The Raven

I absolutely love From Hell, where Johnny Depp investigated the murders by Jack The Ripper. This were one of those old fashioned crime thrillers made like a handicraft production, with perfect scenery and the right feeling of the 1800´s dark era. Every year most movie studios release costume dramas for romantic musical dreamers. Not often do we see something like From Hell, with a darker perspective, make it to a big screen. But maybe that is about to change right now. The Raven, based on the writer Edgar Allan Poe, looks like something equal to From Hell, with a different story. Is it posible The Raven is a production worth your attention, or were the expectations too big to make reality?

A mother and a daughter is found brutally murdered in Baltimore. Police begin an investgation, where Detective Emmett Fields ( Luke Evans ) finds clues to the murders have been staged as from stories from writer Edgar Allan Poe ( John Cusack ). Detective Emmett contacts Edger Allan Poe to help them with their investigation, since the killer seem to follow his stories. When critic Rufus Griswold ( John Warnaby ), Edgar´s rival, is found brutally butchered, Edgar realise he needs to think of what the next victim could be, since every victim is connected to his writing. Captain Hamilton´s ( Brendan Gleeson ) annual masquerade ball, ends in chaos, when his daughter Emily Hamilton ( Alice Eve ), is kidnapped by the murderer. While police search for Emily, more bodies are found. But the more Edgar try to understand who is behind all of this, the closer he may be to the answer than he ever could have imagined.

Ok, it´s not as good as From Hell. But still, i enjoy The Raven for trying to bring old fashioned crime thrillers back on track, as John Cusack does one of his best roles for a long time. It´s quite funny that director James McTeigue is behind the camera, who directed Star Wars Episode 2 : The Clone Wars, talk about changing genres. And most suprisingly is that he does a good job to deliver a solid thriller. A lot of dark scenery helps the story build up tentions, very effective. Not so much negative to say, The Raven is a nice surprise and works well on a cold rainy night, perfect for a snack moment.

Rating: DDD