Eric Draven | pinartarhan.com

I love rock n’ roll musicians. Not all of them of course. I have certain favorites, role models guys whose music I love and whose egos I hate….I have grown up with some. And it is no secret that I love movies so this post was, well, inevitable.

There have been a lot of movies based on rockstars or movies that have characters who happen to be rockstars. Below are my fav. portrayals.

1) The Crow– Eric Draven, by Brandon Lee (1994)

Eric Draven and his guitar — Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) and his guitar

What and who else could I talk about first?

The character of Eric Draven is everything that we the rock fans- and especially the female rock fans idolize : A handsome young rocker. A passionate yet compassionate lover. A guy you can laugh with. A guy you can share everything with. He is romantic and he is loyal. He is The One. Did I mention he has this amazing voice when he speaks and plays electric guitar and looks freaking good in leather?

But amazingly, this is not what Eric is all about. When he loses his fiancée Shelly, and he himself is also killed by the psychotic gang, he comes back from the dead. To avenge her. As he kills the gang members one by one, all he can think of is Shelly and when he can go back to her. Every memory haunts him. He is not just a rock star. He is a former rock star who comes back as an undead avenger. The message is that real love is more powerful than anything and it lasts forever.

He is the guy who takes his revenge in black leather clothes, white/black clownish/KISS type of make-up and plays his guitar on a rooftop. He is a lone rider. His pain and his love make the storypowerful; and Brandon Lee unforgettable.

I don’t care what movies he played in before. He is Eric Draven. And always will be.

aV1dA_vr — Brandon Lee as Eric Draven in The Crow

Guitar Solo Scene of Eric Draven:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aeFkJvgnbk[/pro-player]

2) The Doors- Jim Morrison by Val Kilmer (1991)

The movie poster — The Doors movie poster. Isn't the resemblance between Kilmer and Jim Morrison uncanny?

This movie is not exactly my cup of tea. I don’t like Oliver Stone. Although I like some of The Doors’ classics. I don’t like Morrison as a personality. I don’t get him. I don’t think many people do either. But Val Kilmer’s performance is pure brilliance. He is a fantastic actor. He can be outstanding in almost any role, in a movie of any genre. He can do shallow, he can do deep. He can do psychotic, complicated, romantic, funny… you name it. He is a good actor. But with The Doors, even I was surprised. It is hard to portray a celebrity whose voice, face and attitude are so well-known. How do you convince people that you are Jim Morrison? Well, if you genuinely look like him and sound like him and are one of the best actors of your generation- and are old enough to have existed in the era where Jimmy became a cult, well- voila-you can pull it off. Val Kilmer was so…Jim Morrison.Val even sang his vocals!

As for the appearance:

3) Rent- Roger Davis by Adam Pascal (2005)

Adam Pascal on the right — On the right: Adam Pascal

Rent is a famous, sold-out rock musical that has been staged on broadway. Of course a movie version had to be made. I am not being sarcastic here. I love rock and I love movies- combine it right and the result will rock. The concept is simple. A close-knit of friends/neighbors dealing with broken dreams, poverty, trade off between the good life and the selling of your soul, diseases, drugs and relationships.

Roger is a rocker. Let’s say he is a former leading man/guitarist. His world and faith in love have been shattered when he has lost his girlfriend to OD (and AIDS). Roger also has HIV and is barely scraping by with his best mate/roommate.

Adam Pascal as Rogerc with Rosario Dawson as Mimi — Adam Pascal and Rosario Dawson Rent

Roger has all the right ingredients of a sexy rocker: He is hot with longish blonde hair, sexy voice, handsome face. He wears jeans and shirts and leather. He also look a little like Jon Bon Jovi– which is never a bad thing in my book. He is a good actor and an awfully talented singer. He is so good, I will be disappointed if he doesn’t have his own band in real life.

His character is fictional on the surface. Truth is, Roger is not about one person. He reflects the lifestyle of a lot of 90s musicians. See Rent. But please stay away if you don’t like rock music. It’s not gonna ring well in your ears…

Videos from Rent the movie:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkScM71Pngc[/pro-player]

*For the second video, Adam’s part begins right in the middle)

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TOQxSvA_zs&feature=related[/pro-player]

P.S. You know you tube videos can be replaced and removed.So if a video doesn’t work, just let me know.

If you like revenge movies, take a look at these: Favorite Revenge Movies

Edge of Darkness

Best of Revenge Movies: Fathers Taking Justice into their own hands

Movies: Best of Lovers Taking Revenge

On Val Kilmer:

At First Sight

The Saint

And:

Movies with Awesome Soundtracks

-” Buildings burn, people die but real love is forever…”

Above is the real quote that inspired the title from. It is from the 1994 movie The Crow. If you haven’t seen it, please do yourselves a favor and do. Not the lame sequels but the real thing. The one with Brandon Lee.

crow_ver2 — Brandon Lee as Eric Draven in The Crow. So do you? Believe in angels?

It has supernatural elements, of course. The myth is that sometimes a soul can not rest and a crow will guide him back to this world, till he can do whatever he needs to do to find peace. So a year after rocker Eric Draven was killed and his fiancé was raped and tortured to death, Eric rises from his grave. Confused and clueless, he follows the crow. As he finds his way back into his old apartment, he remembers everything. This is where the movie really starts.

Revenge:

Of course we have seen lots of movies about avengers- people avenging their loved ones, people taking justice into their own hands. We like to see the good guy win. So we pretend it is plausible that a guy can finish off tens of men by himself and gets away with it. But the best part of Eric is, he is already dead. So it is much more satisfactory watching the bad guys try to kill him ; in vain, and go nuts in the process. The poetic justice is that he kills everyone in their own “specialty/interest”- so if a guy is good with knives…..or if the guy is a junkie…….You get the point. And he always leaves a crow shaped- signature…His revenge, our satisfaction.

Love:

There are actually two love stories here: One is the romantic one, the heart of the story. Then there is the love Sarah-our storyteller- has for her two great friends. Sarah is about 12 or so and has a drug addict mom dating one of the gang members. So when Eric and Shelly are gone, Sarah is left all alone. Sarah is delighted to have Eric back, but Eric has one thing in mind- to avenge Shelly as soon as possible, so he can be dead with her…

Eric and Shelly’s relationship are shown through flashbacks and you just see how strong and lovely it is. It is pure and intense. It is fun and passionate. They are best friends and lovers. A combination we all want to have and well, seems impossible to find…

Action:

Where there is revenge,….I mentioned Eric doesn’t die. So bullets fly around, swords are swung and Eric just has a laugh. You can send 40 people after him and it just makes his day. Of course things will get complicated. Even Eric has a weak point. But hey, every scene with Eric fighting is worth watching.

It is definitely in my top 3 of best movies ever. There is something magical about this movie. It is dark, gloomy, romantic,has kick-ass action, the best avenging scenes and brilliant dialogue. I have seen it for about 10 times and I can recite the lines before the characters do. If you haven’t seen it, trust me you are missing a lot!

The rock and the goth:

No, I am not talking about Marilyn Manson or EMOs. No. I am talking about this dark, rainy,gloomy background in the film. Eric’s tight black costume that he wore on his quest- a costume he probably wore on stage. The hard-rock sountrack. The way Eric takes a guitar and plays a wonderful electric solo on the roof of a house…

crow_brandon_lee_5

The popularity:

The movie is a cult. Alex Proyas, the director, is considered to be a director with a distinct style and I am not sure many knew his name before this movie.

Brandon Lee is the Crow. The Crow is Brandon Lee. I don’t even know how people can stand the sequels. This is not Lethal Weapon or Die Hard. I know the movie is a comic book adaptation but when something gets so big- and comes with a tragedy-, the following stuff will just be crushed under it.

I think it is a sick joke of life to die while portraying a dead guy but there is nothing we can do about it. About 8 days or so were left for the movie to be completed and Lee died on the set. An accident,as some call it. Some have interesting theories that involve his father Bruce Lee. But Brandon Lee had only played in not so good action movies before and The Crow just showed what a great and talented actor he was. Brandon was 29 when he died. Whether it was truly a set accident with the guns or someone wanted Lee dead, The Crow owes a part of its mysterious aura to his death.

I think I saw this movie 10 times. I can recite lines. I own the soundtrack. Because long after the credits role, the movie stays with you…

3 Movies, 3 Musician Portrayals: The Crow, The Doors and Rent

The Crow: Buildings burn, people die. But an amazing movie is forever.