Movie Talk: The Raven

[JBird]

Before I continue, how would it be best for the community to decide on which movie to watch from Netflix (or any other movie streaming service), provided it's available? I don't want to feel like I will be the one who dictates what everyone should watch in order to participate in the discussion. I'm more curious to see what people can recommend.

This week for Movie Talk, I chose to watch the Raven, directed by James McTeigue and starring John Cusack as the macabre poet, Edgar Allen Poe.

Originally Posted by Netflix

After discovering that a string of baffling murders seems to be inspired by the macabre short stories of Edgar Allan Poe, Baltimore cop Emmett Fields turns to the brilliant-but-boozy author to help solve the crimes.

Now, aside from having read the Raven and the Tell-Tale Heart for high school, I don't know much else about Edgar Allen Poe. Just from skimming through his Wiki article, I can see that he has led a depressing life. That said, I can't really comment on Cusack's portrayal of the man to know if he's being accurate to how he behaved.

As for the film, on the whole, I quite enjoyed it. While not the best, it was an interesting thriller/mystery that had me wanting to see it to the conclusion. When the killer was revealed, however, it didn't really feel impactful; as if the movie was in need of a quick ending. I'm not one for gore, but I felt disappointed in the use of CGI early on in the movie, when a critic of Poe's work was being sliced in half by a pendulum. It didn't look terrible, but it was still noticeable. (Research shows that the actual critic despised Poe enough that he wrote an unfavorable obituary and a scathing biography. The two writers of the movie wrote in his death as "revenge".)

I've always been a fan of John Cusack, and he was pretty compelling in the movie as Poe. The fear he felt from knowing his work of fiction was being used a blueprint for serial killings was authentic enough.