BIFFF: The Raven

‘The Raven’ of Edgar Allan Poe must certainly be one of my favourite poems ever written. So seduced by that (and a free entrance ticket, I have to admit), I went to the opening of the 30th Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival aka the BIFFF. Opening film: The Raven, directed by James McTeigue.

The audience at the BIFFF is super interactive, which gives the festival its special appeal. People clap their hands when there’s an applause in the movie or when a character gets sliced in half. I really laughed during a romantic dialogue when people started shouting “Whe don’t care! Get naked!”.

You can see that the movie is made by the same guy as ‘V for Vendetta’, although this one didn’t reach quite the same level. If you liked the last Sherlock Holmes films, you’ll like The Raven as well. It’s visually strong and the actors – John Cusack, Alice Eve and Luke ‘please remove your clothes’ Evans, to drop a few names – do a great job.

Is it a masterpiece? No. Is it a good film with suspense, visually exciting and great for a relaxing night? Most definitely!

Vincent