I am a huge fan of music; every kind of music. Rock, Jazz, Hip-Hop, you name it. But the one thing I love is a good storyteller. Springsteen and Dylan have a way of making every song they write a full-fledged movie inside the head of the listener. But they aren’t the only ones. While those two may be the poster children of the long song narrative, there are two other musicians who perfectly fit into this mold, and both have been dipping their toes into Hollywood lately. I’m talking about Tom Waits and for the purpose of this rant, Nick Cave.

Tom Waits most recently starred in The Book of Eli as well as The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, but has had bit parts in a good number of films over the years. (Though this doesn’t necessarily relate, it was a good segue and he truly is a brilliant writer.)

The main reason I bring these two musical geniuses up, though, is the announcement that Nick Cave is writing the script for the remake of The Crow. According to thewrap.com, producer Ed Pressman has turned the story from director Stephen Norrington’s over to Cave. Boy, does this make me excited.

Cave, who was praised for his 2005’s penning of The Proposition, can tell a damn good story. He’s been musically active since his days in The Birthday Party (late 70’s/early 80’s,) but his vivid story details didn’t hit their stride until he formed Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds in 1984. Dark and moody, Cave’s albums have texture, atmosphere, and most importantly good characters with interesting narratives to boot. Look no further than personal my favorites Murder Ballads or Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus for proof.

What’s this have to do with the remake of The Crow you ask? Well, being a major cult classic, The Crow deserves a dark touch that made the original a classic. I’m really not a big fan of remakes, but when put in the hands of a uniquely gifted outsider, it could work. As well as The Proposition, he was also one of the writers of the 1988 film Ghosts of the Civil Dead and wrote the never executed Gladiator 2, which involved resurrection, Roman gods, and the Pentagon (Yeah, seriously) at the request of Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott!

An edgy take on a sinister sci fi tale could be just what the film needs to rejuvenate it. I would love to see any story on Murder Ballads become a visual masterpiece, but I think this remake could suffice nicely in the hands of Cave. What do you think? Could Cave add just the right touch, or would it be better off with professional screenwriter?

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds most recently released Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! in 2008.
Cave’s side project Grinderman will release Grinderman 2 on September 14th.