The Crow: Wicked Prayer Information

The Crow: Wicked Prayer is a 2005 American supernatural action film directed by Lance Mungia and inspired by Norman Partridge's novel of the same title. It is the fourth and final film of The Crow film series. The movie was filmed in the summer of 2003. It had a one-week theatrical premiere on June 3, 2005 at AMC Pacific Place Theatre in Seattle, Washington before being released to video on July 19, 2005. Like the other sequels to the cult movie, The Crow, it had a poor critical reception.

Plot

James "Jimmy" Cuervo (Edward Furlong), paroled after serving a prison sentence for killing a rapist in a fight, lives with his dog in a mobile home in Lake Ravasu on the Raven Aztec reservation. Jimmy plans to start a new life with his girlfriend, Lily (Emmanuelle Chriqui), and leave the town for good. Lily's priest father, Harold (Danny Trejo), and brother, local cop Tanner (Dave L. Ortiz), both despise Jimmy, however.

The town is home to a Satanic biker gang led by escaped convict Luc "Death" Crash (David Boreanaz) and his fiance Lola Byrne (Tara Reid). Along with their three confederates "Pestilence" (Yuji Okumoto), "Famine" (Tito Ortiz) and "War" (Marcus Chong), Luc and Lola murder Lily and Jimmy in a brutal ritual that they hope will conjure the rebirth of the Antichrist. The ritual includes removing Lily's eyes "? bestowing precognitive powers upon Lola "? and Jimmy's heart. They dump the bodies inside an old freezer.

The Crow then appears and returns Jimmy to life. Jimmy discovers his newfound invincibility after attempting to shoot himself. He takes Lily's body and leaves it on her bed so it can be found. Tanner and Harold find the body and assume it was Jimmy who killed Lily.

On the night of a local festivity, Jimmy dons a gothic costume and make-up he wore to the celebration a previous year. He finds and kills Pestilence in a bar. He then seizes the hearse carrying Lily's body, and buries her near the tree where he carved a love symbol for them both. Jimmy goes to a casino and kills Famine in front of Luc. A fight ensues between Jimmy and Luc during which the crow, the source of Jimmy's power, is injured, thereby weakening Jimmy. Tanner finds Jimmy and accuses him of killing Lily, but Jimmy shows Tanner telepathically what really happened.

Luc and Lola visit El Nio (Dennis Hopper), the head of their order, at an abandoned Catholic church. Tanner and Harold and a group of men assemble outside to confront them. As El Nio is performing the marriage ceremony that will bring Luc closer to the power he craves, Jimmy, Tanner, Harold, and the other men arrive and shoot War. El Nio completes the ceremony as Jimmy enters the church. Luc, now a host for Lucifer himself, telekinetically hangs Jimmy from a cross, while Lola kills El Nio. Luc and Lola leave the church and head to a nearby burial ground where they must consummate their ritual before sunrise in order for Lucifer to fully manifest.

Harold, Tanner, and the others free Jimmy, who tells them the crow is dying. In order to heal the bird and restore Jimmy's powers, Harold performs the Crow Dance. Weakened, Jimmy heads to the graveyard and stops Luc from having sex with Lola. Luc and Jimmy engage in a fight and the revived crow returns, restoring Jimmy's invulnerability. The sun rises and Luc's ritual is destroyed. Jimmy then kills Luc by impaling him on a wooden spike and cutting his throat. Lola loses her sight and tries to repent by praying to the Virgin Mary, but it is too late: Harold apprehends her and takes her to prison. Jimmy and Lily's spirits find each other in the afterlife.

Cast

• Edward Furlong - Jimmy Cuervo/The Crow. A young man who served in prison for killing a rapist. His family name, Cuervo, is the Spanish name for "crow"
• David Boreanaz - Luc "Death" Crash/Lucifer, an escaped convict who is a Satanist.
• Tara Reid - Lola Byrne, a Satanist and Luc's girlfriend.
• Marcus Chong - War, one of Luc's henchmen.
• Tito Ortiz - Famine, one of Luc's henchmen.
• Yuji Okumoto - Pestilence, one of Luc's henchmen.
• Dennis Hopper - El Nio, a Satanic preacher who heads the order of Death.
• Emmanuelle Chriqui - Lilly "Ignites the Dawn", Jimmy's girlfriend. She along with Jimmy are killed by Luc and Lola. After Jimmy's resurrection, his love for Lilly becomes the source of his strength.
• Danny Trejo - Harold, Lilly, and Sheriff Tanner's father. A preacher, he is a devout Christian who is at first skeptical of Jimmy.
• Dave Baez (credited as Dave L. Ortiz) as Sheriff Tanner - Lilly's older brother.

Reception

The film was critically panned, currently holding a 0% approval rating based on 6 reviews at Rotten Tomatoes.

Re-release

In 2011, The Crow: Wicked Prayer was re-issued by Echo Bridge Home Entertainment as a double feature paired up with The Crow: City of Angels. The only special feature was Widescreen for both films. There was also a single feature release under the same company.

The film has been featured in various horror compilation DVDs from Echo Bridge Home Entertainment.

On September 11, 2012, Echo Bridge Home Entertainment released a Blu-Ray release of the film. Once again, it is a double feature with The Crow: City of Angels. It was already being sold at Walmart stores before its official release date had been reached.

On October 7, 2014, the film was released on DVD by Lionsgate in a triple feature edition with The Crow: City of Angels and The Crow: Salvation.