Quoth The Raven, "What a bore"

Really, I have no idea. It's just a clever headline, people.

Actually, James McTeigue's The Raven should be right in my wheelhouse. I have a history of liking period thrillers, such as Sleepy Hollow and From Hell, and I have frequently discussed my passion for Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, which this film also seems to resemble in a couple key ways.

Not to mention that this would likely qualify as a "wax-stamp movie," a genre I coined to describe any movie with art direction that either does or would probably feature a letter sealed with a wax stamp. Generally speaking, I love such movies. If an actual wax stamp is not present, a quill pen dipped in ink will do as a substitute. This poster indicates that this movie has such a quill pen -- dipped in blood, which is all the better.

But my interest in The Raven is held back by two people:

1) John Cusack

2) James McTeigue.

With Cusack, I've just learned too much about what kind of an a-hole he is in real life to feel the affection I felt for him when he was making some of the formative movies of my childhood. His movies have become progressively less interesting by the decade. Though it is interesting to note that he's signed off each decade with a movie I really liked, and in some cases loved: Say Anything ... in 1989, Being John Malkovich in 1999 and 2012 in 2009.

As for McTeigue, well, I have three words for you. Or, one letter and two words:

V for Vendetta.

Yeah, I did not like that film.

However, I may be in a position to see The Raven as soon as today. I'm covering the 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. shift of a vacationing co-worker today, and my son doesn't need to be picked up from daycare until 5. Which leaves me just enough time to get to a 2:50 show, and have it still get out in plenty of time for me to pick him up. The choices of things I somewhat care about are this and 21 Jump Street. Any thoughts on which one I should see?

On the one hand, I've heard that 21 Jump Street is surprisingly good. But it's been out for more than a month, so it doesn't really satisfy a person's craving to see something new, does it? (I'll let you decide whether there's any practical value to such a craving, because it doesn't make a movie better just because it's new.) Besides, as described here, I'm trying harder to watch comedies with either packed audiences or at least one viewing companion I know. I doubt the 2:50 show on a Friday five weeks after its release is going to have more than one or two other people there with me.

On the other hand, The Raven? 43 Metascore.

It may really come down to the wire on this one ...