The Underrated CBM Review - The Crow City of Angels

This is the first installment of an idea I had to review movies that have not gotten enough recognition. There are many movie that people seem to over look even though they are relatively good or great. Enjoy.

The Review

The original Crow movie is such a fantastic film. The tone, the acting, and the characters are all great. Many people praise the performance by the late, great Brandon Lee which I have to admit is pretty great in the film. Sadly Brandon died during the filming of The Crow and people thought that he could never be replaced. Then the sequel City of Angels came out and people seem to over look it.

The Plot:

The movie is about a man named Ashe who he and his son were brutally killed after witnessing a killing by a street gang led by a drug lord and sadist named Judah. After some time goes by Ashe is resurected from the dead by The Crow to get his revenge on the people who murdered him and his son. On the way Ashe meets a women named Sarah who had a vision that Ashe would come back from the dead and she helps him to keep his humanity while he is on his quest for vengeance. Meanwhile the man behind Ashe's death Judah is panning a plot to rid The Crow for good and gain ultimate power.

The story of the film is for the most part very good and at times very touching. I think that in some ways Ashe is a much more sypmpathetic character than Eric Draven(first film) becuase losing a son is probably much more endearing than losing a fiance or wife. Some of the scenes with the villains are kind of over the top but that is really not the main focus of the film.


The vilains of the film.


The Acting:

The acting from the star of the film Ashe played by Vincent Perez is really quite good. The main thing that I liked about him as The Crow is that he never really tried to copy Brandon Lee, he made the character his own. Perez's Crow is a little bit more crazy and insane than Lee's. The actress who played Sarah named Mia Kirshner did a pretty good job as a supporting cast member. The villain Judah played by Richard Brooks does a pretty decent job for the first part of the film but by the end he became kind of over the top. The other villain Curve (the man who actually killed Ashe and his son)played by the rock star Iggy Pop is a weak performance in the film giving several very cheesy lines in the movie. There are other small roles in the film one by a younger Thomas Jane and another by Thuy Trang (of Power Ranger fame as the Yellow Ranger) did relatively mediocre jobs.

The Action:

The action is the film is another good part of the film. Who doesn't like to see scum bags get there just desserts? My favorite scene is when Ashe toys with an underling of the gang called Spider Monkey and then blows him sky high in a gas explosion. The fight between Ashe and Kali (the women who shot his son) is pretty good too especially.

The Special Effects:

This movie came out in 1996 so the effects are very rough and not so great. Some scenes look good but then others not so great. The effects are not very prominent in this film so you can't really rag on it that much. the worst effects of the film is when Ashe uses his powers to defeat Judah it is pretty lame.

Overall thought:

I think that this film is overall a good sequel even though it isn't as great as the first film it is still a good ,fun revenge flick. The part of the movie that I thought was the fall of the film was the conclusion on how Ashe defeats the the villain Judah it is very over the top and cheesy. Other failing points is some cheesy lines and quotes from various characters. This movie is still a movie worth seeing especially Vincent Perez's performance as the Crow.




I give it a 7.5 out of 10

I hope you enjoyed my review and if you have any suggestions for and underrated feel free to tell me.