The Crow (Collector's Series Boxed Set)

The collection includes THE CROW: Legendary Brandon Lee plays Eric Draven, a rock guitarist who, along with his finacee, is killed by a ruthless gang of criminals. One year after his death, Eric returns -- watched over by a hypnotic crow -- to seek revenge. THE CROW: CITY OF ANGELS: The murder victim (Vincent Perez) of an evil drug cartel is brought back to life by a mysterious crow to exact revenge on his killers one by one! THE CROW: SALVATION: Wrongly executed for the murder of his girlfriend, Alex Corvis (Eric Mabius) returns to find the real killer -- aided by his girlfriend’s sister (Kirsten Dunst) ... and the mysterious crow!

The Crow set the standard for dark and violent comic-book movies (like Spawn or director Alex Proyas's superior follow-up, Dark City), but it will forever be remembered as the film during which star Brandon Lee (son of martial arts legend Bruce Lee) was accidentally killed on the set by a loaded gun. The filmmakers were able to digitally sample what they'd captured of Lee's performance and piece together enough footage to make the movie releasable. Indeed, it is probably more fascinating for that post-production story than for the tale on the screen. The Crow is appropriately cloaked in ominous expressionistic shadows, oozing urban dread and occult menace from every dank concrete crack, but it really adds up to a simple and perfunctory tale of ritual revenge. Guided by a portentous crow (standing in for Poe's raven), Lee plays a deceased rock musician who returns from the grave to systematically torture and kill the outlandishly violent gang of hoodlums who murdered him and his fiancée the year before. The film is worth watching for its compelling visuals and genuinely nightmarish, otherworldly ambience. --Jim Emerson