Serial Killer Thriller – The Raven

The Raven is a gruesome thriller set in the 19th century, about the last days of famous poet Edgar Allan Poe.

In this film Poe, (John Cusack) is approached by Baltimore police to help catch a serial killer who takes inspiration from his macabre stories.

The plot follows the twists and turns in the case with Poe’s beloved Emily, (Alice Eve) being captured by the killer. He joins forces with Detective Emmett Fields (Luke Evans) to try and rescue her.

This film received mostly negative reviews from critics who seemed to blame in particular the director, James McTeigue, whose previous work includes V for Vendetta and The Matrix. But, I found this film quite enjoyable.

I felt it was a film which relied largely on the atmosphere created through costume, setting and colour. McTeigue created a convincingly gritty and menacing 19th century Baltimore which seemed the perfect place for a murder to be committed.

The dark costumes and drab setting seemed to portray what the city would have been like at that time. It was mostly dark colours used throughout and the only light ones were very pale adding to the threatening atmosphere. Sitting in the audience, the atmosphere felt very oppressive and powerful to the extent I realised I had been holding my breath a little throughout the film.

The acting  in “The Raven” was noticeably well done. There were a lot of semi-famous faces throughout the film but the two main actors, Cusack and Evans, were very convincing. Overall, the acting was the best part of this film in my opinion.

The only aspect of this film which I felt let it down was its gore. In particular the scene from Poe’s story, “The Pit and the Pendulum”, in which a man is chopped in half by a swinging axe. This scene was drawn out with the audience watching an inhuman amount of blood splattering across the room as he was dissected.

I found myself looking away at these parts in the film. My friend who watched them all said she felt “physically sick” when a man’s throat was slit and the blood pulsed out of his neck.

These parts seemed more Tarantino dark humour than serious murder movie as they were so over-the-top and exaggerated. I felt that they only reminded the viewer that an otherwise convincing film that rely drew them in, was indeed a work of fiction.

The Raven is a movie which sheds a lot of light on the type of man Edgar Allan Poe was but none on the circumstances of his death. But what scriptwriter, Hannah Shakespeare, has come up with is an intriguing plot full of twists and turns which keep the audience guessing right to the end. It is like a Sherlock Holmes but with a more enjoyable plot. Although it does have much more gore and is definitely not one for the squeamish.

I would recommend this film for anyone who enjoys thrillers and horrors. In most
British cinemas it seems to only be showing at the weekend as it was released in
the UK on March 9. Catch it while you still can!

Lives Lost But Nothing Done – Homs, Syrian Capital of the Revolution

Last night I watched a channel 4 special report and was horrified by footage of recent killings, blood-stained hospital floors and brutal murders of innocent people. The battle in Homs continues until something is done.

The UK government was quick to jump into a war with Iraq and Afghanistan to support its allies, the US. But in Syria a “massacre” of innocent civilians is happening daily and what has our government done about this?

Nothing.  

The British army are “officially” training the Afgan army and police so they are able to defend their own country and we can withdraw. This is a worthy and justifiable cause to send soldiers there. Of course the real reason was to support America so if Britain comes under threat in the future, the US will support us too. However…

Innocent people are being murdered by Syrian government troops every day in Homs. Aid and food is not getting to those who need it. The only action the UN has taken is to draw up a crimes against humanity list and request negotiations. People cannot enter or leave the city. For someone who did not shed a tear watching “The Green Mile” or “The Notebook”, and is generally unaffected by what I watch, I will admit it. This footage made me cry. It was simply soul-destroying. We have one of the best armies in the world. Why the hell is this allowed to continue?

But sadly what is happening in Homs does not affect Britain and we cannot gain anything from sending troops in; therefore we are not going to do anything about it. But what could be a better cause for sending the British army to a country for, than to save the lives of innocent civilians? I do not understand how people can sit in their living rooms watching this violence and ignore it because it does not affect them directly. People should be outraged and doing something about this. Donate money to the Red Cross, lobby your MP, hold a peaceful demonstration, sign an online petition. These are not just numbers on a news programme, these are real people like you and I.

The UK government has to do something about this.

People’s lives are worth more than personal gain.