IN-D

James Obarr's The Crow

Crow Rating: 4 Crows

Released: 1998

Director/Screenplay: David Ullman & Matt Jackson

Starring: David Ullman as Eric, and Matt Jackson as Skull Cowboy

Film Premise
This is an amateur film created for educational purposes and not for financial gain. The film was directed and produced by David Ullman and Matt Jackson, (who also star in it as Eric and Skullcowboy ). The film is very faithful to the story that was presented in the original Crow comic series by O'Barr. There are a few images recreated from the feature film, but for the most part it is centered on the events that took place in the comic. For those not familiar with the premise, in brief, a young man and woman, Eric & Shelly, are killed along the side of a rode by a gang of thugs. Eric's soul is unable to rest due to the love bond between he and Shelly, and the heinous way in which they were murdered. A year later a crow brings back his soul to take revenge on the gang. Eric systematically takes out the gang, leading to his return to the grave and eternal life with Shelly.

Personal Thoughts
I enjoyed this film. It is obvious that the makers are avid Crow fans. They used black & white film for the main scenes and color film for the flashbacks, a very innovative touch. It kept with the film's overall faithfulness to the original comic. Music from John Bergin's Trust Obey (click for official website) follows the storyline closely, enhancing the power of the original material. The film's amateur production helps to capture the essence of the original comic. In my opinion, the Miramax feature film, as good as it is, never captured the raw poetic tragedy of the original comic. We were given a more romanticized version of the story. With this film, we are given the complete Eric from the comic. He is self-destructive (shooting drugs into his body, cutting himself) and his mental state is definitely manic/depressive (he is given to fits of uncontrollable laughter, followed by crying). David Ullman, though not a professional actor, does a very good job staying true to the comic's vision of Eric. The supporting players are very young and again, not professional actors. However, they put a lot of effort into their performances. One aspect I appreciated was the use of poetic verses from the comic, which were not included in the feature movie. If you're a fan of the comic, you're going to enjoy this film. If your vision of The Crow is based on the feature movie, you may not like its faithfulness to the comic. Either way, you have to appreciate the effort put into the film.

  - Produciton Credits
  - Production Notes
  - About the Production
  - Filmmakers
  - Images
  - Inertia