The Crow: City of Angels
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Template:The Crow The Crow: City of Angels is the 1996 sequel to cult movie and comic The Crow by James O'Barr. It was directed by Tim Pope.
It was obvious that the original film was going to be difficult to follow. With the cult status gained by Brandon Lee's portrayal of the lead character, and indeed his death filming the role, Pope would have to win over a mass of fans that could not see how a sequel could be made. The tagline for the film was "There will be another" and many say they wish there did not have to be - it was poorly received by critics, the general public and the devoted fans. It is rumoured that extensive studio editing saw the film changed from the director's original vision in order to make it flow more like the original, though this is perhaps just backlash after the poor performance of the film.
Vincent Perez plays a man named Ashe Corven who is killed alongside his son by a gang of criminals, similar to Eric Draven's demise in the first film. As in the first movie, he is resurrected by a supernatural crow and seeks revenge with his new found powers, killing his murderers one by one until he faces off with the crime boss who'd ordered his death. Along the way he encounters Sarah from the first film, now an adult (played by Mia Kirshner) and obsessed with the paranormal, and she helps him take his revenge. The crime boss, Judah Earl (played by Richard Brooks), wants Ashe's powers for himself, however, and will do his worst to get them.
Several plot devices and sub-plots appear in the novelization of the film, restoring some sense to the story, including explanation for Sarah and Ashe's connection.
Once again there is a strong soundtrack and two music legends have large acting roles throughout the film - Ian Dury and Iggy Pop as one of the more vicious murderers.
The film was followed by The Crow: Salvation in 2000 and TV series The Crow: Stairway to Heaven.