Raven's Hollow (2022)

In 1830, five West Point cadets are riding through the New York countryside when they encounter a crucified man whose intestines are spilling from a slash in his abdomen.  When one of the cadets inspects the body, the man looks up and whispers, "Raven."  He then dies.  The investigating cadet is none other than Edgar Allan Poe.  The cadets take down the corpse and head to a nearby town, Raven's Hollow.  The folk of the town claim not to know the dead man and prove to be unfriendly.  Though most of the cadets would be quite happy to move on, Poe insists that they investigate who murdered the man.  One of the locals, a man named Usher, strongly advises the cadets to leave immediately before the raven kills them.  Sure enough, one of the cadets is killed that night.

The story borrows liberally from Poe's writing, thus implying that this event changed the course of his life.  We have familiar names (Usher, Lenore), familiar themes (a raven, a disembodied heart, a dismembered corpse, a spooky many-gabled house), and an investigation (The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Purloined Letter).  The epilogue has Poe court martialed and tossed from West Point, though the bizarre circumstances are replaced with something believable.

It is curious that two movies (this and The Pale Blue Eye) about Poe's time at West Point should be released simultaneously.  Poe did attend West Point from July 1830 to February 1831.  He was court martialed for disobedience of orders and failure to attend classes.  He had served as an enlisted soldier from May of 1827 to April of 1829, which would explain why he was the cadet in charge.  Of particular note, Poe went by the name of Edgar A Perry during his military service, both as a soldier and West Point cadet.

Though an interesting horror story and mystery, the characterization of Poe is off.  William Mosely plays him as the brave man of action, the standard heroic type.  There is little poetry in his speech.  Though he shows an interest in Charlotte, there is no chemistry on the screen.  Despite this harrowing experience, one does not see this Poe becoming a morose drunkard.  Harry Melling's Poe is far superior in The Pale Blue Eye.

Good popcorn fun!