The Raven Review: Poor Direction Hampers Cusack’s Solid Performance (WHATCULTURE!)

March 5, 2012 7:39 am
Shaun Munro

Director James McTeigue‘s two films to date have been polar opposites as far as quality is concerned; his debut V For Vendetta was a visually stunning, meticulous distillation of Alan Moore’s acclaimed graphic novels, while his follow-up, the almost universally-panned Ninja Assassin, was directed with a curious lack of enthusiasm and staggering level of anonymity.

Quite apt it is then, that his third feature, The Raven, is a perfectly mediocre excursion; a promising yet ultimately disappointing outing which falls somewhere between his first two films in terms of quality.

Even when Poe stands alone in the fog, trailing an assailant, the mood is promptly derailed as McTeigue’s heavy-handed direction takes hold, throwing some unnecessary and awkward CGI bullets into the mix. The helmer’s distressing lack of restraint carries through from the overuse of CGI gore – appropriate for his previous film, but not this one – to the ending, not-so-predictable with its reveal, yet positively unable to resist a distended epilogue which includes, you guessed it, another CGI bullet used as an exclamation point.

Cusack delivers a solid performance albeit one people won’t be talking much about precisely because McTeigue’s sloppy direction is so distracting. The supporting cast is meanwhile a mixed bag; Brendan Gleeson is fun and well-placed as the beardy, pissed off Colonel, though Evans is an underwhelming fit as Fields, lacking the intensity which might have made him a more compelling figure. The inherently likeable Cusack fares surprisingly well in one of his darkest roles, but The Raven’s clever premise is totally undermined by James McTeigue’s tactless, bumbling direction.


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