fable James O'Barr originally wrote ten years ago. They did however change one small aspect concerning The Crow himself. "We wanted a notion about how we wanted to approach the third feature," said Most. "I felt very certain that it would be very invigorating to do a younger Crow." Most's storyline was refined by Matt Greenberg (HALLOWEEN H20) and scripted by Chip Johanesson (MILLENIUM). Johanesson's script takes us to the small town of Salvation where Alex Corvis, played by Eric Mabius (WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE), is framed by a corrupt police force for the murder of his girlfriend Lauren Randall, who is portrayed by Jodi Lyn O'Keefe (HALLOWEEN H20). He is imprisoned, executed, and soon returns as The Crow, who, with the help of Lauren's kid sister Erin, played by Kirsten Dunst (INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE) wreaks havoc on the Captain of the police force, played by Fred Ward (TREMORS) and all his enlisted crooked cops. "My hat is off to Ed Pressman for discovering him," said Most of Johanesson. He's written the best CROW script to date, an extremely engrossing and evolving story that I think will keep audiences on the tip of their seats a they got thrills and chills, as well as a strong dose of the heart, which has always been such an essential element on the CROW films." Noted Nalluri of the earlier films in the series, "The first one was completely mold breaking and kind of set the standard as to how moves were going to be interpreted in the 1990s. I think it's a kind of iconic move. It made everyone try to live up to it. The second one, I think, was a great attempt by Tim [Pope, the director of CITY OF ANGELS, who is also a Brit] and Jean Yves Escoffer the d.p to actually take the move on and do something more with it." Nalluri credited the script for enticing him to come on board to make a sequel of a sequel. "It's a great script," said Nalluri, who likens his career to a traveling circus "So, you know, it wasn't about trying to make it something it wasn't. It was already a great script. That's where it always starts. I don't care how big the budget is or who is in it, if the script is good, then I'm interested. So I thought I had a fighting chance to make a good movie in the end." Bringing something new and fresh to this franchise was Nalluri's biggest challenge. He said he was intent on invigorating THE CROW with images that were different from anything CROW audiences had ever seen before. "I think I've got the most amazing cast," he said. "I've never worked with a better cast in my life. You just put them in front of the camera and they just explode with talent." When questioned about the downside of making the film Nalluri simply replied, "The usual moviemaking stuff. You'd rather have 80 days to shoot everything. You'd be cramming it all in. But it's been no more difficult than any other move." Nalluri wrapped six weeks of principal photography on Salt Lake City locations in March 1999. Typical to the production of the other two CROW films most of this production was shot late at night. It was not unusual for them to wrap filming at seven or eight in the morning. As a Brit, Nalluri follows in the storied horror tradition of James Whale, Hitchcock, Clive Barker and many others. "I think it's because we all went to public school," joked Nalluri, who makes his American film debut with SALVATION. "It's just something we kind of naturally go after having 14 years of school. It's like being in a Clive Barker seminary. I'm sure it fuels something, considering the history of it. You go back to FRANKENSTEIN, Shelly,-it goes back hundreds of years. I don't know where it comes from actually, that gothic romancing of the macabre. But that really is THE CROW, in its entirety. That expressionistic type of filmmaking." Although Nalluri joked about the effects English schooling has on its students, he credited those hallowed halls of horror has being germane to his interest in filmmaking "Basically it all come down to the fact I went to school with a very good friend of mine back in England, since the age of nine, a guy named Paul Anderson," said Nalluri, whose father is a professor and whose mother is an accountant. "He and I grew up in the same class. We made out first super eight films together. "We discovered a super eight camera in the art cupboard at school. I directed him. He directed me. He went on to direct MORTAL KOMBAT [his directing debut] and EVENT HORIZON and SOLDIER. He came down to the set one week. I'm about three years behind him [he laughed]. I'm hot on his heels!" "Chip had an amazing script," said Mabius, who up until THE CROW III had never done a genre film. "And I think it's very much true to James' [O'Barr] original vision and what was done in the first film. The relationships between the people in his film ring much more true to me. They ring true and that's what appealed to me. "I think that it's going to become apparent when people see the strength of the relationship between my character and Lauren's, the woman I'm in love with. James O'Barr experienced an archetypal love being torn away in such a violent way. And I always go right back to that. From the fountain everything comes, every action. It isn't about one dimensional sadistic violence. It's born out of the rage and frustration." When Mabius spoke of his character he made you believe he was really talking about himself. "There is one scene that I have with one of the cops where I say, 'What price for a life?'" said Mabius, who was on a nationally ranked luge team during his high school years. "For two lives: how can you measure what was taken away? It's immeasurable. And that's the sort of the soul of where I'm coming from with this character, to play all those moments, his frustration, his confusion. "I think what really appealed to me, with all that in mind, was when I'm framed for the murder of Lauren and then I'm electrocuted, not only is my girlfriend murdered but then there is this wicked twist in that I'm blamed for it, forced to live in prison and then executed. It's like adding insult to injury and then adding torture." Mabius noted that his role as a replacement Crow might seem lame to those who view the sequels with contempt. "I'm sure there are those that would roll their eyes at the fact that I'm doing the third film of any series," admitted Mabius, whose only real mainstream movie before doing SALVATION was the mean-teen hit CRUEL INTENTIONS. "But this has been a unique experience for me. All along the was the projects I have entered into have needed up being much more than I could have hoped. The first film I ever got was WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE and I didn't even have an agent. I was doing off-Broadwayplays. And 24 hours later I got a Miramax film: THE JOURNEY OF THE AUGUST KING." Although he didn't want to give the impression that he only was his role in THE CROW III as a stepping stone, Mabius was well aware that it might prove to be an asset to his still young career. "It certainly appeals to me in that respect," admitted Mabius, about the fact that THE CROW could take him places he has never gone to before. "If this allows me to do more of the projects that I want to do then it's even more of a blessing than it has been already and I hope that;s going to happen. I think, there's a certain amount of celebrity that will come along with this. "But it's the reason I did this film in the first place, that's going to keep me choosing the films that I'm going to choose. I'm always looking for projects that resound. I chose this part for sustaining reasons because it moved me." During the production of the film Mabius looked to his director for insight and support as each scene, violent or not, was mapped out, then shot. "That's what appealed to me about Bharat's take on the script," said Mabius. "There's an operatic quality to the script, that he talked about, were less is more. Especially having a palatable understanding of how audiences are more more savvy than they were, maybe, when the first one came out around [1994]. And things don't need to be said. They can be told with a gesture, a look. And that has everything to do with how Bharat sets the shots up and how he edits them. In conclusion Mabius did not rule out the idea that someday we may see him in an action flick again. But he did caution that the rules of the action flick have changed. He stated, "The thing that I gave discussed with Bharat: audiences require more nowadays. And that, unfortunately is why some kids how days don't want their parents' action idols. They want a whole new understanding of what and action star is. It's someone who can both act and do the action. You can't have one or the other. That's why, I think audiences end up feeling cheated by certain films." A big part of what drives THE CROW franchise is the collective producers' belief that they have a real gem of an idea on their hands and they want to see where they can take it. "I think inherently THE CROW has a very special strong message to tell," said Most. "There is something in this world that we all want to imagine exists and that's called poetic justice. It's described in various balances: yin and yang. There are all sorts of notions that stem from religion in various cultures that if there are wrongs-in some manner they will be right. "I think it's an essence of all our lives. We are all subject to hardships. We are all subjected to situation in which we know of people who have been hurt. Or we ourselves have been hurt. In THE CROW we replenish the notion that inherently the Universe looks after us, that there is a balance. There is a good that measures out in equal proportions and equal strength to any bad that may befall us that occurs upon our spirit, our work, our like, our friends, or families. "I think that as long as THE CROW is invigorating enough to unfold on the screen whether it be on the small screen on television or on the big screen as a feature, I think we should keep telling those stories," said Most. "I think a large part rests on the shoulders of our fans. I mean we are very sensitive to our fans' thoughts about The Crow, the emotional impact of The Crow. "As long as we affect an involvement, an emotional involvement, in our fans and as long as they are there to support dynamic storytelling and appreciate our efforts, I think we will try in every respect to come back with better stories as we have in this case with SALVATION. I truly believe that it's a matter of fulfilling those wishes and desires of our fans in tackling new territory with The Crow. You know we are already at work-even though this film has not come out-developing storylines for the fourth installment of THE CROW. In part because we have been so invigorated by all that has gone on with THE CROW III: SALVATION." This franchise has always has its eye on the distant horizon, with a strong commitment to change and the process of taking chances. "In the sense that one wished to continue on with something and make it special I think one has to take every ounce of effort and place it in the right areas of effort including reinvigorating or reinventing the storytelling," said Most. "And to that end, we certainly did not want THE CROW III: SALVATION to play out in the same schematic, if you will, of THE CROW and THE CROW II: CITY OF ANGELS. "So, for us, making this new and different, to make it in fact integrally more involving, from both an intellectual and emotional standpoint, as it was a visceral standpoint, was for us a realm of concern that this be something completely new. At the same time it had to be something that audiences are familiar with in terms of the character of what a Crow is. But we wanted to put the Crow into a completely new environment and tell the story in a manner we certainly have never seen before." The power of this boy's club can be seen in the talent they attract for their CDs. The SALVATION soundtrack will sport the likes of Monster Magnet, Danzig, Hole, Kid Rock, The Flys, Static X, Stabbing Westward and a number of bug zapping international industrial bands. It will no doubt have a hand in helping some members of the angst generation glimpse the hand of God. It's sure to rocks. Their industry clout can also be viewed in the fact that in a era of studio micro-managemment they are allowed, even encouraged, to be the mavericks and test the fringe. "You know we have a very fortunate situation, which is unusual in Hollywood filmmaking," said Most. "And that is: we do not have to follow marketing dictates, studio dictates per se, in that one can populate a film with people known for this or that, whether it be successful films or successful television or has built a career around doing various sorts of roles that can be akin to any particular role we have in the movie. "Our purest goal here was the find the finest for each and every role that we could and bring into the film. And again this is not always the process. It is often a marketing decision. But in as much as we have a successful franchise, a familiar name title in THE CROW, I think we're able to take some liberties and introduce aspects into the process, which might normally not be there." Incidentally don't discount the idea that we may one day see a woman don the mantle of The Crow. Most said that he and Pressman have been exploring the idea for years and it will probably happen one of these days. Transcribed by Irony Despair, written by Michael Beeler James O'Barr's dark avenger gets a third movie incarnation The Crow, the mythical creation of James O'Barr that returns from the dead to balance the scales of justice, is set to return. The producers of THE CROW III: SALVATION are proving one again that they are tenacious filmmakers. When Brandon Lee, the lead actor in the first CROW film was killed during production and Paramount abandoned the project, the producers didn't seem to hesitate. They simply enlisted the help of the effects wizards at Dream Quest, finished the film and found a new distributor. Likewise, when the second film CITY OF ANGELS was released to drab reviews and diminished ticket sales, the producers didn't bat an eyelash. They took the hits to their egos and pocketbooks and then quickly set out to make the third installment of THE CROW franchise. Dimension Films opens the Miramax and Edward R. Pressman production nationwide in the first quarter of 2000. Sitting in his hotel suite in Salt Lake City, Utah, where SALVATION was filming, producer Jeff Most showed himself to be a stout professional. He openly admitted to the failing of the second film, while enthusiastically detailing the reasons for making a third. "Well, the idea was to move ahead," said Most, who along with Edward R. Pressman had produced all of the CROW films. "Given that there is a huge CROW following out there, I think that we very nearly, after the opening of the second CROW, began a search for a great story and a great writer to work with a great story. The project, virtually immediately went into development. We wanted to get back into it. "I think that we could have done better with the second, in several respects. But, you know, it is often the case that the second picture, in a franchise, does not live up to the expectations of the first. Franchises have been saved, numerous times, by their third pictures and gone on to blossom into bigger and bigger success stories that stand for year and years. Decades." In order to spark the creative juices of this production, Chip Johansson, a writer and producer for Chris Carter's MILLENNIUM television series, was hired to write the screenplay from a story developed by Matt Greenberg, who wrote MIMIC. Bharat Narulli, the young London based director of KILLING TIME, was brought on to direct the film. Sixteen-year-old Kirsten Dunst, who was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her debut work in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE and has since appeared to critical notices in JUMANJI, SMALL SOLDIERS and LITTLE WOMEN, was enrolled as the lead actress. And Eric Mabius, who first came to notice in WELCOME TO THE DOLL HOUSE, the Grand Jury Prize winner at Sundance Film Festival, donned the face makeup and assumed the mantle of The Crow. Dunst admitted that she had never seen either of the CROW movies because she didn't want to see them before she did the movie. Mabius openly acknowledged that he was advised to avoid the second film, then went on to reveal that he had an interesting connection to the first movie. "To be honest with you," said Mabius, who portrays a new, younger, short-haired version of The Crow, "I haven't seen the second one. Bharat asked me not to. So I didn't watch it. "I did see the first one. Actually, when I was just out of high school-I graduated early-the first film I ever auditioned for was THE CROW. The first one. And the part-after Brandon was set, obviously because I was too young-the part I ended up reading for was the character who ended up shooting [Lee] during the shootings. They actually filmed it. So, I'm not upset that I didn't get the part." Mabius did go on to play other roles. He appeared in I SHOT ANDY WARHOL and THE JOURNEY OF THE AUGUST KING, as well as two telefilms and several plays, including Dinner At Eight and The Seagull. He has two well-recieved independent films newly released on video, LAWN DOGS and THE BLACK CIRCLE BOYS. LAWN DOGS is a phenomenal movie that was a fitting precursor to SALVATION in that it showed off both his chiseled, young, agile body and his mature depth as a performer. "It's interesting how things come full circle," Mabius returned when questioned about the benchmark established by Lee. "I've gotten it a hundred times: 'Is it hard following in Brandon's footsteps?' All of those kinds of questions. I'm sure that some people are going to be irate. They were for the second one. You know, for sort of desecrating the memory of Brandon." THE CROW was conceived in 1981 out of the haunting memories of a young writer could not shake, when his fiancée was senselessly killed by a drunk driver. James O'Barr's story was finally published, as a comic book, in 1981 but only after years of gnawing at his personal recollections of that tragic loss. The gothic story of love and revenge struck a nervein many who read it. Consequently, new Crow stories took root in other comics, books, the films, a television series and a soon to be released video game. Even the platinum soundtracks, from the first two movies, have had a hand in the retelling of The Crow. "People forget that the original story was born out of James' specific tragedy,' continued Mabius. "So no one person own specific rights. The Crow itself, the title doesn't revert to Brandon Lee r the character that I'm playing or Vincent Perez [The Crow in CITY OF ANGELS] played. It's about The Crow. "That's the common theme: the crow that brings these people back. It's about something that tears their souls apart, is not resolved, and they need it to be resolved. And this crow is the guide for them to do this. That's the common point. And unfortunately, it turned out that Brandon wasn't around to do a second and third CROW. But, it just happened, with each one it's been something different. And I think that each person is bringing something different. I'm not trying to cop out on the answer and make it all pretty. But, I really believe that. This film will move The Crow to a small town where a man is executed for the brutal murder of his girlfriend. Returning as The Crow, the victim becomes the hunter in order to track down the lethal corruption that killed him and grips the town of Salvation. Most of the production was filmed on location in and around Salt Lake City, with almost no use of the miniaturized cityscapes so prevalent in the first films. The film will also showcase some real street smart production designs from two upstarts: Maia Javan, production designer and Tom Meyer, art director. Special effects will be administered by the talents of KNB. "I think we relished the opportunity to devise an entirely new world, with new characters and a new telling of The Crow," concluded Most. "A new approach to the telling of The Crow story, was as big a desire as anything. I don't think it was an attempt to, in any manner, account for anything other than a desire to move ahead and make something even better than we have in the past. It's one that strives for artistically. "When you provide the world a film that was successful commercially and critically as the first CROW, you're challenged. And you want to come back, with something even finer, more detailed. You're strengthened by the desire to overcome the odds and make something more fantastic. And I think, in this respect, we certainly heard our calling. We really wanted to do something very new and fresh. And that's what we set out to do with THE CROW: SALVATION. O'Barr Interview at DragonCon The symposium with James O'Barr lasted a little over an hour. Christopher Golden (The Crow: Waking Nightmares), was scheduled to also be a part of the talk, but never showed up. After the discussion symposium was over, CrowFinder got to speak with O'Barr one on one, along with Crovus from "Deadman Visits You", and Bella Luna of "James O'Barr's Crownees Corner." James was very giving with his time , casually chatting with the group until it was time for everyone to be at other events. James will be at the 2nd screening of Salvation tonight, along with Eric Mabius. CrowFinder will again be there, as will Crovus and Bella. Here are a few of the questions O'Barr answered that we thought you would like to see answered, take care......LLcruize Question: Who would you like to see play the lead in a Crow movie? Obarr's Answer: Johnny Depp would be one of his top choices. Question: Was the Crow purposely written as a "gothic" story? O'Barr's Answer: Back when he started writing The Crow, there was no such thing as "gothic". He really is not sure what "gothic" is since there are so many interpretations. Question: Why did the Image comics only last 10 volumes? O'Barr's Answer: Basically, the only reason McFarlane published a comic was so they could get the option to put out the Eric Draven action figure. Without putting out the comic, they would not have been able to get the action figure options. Question: What is the status of the re-release of the original Crow story? O'Barr's Answer: Going to have all new covers, 2 to 6 pages of new artwork in each volume. Going to put back in pages that had originally been taken out. Due to overwhelming amount of fan letters, will include some of those at the back of each volume. Will be out later this year. Question: Do you have a computer? O'Barr's Answer: No, but will have one soon. Anxious to get out in the chat rooms and see what is being said about him. Reason that he has been hesitant about getting a computer is some of his friends have gotten computers and they (the computers) have taken away their creativity. He is afraid if he starts using the computer too much, he will loose touch with the pencil, and that is what he loves. Lastly, O'Barr talked about the new Crow story that he is working on, here is what he had to say about it: He is currently working on a Crow story that has a strong female lead as well as a male character. Neither character is as angelic as Eric and Shelly in the first story. The characters did not have such a great love life. They were not as "pure" as the characters in the first story. Along with retribution, we will also see the element of forgiveness that will have to happen between the two characters. O'BARR TALKS CROW MOVIE, COMICS James O'Barr, creator of The Crow, updated The Comics Continuum with news of the new movie, The Crow: Salvation, and a re-release of the original Crow comics story.
The new film has been completed for some time, but is still waiting for an official release date from Miramax's Dimension Films. "Last I heard, they're hoping to release it in September," O'Barr said. "It's been ready to go. They just need a time spot. They're releasing it in Europe on the 28th." O'Barr said he saw a rough cut of The Crow: Salvation - starring Eric Mabius and Kirsten Dunst - around Christmas. "It was pretty good, a lot better than the second one," O'Barr said. "It had the potential to be really good. It was different; it wasn't a repetition of the first one." O'Barr said that he will be reissuing the original Crow story through his own Blue Monkey Comics. The story will be eight issues. "There will be two to six new pages of art per book," he said. "And I'm fixing all the art that I wasn't happy with the first time." O'Barr said readjusting the story was a tricky proposition. "It gets to be a difficult situation," he said. "I could end up re-doing the whole thing again if I didn't show restraint." The series will contain new covers done this year - and a letters page, too. "There will be photos from the first film," O'Barr said. "I have a lot of photos of Brandon (Lee) on the set. They've been sitting in my basement long enough." Following that, O'Barr said he plans a new Crow book. "This time, it has a woman," O'Barr said. "It will be five to seven issues; I'm not sure yet. It depends on how quickly the story tells itself. I like to have some leeway." Thanks to: The Comic Book Continuum
A fading franchise hopes to be reborn as newcomer Eric Mabius takes flight in The Crow: Salvation "I think everyone's sick of actors who can't bridge the gap between action and drama," explains Eric Mabius, star of the upcoming The Crow: Salvation. "I thought a film like The Matrix was brilliant but the acting left a lot to be desired. There's a reason why the Die Hard-type movies and Schwarzenegger films aren't doing well. I think there's a niche that hasn't been filled yet of actors who can do action and drama." It goes without saying that the 28-year-old Mabius is angling to occupy that niche himself. And if you're to believe Salvation's cast and crew, he'll become Hollywood's Next Big Thing in the process. "I think he's going to be a superstar," gushes director Bharat Nalluri. Adds screenwriter Chip Johannessen: "I happened to know him before [he was cast in the role] and I swear to God, he was the one person to walk through the door where I was like, 'This guy is a movie star.' He's got this weird cosmic coolness to him and this real impish warmth. It's a very nice combination for the Crow. He brings a different vibe to it." Meanwhile, co-star Kirsten Dunst describes Mabius' appeal more succinctly. "He's got this air about him," she says with a giggle. "His eyes are amazing." Dimension Films hopes movie audiences are similarly enchanted with the young actor. Although Salvation is the third installment of the cult-favorite Crow series, the franchise has yet to fulfill the promise of the original film. Based on James O'Barr's comic book about a man who comes back from the dead to avenge his own murder, The Crow was a surprise hit in 1994, buoyed by its sleek goth look, cutting edge soundtrack and the magnetic Brandon Lee's posthumourious performance. (Lee was accidentally killed by a bullet from a stunt gun while filming the movie in 1993.) Despite the tragedy, a 1996 sequel, The Crow: City of Angels, was released with hit European star, Vincent Perez in the lead. But the tepid follow up was panned by critics and mostly ignored by fans, who derided Perez' anemic performance and the movie's lackluster script. Two years later, a Crow television series, The Crow: Stairway To Heaven, fared only slightly better, lasting a single season in syndication. With that kind of faltering track record, the franchise needs Salvation to live up to its name when the movie is released later this year. The film's spectral hero is Alex Corvis (Mabius(, a gentle blue-collar worker unjustly convicted of the brutal murder of his girlfriend, Lauren (Halloween H20's Jodi Lyn O'Keefe). After Alex is executed by the state on his 21st birthday he is resurrected with the supernatural powers of the Crow and begins unraveling the conspiracy that framed him and threatens the life of Lauren's 16-year-old sister (Interview with the Vampire's Kirsten Dunst). Rounding out the cast are veteran character actors Fred Ward (Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, Henry and June) and William Atherton (Die Hard). According to director Nalluri, best known for his British crime thriller Killing Time, the movie's mystery elements help separate Salvation from its predecessors. "It's very easy to make the Crow this guy who comes back and starts killing everyone," he says. "This actually has the strongest story element of all three movies. The audience is kept wondering what's going to happen at every twist and turn." Creating a fresh angle for the Crow concept was important to screenwriter Johannessen, a self professed fan of the original film. Johannessen was an executive producer of Chris Carter's eerie TV drama Millennium when he bumped into Salvation producer Edward Pressman on the beach during a vacation. "He plopped his umbrella in front of me, and I got up to say, 'Hey, what the hell are you doing"'" he recalls. "Ed noticed I was wearing a Millennium T-shirt, and we got to talking." Johannessen eventually fashioned a screenplay he thought gave the series' traditionally stylish action a bit more depth. "Doing something that was more emotional was more interesting to me than, say, making it a female Crow in the 18th century," Johannessen says. "Salvation has cool action stuff and a great soundtrack the sorts of things you would expect. But I think it has some emotional moments, especially with Kirsten Dunst and the scenes between Eric and Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, that work really well, too. Also, I felt there was room for a little more mystery, particularly because the Crow comes back disorientated and doesn't exactly know what happened to him. So we're figuring it out at the same time he is." As helpful as a substantial script may be, however, there's no denying that Salvation's success ultimately hinges on the audience's acceptance of Mabius in the lead role. Until now, the actor has worked mostly on indie features such as Welcome to the Dollhouse and Lawn Dogs and is best known for a supporting part in Cruel Intentions. Indeed, the actor is so obscure to mainstream audiences that Dunst is listed first in the movie's production notes. Mabius says that some of the "powers that be" wanted a more recognizable star in the role. He also admits to having had reservations about being compared to Brandon Lee during the early stages of Salvation's production, when he spent weeks training with fight choreographer David Lea (Batman). "Dave Lea and I started working very intensely every day because I knew I had a lot to try and cover in a short amount of time," says Mabius, whose previous athletic training was a far cry from the Crow's patented martial arts - he's a former member of the U.S national junior luge team. "But the more I learned the more I realized that I didn't know. I asked Bharat, 'How am I going to become nearly as proficient as I want to be?' He told me that I needed to relax, that the part in the first film played to Brandon's strengths and this film was playing to mine. It's much more of a character-driven piece. I trained my ass off and eventually was confident in my [fighting] ability, but the director was insistent upon it not being a chopsocky movie." "I think from the beginning Eric and I set out to make this his own film," Nalluri adds. "Eric brings the weight of a very strong actor and a real pathos to the role without overburdening the character. He's instantly likable; I think because of that emotional attachment to gain with Eric you go on a really big ride with him, especially since he plays a younger character. He's going through that troubled time we always go through. The experience is a kind of rite of passage and I think it's a very interested place to put the Crow." But while everyone involved is confident of Mabius' performance and agrees he brings a more theatrical sensibility to the franchise, the thoughtful young actor also fulfills another important requirement: He's eager to mingle with Crow fans and already has attended a few horror movie conventions in support of the film. "I love doing conventions," he says. "It's just great to be able to talk to these people and show them that I appreciate their very existence." Mabius adds that he's also touched by the story's tragic origins-O'Barr wrote the Crow comics books after his own girlfriend was killed by a drunk driver. "To understand the turning of James O'Barr's tragedy to such catharsis for millions and millions of people...I know it sounds really simplistic or trite, but it blows me away," he says. "It's just so cool I can't describe it. The idea that love, literally, never dies-that not only attracted me to the part originally, it continued to ground me in the role." Aside from the new cast and crew, Salvation brings a few other changes to the Crow mythos-the character's striking black-and-white facial markings have been altered to reflect Corvis' "death mask" during his execution, while a new all-star soundtrack is being prepared for the movie, including tracks from filter, Hole, Kid Rock and Danzig. In the end, the filmmakers hope that Salvation helps the franchise soar once again, even as they try to transcend it. "Our biggest challenge was not to be burdened by The Crow and The Crow: City of Angels," Nalluri says. "We wanted to go out and make our own thing, something fresh and exciting so the audience watches it and doesn't go, 'Here we go again.' Basically that was a daily challenge to come up with something slightly more left-field, to find things that haven't been done before in this franchise and also in the whole genre of this kind of filmmaking. And I have to say," he adds with a mischievous laugh, "I think we've quite managed that." Thanks to: Cinescape Magazine, written by Annabelle Villanueva, transcribed by Irony Despair DUNST TALKS CROW The soundtrack artists for the upcoming The Crow: Salvation feature film haven't been announced yet, but one of the movie's stars has a recommendation or two. "I think this movie should have Korn in it," said Kirsten Dunst, who plays Erin Randall, the sister of the murdered girlfriend of the new Crow, played by Eric Mabius. "And the Beastie Boys maybe. I don't know if they've had rap music in before (in Crow movies), but I just think all their CDs are great. "But definitely Korn - I see that the most. They're the major ones for me that I want to see in the movie." Dunst, who recently turned 17, is part of the demographic targeted when The Crow: Salvation reaches theaters next spring. The new Crow is far younger than his movie predecessors, a deliberate attempt to bring in the crowds that have been so prevalent in recent box-office successes. And Dunst said she's playing a strong female character which the young moviegoers will like. "Usually girls in films, especially these kinds of films where there's a lot of action, they don't do as much," Dunst said. "Erin kicks butt in the film. She doesn't stand back and just watch. I liked that about her character a lot. "I get to shoot a gun. She's not like a girl who will sit there and let bad stuff happen to her. She tries get out of whatever she can. I stab people; I don't sit back and watch - which I likied." Six weeks of principal photography of The Crow Salvation, a $17 million production, ended in late March in Salt Lake City, Utah. A lot of the film, directed by Bharat Nalluri, was shot in the wee hours for the film's night scenes. "They were really good about it, though, because I got off every night at like 12:30, so it wasn't bad at all for me," Dunst said. "It wasn't that hard of a shoot for me. The role was demanding, but the hours weren't." And what did Dunst think about co-star Mabius? "I think Eric and I had a really amazing chemistry on screen," Dunst said. "Every time I worked with him, it was so intense. His eyes are amazing to look at. With that Crow make-up on, you have to express so much with your eyes and everything - and I think he's very intense. "He comes across as one of the best Crows, I definitely think so. He's got a very good air about him, that kind of mystique of a mystery man. His eyes are very powerful. A very good actor." While post-production of The Crow: Salvation - third in the series based on the comic-book characters and concepts created by James O'Barr -- continues until year's end, fans of Dunst can see her in two comedies this summer, Drop Dead Gorgeous and Dick. "I do get into heavy-duty stuff, but then I do comedies," Dunst said of her roles. "I have two comedies coming out, but then I did The Devil's Arithmetic (a Showtime movie) and then the Virgin Suicides, which is also a darker film. "I like mixing everything. I want to make sure I just don't do one type of film. I have an interest in everything and I think you grow as an actor by doing more different kind of roles." Ed Pressman Photography has wrapped on The Crow: Salvation and producer Ed Pressman is talking up the current status of the the film. While talking to the Detroit News Comic Book Continuum, Pressman revealed, "The film could, theoretically, come out even this winter, which would be especially quick. The likelihood is the thought that it would come out this spring." Pressman talks of the film itself, "The movie looks very strong and we're very happy with it. It's on a pace that is not at all longer than normal." Regarding just having seen the director’s cut, Pressman says, "It was 98 minutes - and it was terrific. I was very, very pleased. We're actually going to have a screening with a small audience and then we're going back into the editing room and finish the movie. We deliver, I think, in September." Bharat Nalluri By Rob Allstetter/The Detroit News SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- It didn't take long to realize there's something different going on with The Crow: Salvation. As soon as you take a couple of steps onto the set, sequestered on a dusty trainyard in an industrial area of Salt Lake City, Eric Mabius, the actor playing the new Crow, comes into view. Mabius looks nothing like the previous feature-film Crows; there's no long black hair like that worn by Brandon Lee or Vincent Perez or even the TV Crow Mark Dacascos. There's no black outfit. Instead, there's a jumpsuit, something like you would see on a gas attendant or (hint, hint) a prisoner. There's no face painting. Instead, Mabius' Crow sports painful-looking scars. And this guy's definitely younger than the other Crows. He looks 21, not 31. To borrow a phrase from the X-Men, this is "an all-new, all-different" take on the concept created by Metro Detroiter James O'Barr. As The Crow franchise reaches its third movie, the follow-up to The Crow and The Crow: City of Angels marks the biggest departure of any Crow flick. Skewed with younger characters and new twists to the mythos established by O'Barr, The Crow: Salvation looks to keep the franchise flying into the next century. The Continuum visited the set of The Crow: Salvation last week, and this is the first in a series of reports on the movie. This one is basically a primer on the film look for more photographs, detailed information and features here in future weeks. THE PRODUCTION The Crow: Salvation completed six weeks of principal photography on Sunday. The $12-million production is from Edward R. Pressman Film Corp. and will be released by Miramax/Dimension. Like the first two Crow movies, The Crow: Salvation is being produced by Pressman and Jeff Most. Chip Johannessen, a writer and producer of Fox's Millennium television series, wrote the screenplay, based on a story by Matt Greenberg (Mimic). "I certainly believe, in my heart of hearts, this is the best production we've had on The Crow," Most said. "We certainly have the finest screenplay we've yet had to work on in terms of a new telling of The Crow. "It's hard to compare to the first Crow because it's such an enigma and it is such a worshipped film. That said, I think that, due to the first Crow being able to establish what a Crow is, we've been able to take all of that impetus and put it in a dynamic storytelling that is very different from either of the first two movies which in many ways resembled each other in a storytelling schematic." British director Bharat Nalluri, whose credits include Downtime and Killing Time, is making his American film debut with The Crow: Salvation. "I think we have the most talented director we've had to work with," Most said. "Bharat is our only Crow director who had directed features before The Crow. Both Alex Proyas and Tim Pope, it was their first feature. "Bharat comes to the set with an assurance, an understanding, a depth of knowledge and a passion for the material that oozes from his pores. We see it in the dailies, and sitting behind the monitor, I see it every evening." "Middle of last year, I didn't know I was going to be doing The Crow," Nalluri said. "I just made two successful movies back in England and was starting to do commercials, and, for some reason, my reel ended up on Pressman's table. "They loved it, and I got a phone call. And they said, 'Your stuff looks really, really sexy and dynamic.' I flew in, and we had a meeting. "They said, 'What would you like to do with the Crow if you had a chance?' "I said, 'I'd like to do a young Crow. I'd like to bring it down so all the actors were 16, 18, 21. Make old people bad. Make young people good.' "They said, 'Oh, that's funny, here's the script.' Obviously, we were on the same wavelength right from the start. And that's it. Here I am in Utah!" Nalluri said he hopes to put his stamp on the franchise. "This is my film," he said. "They were calling it Crow 3 when I came on, and I went, 'No, this is The Crow: Salvation.' It's its own movie; it's a very different story and we've done something very fresh and new to it. And it has a new visual style. We've brought it up to date, and the editing style is going to be pretty radical." Nalluri said he expects to be in postproduction on The Crow: Salvation through the end of the year. According to Most, The Crow: Salvation is being targeted for a spring 2000 release. "We've understood that Miramax might want to take advantage of a mid- March opportunity next year," Most said, "which ties in with spring break, Easter break, midweek business ... that sort of thing." THE STORY The Crow: Salvation centers around 21-year-old Alex Corvis, who is sent to the electric chair for a crime he did not commit: the brutal murder of his girlfriend, Lauren Randall. His subsequent resurrection signals the birth of a new Crow, who must find out who is behind the conspiracy that led to Lauren's murder. The twist is that this Crow doesn't have a clear path to redemption. THE CAST Eric Mabius stars as Alex Corvis, the new Crow. Mabius starred in Welcome to the Dollhouse, the Grand Jury winner at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival. He also appeared in I Shot Andy Warhol and The Journey of the August King and the independent films Lawn Dogs and The Black Circle Boys. Mabius attracted director Narulli's attention with Lawn Dogs. Narulli was editing his last movie, Downtime, in London while Lawn Dogs was being edited just down the corridor, giving him an excellent opportunity to see Mabius' work. "I thought this guy was brilliant, and he really stuck in my head," Narulli said. "I came to L.A. and everyone had the consensus of making a young Crow, a 21-year-old Crow. Someone who is the fan base, basically. "They said, 'Who do you want?' And I said, 'Eric.' He was the first choice. He came in, and we got on like a house afire. I'm so glad we made this choice. He's a brilliant actor. "He's very physical. He doesn't come from a martial-arts background, but we put him through training and he took to it like a duck to water." Mabius said he was grateful with the chance to continue the legacy of The Crow, following the feature-film footsteps of Brandon Lee and Vincent Perez. "The process started in October, and it wasn't very quick five weeks," he recalled. "I would sort of put it out of my mind and then I would get these tortuous calls 'Oh, you're still in the mix.' "They didn't go with the obvious choice. Everybody could have wanted a television face, a hot face, but Bharat and Jeff stuck by me as did Ed. Without Bharat pushing for me like he did..." For his first action movie, Mabius, a former luger, was trained by David Lea, who was Michael Keaton's stunt double in Batman and Batman Returns. "He's very natural," Lea said. "He's one of the persons I've worked with who's come across with flying colors." And while an energetic Mabius comes across convincingly in the action scenes even coming up with some impromptu fight choreography on the set - he was just as happy with the more emotional moments in the filming. "I was amazed at how rich the script is," Mabius said. "That's part of the reason I took the part. Obviously, The Crow is a genre piece, but there's a lot more respect from the audience, and it requires more. It's the revenge I need to find and the love I have for Lauren that brings me back. "When I don't know where I am at times (during the production), I am always going back to that and it sets me up again." Kirsten Dunst plays Erin Randall, the kid sister of the murdered Lauren. Dunst, 16, is best known for her Golden Globe-nominated role in Interview with the Vampire. Her film credits include Little Women, Jumanji, Wag the Dog, Small Soldiers and the upcoming Drop Dead Gorgeous and Virgin Suicides. She also appeared in the television series ER. "Kirsten Dunst is truly the finest actress of her generation," Most said. "I mean, we roll cameras, the director and I sit behind the monitor and we just look at each other in awe." "Kirsten Dunst is probably the most naturally gifted actor I've worked with in my life," Narulli said. "Stunning. A 16-year-old, and boy, can she act. We were very, very lucky to get her. You know her pedigree. "She fell in love with the script and was very keyed to do it. The chemistry between her and Eric has been perfect. It really leaps off the screen. The best stuff in the movie is just them." Fred Ward plays the captain of the police force. He has more than 35 films to his credit, including the recent Chain Reaction and Dangerous Beauty. Genre fans probably know him best from the Tremors movies and Cast a Deadly Spell. "Fred Ward is really cool," Narulli said. "I remember Fred Ward from things like Miami Blues, The Right Stuff and Tremors. He's an established actor a really good actor and to get him to come on board is just great." Jodi Lynn O'Keefe plays Alex's girlfriend Lauren. A former model, O'Keefe appeared in more than 75 episodes of NBC's Another World soap opera and has a recurring role as Don Johnson's daughter in CBS' Nash Bridges. She was featured in last week's issue of TV Guide. In feature films, O'Keefe has appeared in Halloween: H20 and currently can be seen in Miramax's She's All That. Grant Shaud plays Alex's lawyer. Shaud is best known for playing Miles, the put-upon program director, in the long-running sitcom Murphy Brown. Since leaving the series, Shaud has appeared in guest-star appearances and in the telefilms The Distinguished Gentleman and From Earth to the Moon. THE SOUNDTRACK Music has always been a key factor in Crow films, and Most is again assembling an original rock soundtrack. "It's the one area I don't like to talk about until I've got all the contracts signed, seal and delivered," Most said, "because it's a bit of a worrisome situation if you go out and scream from the rooftops about what great acts you have, and then, God forbid, contractually something doesn't work." Most said his goal as with all Crow films - is to produce new music specifically for the soundtrack. "What I found is that, in identifying music for The Crow, it is certainly a matter of defining moments and characters, and defining the essence and vibe of the environments that we go into," he said. "That's of particular interest to me because when I watch a film and I'm hearing a lot of pop-familiar songs I've heard before on the radio, I'm often taken out of the movie and I reference in a mental manner some other occasion that I'm reminded of by the song. "And so, what I've always sought to do is make the music of The Crow stand alone, so that those songs don't bring another connotation, they don't take you out of the movie. People come to them to look for a reunion to the experience they had watching the film." Most described his philosophy on assembling performers. "We have played with different formats of music and have tried to meld them together," he said. "We've never gone with one sound. What we've always sought to do is have an album flow as if an artist were creating, from different vantage points, songs about a life. We always try to bring different stylistic touches to songs that are used in The Crow. "We're excited about all we're getting in with this movie because artists do enjoy being part of The Crow." |
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