Tuesday, May 1, 2012

The Raven

Caution: This Might Contain Spoilers!
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This film follow the mysterious last few days of Edgar Allen Poe's life. A grisly murder is investigated by detective Fields. He discovers that the murder is based on a story written by Poe. He uses him to gain further insight into the murder. Poe begins to help in solving the crime, but quickly finds that he is the target of the deranged madman. 

This film was directed by James McTeigue. First off, this isn't a film for children. There isn't any sex, but there is plenty of gore. This is meant to be based off Poe's works with some twists integrated. That also means that the film's story is told as if it was a Poe tale. The story has a lot of meaning to it, and it works for most of the film. However, the ending gets hindered by this. Written, the ending is highly powerful and very moving, but, in movie form, it fails to give off the full impact that was intended. It drops its dramatic tension and its pace. The story also failed to give a terrifying villain. His character has build up, but in the end he's turned into some pathetic fanboy. The story did create a great mystery. Also, the ending credits took it over the edge. It seems to be a new thing among filmmakers to create these over the top credit sequences, but it doesn't always work for films. As cool as it was, it just left the film with a strange techno vibe. The gore was good even if it was slightly overdone. It gave the film a more horror than thriller fill. There isn't a lot of action, but the small amount of action was good. It suited the film's needs rather than it being the other way around. I'm glad they kept moderately true to Poe, his world, and his stories. Having them mixed together is being done a lot now, but it still creates a good story. 

The actors worked good together in creating this very dark world. John Cusack played the role of Edgar Allen Poe. He was good in this role keeping the emotion in his eyes and his outbursts. Luke Evans played the role of detective Fields. He was great in this role. He gave his character that detective feel and kept humanity to the film. Alice Eve played the role of Emily Hamilton. She was good at playing the damsel, but her character was limited to only being a damsel. Brendan Gleeson played the role of Captain Hamilton. He was good at playing the protective father for Emily Hamilton. He does allow his character to grow during the course of the film which worked great for the film's story. Kevin McNally played the role of Maddux. He was good at his small role. He gave Poe a more humanizing appearance, and gave the film some gentleness. Sam Hazeldine played the role of Ivan. He was okay in his role, but he could've done more to stand out amongst the rest of the cast. 

I give this film 5 out of 5 stars! The ending does hurt the film's pace, but I feel the symbolic impact makes up for it. The mystery in the story is riveting enough to carry it through-which isn't seen too much anymore.

Answer to last blog: Actress Freida Pinto is also known for her role in Planet of the Apes (as well as Miral).

Que: What other film is director James McTeigue known for?

Elektra
Constantine
V for Vendetta
Sherlock Holmes

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