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The Raven

Play trailer Poster for The Raven R Released Apr 27, 2012 1h 51m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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22% Tomatometer 142 Reviews 46% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
In 19th-century Baltimore, Detective Emmett Fields (Luke Evans) makes a horrifying discovery: The murders of a mother and daughter resemble a fictional crime described in a story by Edgar Allan Poe (John Cusack).When another murder occurs, also seemingly inspired by Poe's writings, Fields realizes a serial killer is on the loose and enlists Poe's help in catching the felon. The stakes become personal for the struggling author when someone close to him may become the killer's next victim.
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The Raven

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Critics Consensus

Thinly scripted, unevenly acted, and overall preposterous, The Raven disgraces the legacy of Edgar Allen Poe with a rote murder mystery that's more silly than scary.

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Critics Reviews

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Tim Grierson Deadspin The problem is that "The Raven" is all surface. The movie is nothing but its fun idea, without much development or ingenuity Feb 12, 2013 Full Review Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com But on the whole, Ben Livingston and Hannah Shakespeare's never finds solid footing, and although the early murders are inventively intriguing, as the film goes on they slowly but surely lose their power to startle, amaze and perplex. Rated: 2/4 May 15, 2012 Full Review Marc Savlov Austin Chronicle The maniac on the loose i less Jack the Ripper than a literarily inclined nobody, and not even a butler, to boot. Rated: 1.5/5 May 4, 2012 Full Review Katelyn Nelson Daily Grindhouse Rather than parody or melodramatic spoof, it dissects the cliché of tortured-writer-as-dark-figure and in its place presents a man firmly planted in the space between reality and imagination, and aware of the limitations of each. Aug 4, 2024 Full Review Iván Kazi EscribiendoCine With one of the most intriguing literary figures of all time and plenty of visual splendor, The Raven is a thriller that shouldn't go unnoticed. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 6/10 Jun 14, 2023 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review It’s all very watchable in a low-expectations way, though anyone hoping for a tale worthy of Poe himself should look elsewhere. Rated: 2/4 Nov 20, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Twiggy H I feel sorry for the great actors in that absolute mess of film writing. Quite idiotic to have a film depicting fan-fiction and plagiarism, that spent more time terrorising a poet than actually kicking the absolute shite out of the 'rival' character. In effect, the film contradicts itself entirely, especially with the ending scene of Poe declaring the chap as absolutely talentless and unoriginal. I'm sure the amount of effort and time that went into writing that film could have written something better and truly unique instead *shrugs*. Besides that, the actors were great. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/16/24 Full Review Руслан Г Я заснув через 20 хвилин перегляду. Проснувся і вимкнув. Нецікавий фільм. Немає чого сказати гарного. Гарний сон- це найкраще враження від перегляду. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 07/19/24 Full Review Dramabubb K I think it's a good movie. Not a critic so it's not my living. But I'm a legit movie buff. It's worth the watch. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/01/24 Full Review Regina P This didn't work, sorry. It would be one thing if it were a fictional detective or author chasing a serial killer who was motivated by Edgar Alan Poe. But this is supposed to be the real Poe? No. I couldn't buy it any point. It just seemed too ridiculous. And the way the kidnapping happened was not any credit to the writer here. They were already on high alert, and they still let that happen? When? It might have worked if they had used a fictional protagonist and made the crimes make more sense. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 06/05/23 Full Review Dan R 2013's 'The Raven' was recently on my watchlist. SYNOPSIS: 'Poet and author Edgar Allan Poe is questioned when a serial killer begins committing gruesome murders that seem to be inspired by his stories. Things take a turn when Poe's lover becomes a target.' There's nothing very special here but on the other hand this isn't a bad film. And that's where the issue lies. It's average at best, and therefore many people won't have heard of this. It's a well researched, well acted mystery thriller which ticks all the usual boxes but is so formulaic it hurts. John Cusack, as Poe, delivers a great performance which is mesmeriding at times. But then I realised that in reality this was Cusak just playing a period era Cusack. Odd. Worth a look if you have 2hrs free but go in with low expectations. 6/10 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/08/23 Full Review Georgan G While this was not a great film, it was not a waste of time. I kept watching to see who the killer is and was I surprised! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

The Raven

The Raven: Official Clip - The Critic and the Pendulum The Raven: Official Clip - The Critic and the Pendulum 1:10 The Raven: Official Clip - Drinking Poison The Raven: Official Clip - Drinking Poison 2:27 The Raven: Official Clip - Buried Alive The Raven: Official Clip - Buried Alive 2:26 The Raven: Official Clip - The Masque of the Red Death The Raven: Official Clip - The Masque of the Red Death 1:55 The Raven: Official Clip - Chasing the Killer The Raven: Official Clip - Chasing the Killer 2:30 The Raven: Official Clip - The Tell-Tale Heart The Raven: Official Clip - The Tell-Tale Heart 2:01 The Raven: Official Clip - The Cask of Amontillado The Raven: Official Clip - The Cask of Amontillado 2:13 The Raven: Official Clip - The Killer Revealed The Raven: Official Clip - The Killer Revealed 2:14 The Raven: Official Clip - The Theatre Hunt The Raven: Official Clip - The Theatre Hunt 2:24 The Raven: Official Clip - Annabel Lee The Raven: Official Clip - Annabel Lee 2:23 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis In 19th-century Baltimore, Detective Emmett Fields (Luke Evans) makes a horrifying discovery: The murders of a mother and daughter resemble a fictional crime described in a story by Edgar Allan Poe (John Cusack).When another murder occurs, also seemingly inspired by Poe's writings, Fields realizes a serial killer is on the loose and enlists Poe's help in catching the felon. The stakes become personal for the struggling author when someone close to him may become the killer's next victim.
Director
James McTeigue
Producer
Aaron Ryder, Mark D. Evans, Trevor Macy
Screenwriter
Hannah Shakespeare, Ben Livingston
Distributor
Relativity Media
Production Co
Pioneer Pictures, Intrepid Pictures, Galavis Film, FilmNation Entertainment, Relativity Media
Rating
R (Grisly Images|Bloody Violence)
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 27, 2012, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 8, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA)
$16.0M
Runtime
1h 51m
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