Have you ever had a movie that you didn’t really respond to but you had a hard time pinpointing why? This is the case with me after watching the 2012 period thriller “The Raven”. This is a movie that intrigued me from the start although I did keep it at an arm’s length. While the components for a unique crime thriller seemed to be there, I still never felt myself drawn to hurry up and see it. So as you can see, my fence straddling with “The Raven” started early. Well now I have seen this widely slammed movie. Is it as bad as the vast majority of critics made it out to be? I don’t think so. But unfortunately it’s missing some major pieces that are vital in making this kind of movie work.
In case you don’t know the story, it’s set in 19th century Baltimore, Maryland. A brutal and grisly double murder puts the police on the trail of a serial killer who patterns his crimes after the short stories of Edgar Allan Poe. Lead Detective Fields (Luke Evans) at first suspects the eccentric Poe (John Cusack) but eventually calls on him to help in the investigation. It’s a cat and mouse game as the two sift through the clues left at every new and horrible crime scene, each tied in to Poe’s writings.
The stakes are raised for Poe after his fiancé Emily (Alice Eve) is kidnapped and used as a pawn by the killer. Now this is a direction the story takes that should give the movie some emotional kick but that’s not the case at all. Poe and Emily’s relationship is cold and lifeless. They try to throw in some tension with Emily’s father (Brendan Gleeson) who despises Poe, but that does little to liven things up. Emily’s capture does lead to some of the movies most intense moments. But the underplayed romance between her and Poe strips the movie of a genuine and much needed sense of urgency.
I guess that leads into where my real problems lie with “The Raven”. It moves at a sharp pace. It captures the dark and moody tone that it’s going for. The crime scenes are perfectly unsettling. But in the end so much of the story feels manufactured. The relationships feel manufactured. The urgency feels manufactured. Even the ending feels manufactured (and a bit unsatisfying as well). But perhaps the biggest sin this movie commits is its overall lack of suspense. It’s hard to call a thriller a success if it lacks suspense. “The Raven” desperately tries to muster some but I don’t ever remember feeling it at any point in the movie.
I think “The Raven” is a movie that has some good ideas, but it doesn’t do much with them. It’s not a sloppy or lazy picture. But it also fails to step outside the bounds of conventionality, something that the material afforded them the chance to do. Now it’s decent enough to keep you in your seat, but it never does anything to put you on the edge of it. Again, I guess that’s where my biggest problem lies. There’s nothing suspenseful that grabs you and keeps you glued to the screen. That’s what I want from a thriller and I just didn’t get enough of it here.
Keith & the Movies 
I’m not a John Cusack fan so I don’t think I’ll be seeing this. Nice review.
I can take or leave Cusak. He’s one of those actors who has never really turned me off but has never wowed me either. He’s not terrible here but at times his material is.
I don’t really fancy this one Keith and youre review confirms my suspicions. I think I’ll be avoiding it.
It’s a really I interesting concept but overall it’s fairly stale. You won’t miss a thing by skipping it!
I didn’t feel this film at all, Cusack was miscast in my opinion. It was missing the ambiance of the time or something.
I just think it completely lacked the intensity and suspense that you MUST have in order for one of these films to work. It was pretty BLAH!
Thanks for commenting!
Extremely blah, I agree. I couldn’t wait until it was done.
Good review Keith. A pretty bad movie, but mildly entertaining if because of Cusack’s performance. Nothing special, but an okay watch for shits and gigs.
It is mildly entertaining but I couldn’t help think it missed a good opportunity. The pieces were there for a pretty good thriller.
It’s a bummer this one is getting such scathing reviews. I was intrigued by it too Keith, and I was at the comic-con panel a couple of years ago. Cusack seemed so well-versed on Poe. Ah well, I still might give it a rent with tepid expectations 😀
It has its moments. But it’s one of those where at the end you’re left saying “that’s it?”. As for the end, unsatisfying!!!
Cusack is the next Nic Cage and this was the beginning of it all. Terrible, terrible movie with very little going for it. I completely forgot about it until this review, so thanks Keith. Thanks for making me remember this piece of shit lol
That’s my mission! To bring back the movie memories that people wish they could forget! 😉 LOL!
Yeah, Keith, I’m with you, this was lame. It was one of my biggest disappointments of last year. 😦 You make a good point of Poe’s romantic relationship problems getting in the way of the story. Very true. Could have been a lot creepier and cooler if they just stuck to Poe: Detective. You know?
This should have been a better movie. It definitely blew all of its potential. Often that’s more frustrating than a horrible movie that you know is going to suck from the start.
I wanted my hour and forty five minutes back after watching this film. I think you summed it up nicely in that you just did not give a crap about any of the characters.
Exactly bro. Not one interesting character. And then there’s the cheap and flat ending. YAWNNNNN
Spoiler…. I couldn’t wait for him to die… or my wife to stop snoring as she passed out after the first 15 minutes of this stinker.
So much potential and it just lays there. It wants to be serious but it needed to be trashier.
The script was severely lacking. Like you say, the potential just lays there. What a waste.
I’m glad for the review before I wasted money. I’m not restricted with my blog to write only about the films. I’m so picky, these days, I won’t pay to see a film unless it has merit. Guilty before innocent. Thanks for your review, I’ll pass!
Good move. Nothing in this film will stick with you. Utterly forgettable.
My fellow moviebuff, I have just nominated you for the “Liebster Award”. I hope you accept and answer the questions posed to you….you are my favorite movie guy….thanks for always commenting and reading my blog.
Oh wow! Much appreciated. I actually did one a few months ago. I can’t tell you how much your kind words mean.
This movie was so bad for so many reasons and you touched on some of them. I don’t know why I keep giving Cusack a chance when none of his projects really appeal to me.
this is one I do not plan on ever seeing again.
A waste of time and a waste of a good concept. Left me completely “blah”.