The Crow Franchise’s Relationship with Death
“They’re all dead. They just don’t know it yet.”
The Crow film franchise is based on a series of graphic novels of the same name created by James O’Barr. Currently, there are four films in the franchise, but during the filming of the first movie, tragedy struck with the accidental death of actor Brandon Bruce Lee.
Death in real life inspired The Crow franchise. In 1978, the writer of the original graphic novel, James O’Barr’s fiancée was killed by a drunk driver. The first Crow comic was inspired by the revenge O’Barr must have wished for.
Plot
The Crow (1994), and all subsequent installments follow a similar plot. The person who becomes the crow is murdered, usually with another loved one. The murder goes unpunished, and the murderer’s get away with their crime. A year later, the murdered protagonist rises from the dead becoming the crow and killing everyone involved in their murder. After rising from the dead, the crow is followed by a crow that is the source of their power. The crow is endowed with some superpowers, most notably invulnerability. In every film, the crow is beaten up or shot with bullets only to be completely unharmed. The protagonist also always paints their face or has scars that appear as vertical lines through the eyes and a horizontal line extending from the mouth. Most importantly, the crow is always ready to kill the guilty and help the innocent.
Pop Culture
The character of the crow gives a very Alice Cooper vibe. Other corpse paintmusicians also come to mind. Sting from WWE also has a likeness, especially Brandon Lee’s version, because of his athletism. Of recent film performances, Brandon Lee’s performance is most like Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Night (2008).
Tragedy
Brandon Lee’s death on the set of The Crow in 1994 was an absolute tragedy. A 28-year-old on the precipice of stardom, his life was extinguished by negligence.
Brandon Lee played Eric Draven in the film. Eric is killed along with his fiancée the night before Halloween, and his wedding night. A year later, he comes back from the dead to murder the people who murdered him.
In The Crow, one of the characters Eric Draven must exact revenge on is Funboy. He kills Funboy by injecting drug-filled needles into him. He then paints a picture of a crow in blood on his chest.
In a tragic and ironic twist, the actor who played Funboy, Michael Massee, was the person who fired the shot that killed Brandon Lee. Brandon Lee was killed on set while filming the scene where his character Eric Draven is killed. The prop gun, which was meant to be loaded with blanks, held the tip of a real bullet. The bullet lodged into Brandon Lee’s spine, fatally wounding him.
Brandon Lee was the son of the iconic Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee died at the age of 32 in the prime of his career. Brandon was 8 when his father died. Both father and son died too young. Brandon Lee was survived by his mother, sister, and fiancée. Just like his character Eric Draven, Brandon Lee died shortly before he was to be married.
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop, the famous musician, was recruited to play Funboy but turned down the role due to his recording schedule. Iggy Pop was the first choice to play Funboy, and it begs the question: If Iggy Pop had been able to accept the role, would Brandon Lee have died? We will never know.
Iggy Pop did end up in The Crow franchise. Iggy Pop was cast in the sequel The Crow: City of Angels (1996). Iggy Pop played Curve, a villain who the crow has to kill. Curve is fatally wounded after his motorcycle blows up. As the crow pushes him out into the middle of what we can call a lake, the crow says, “I want to thank you for showing me my pain Curve, you made me what I am.” Flowers surround Curve in the shape of a crow as he dies.
The Crow and Life
The crow represents justice for those whose lives are ended by the unjust. Unfortunately, in the real world, sometimes evil goes unpunished. In the case of Brandon Lee’s death, although very mysterious, foul play was ruled out by investigators. Unlike Eric Draven, Brandon Lee’s soul can rest in peace. In the first film, the crow says, “They’re all dead, they just don’t know it yet.” He is talking about the people who murdered him, but I think this is true about all life. Value the time you have because you never know when death will come.