NEVERMORE: THE RAVEN EFFECT (2025) - ETR Media

Nevermore: The Raven Effect
(Aug. 23rd, 2025)
ETR Media
Directed by Geordie Day
Written by Geordie Day
Starring Scott Levy, Billy Corgan, Tommy Dreamer

Buy it HERE from Vinegar Syndrome

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

Overview:

Nevermore: The Raven Effect comes to Blu-ray from ETR Media. Directed by documentarian Geordie Day, who has a pedigree of TV and features from true crime to sports docs, Nevermore unpacks the life, legacy, and impact of a key figure in the independent wrestling scene. While ETR's release lacks bonus content to sweeten the deal, the movie itself is still a draw.

The Movie Itself: 5 stars

Documentaries are always odd creatures for critical review, at least to me. Traditional concepts about narrative structures and cinematography are, if not entirely out the window, then at least skewed. While you can, and many do, structure the way they deliver information according to some version of a story arc, filmmakers are still more constrained by actual events than in any other art form. Likewise, the cinematography is largely up to whatever footage is available. So what most documentaries come down to for me is how informative they are. How well and how fairly do they deliver the information at their core?

In that regard, Nevermore: The Raven Effect is a triumph. I'm a lifelong Philadelphian, and sometime-long wrestling fan, so there are periods of my life where I was made extremely aware of Raven and of ECW. Raven was always regarded as something of a mastermind, and over the years, I became more aware of his reputation within the industry for having one of the smartest minds for the art form of wrestling, But I'd never been able to find too much footage of the man speaking out of character.

Thankfully, documentarian Geordie Day delivers exactly that, and in droves. Very early on, Raven (né Scott Levy) says "Wrestling is the only thing I was ever a natural at. That and taking opiates." That kind of honesty and humor are present throughout the doc, and Raven speaks just as openly about everything from his early years, to his struggles with injury and drugs (an all too common refrain in wrestlers, especially of the era), to how he views himself.

The Blu-ray:

This release features a reversible cover, with each side showcasing a different illustration of Raven in his heyday. On one side, he sits on the corner, "Raven's perch", with the ground in front of him strewn with weapons. A crowd of sign-wielding fans is cast in magenta tones behind him, and an actual Raven sits on the turnbuckle above his head (which I'm fairly certain never happened, but not 100% sure).

The reverse side shows Raven standing in a ring wrapped in barbed wire, holding two title belts. The background of fans has been replaced with the chainlink fence of a steel cage. It's a strangely haunting illustration. There was also a slipcover featuring additional illustrations--Raven in the ring with Sandman standing outside, bloodied on one side, Raven taking an unprotected chair shot on the reverse--from the same artist, whose name I could not find, but alas, it seems to have sold out.

The Video: 4 stars

This release looks great, but as I said, traditional ideas of cinematography and discussion of things like film grain and the like are kind of pointless here. Everything shot specifically for this doc is nice and crisp, and overall, the footage from early in Levy's career looks good; nothing's too grainy to understand what you're looking at, which I suppose is the benefit of only having to go so far back.

The doc does something kind of fun with still photos: a faux-3D effect where the background and focal portion of an image are presented on two different planes with slight motion between them. It gives them an extra oomph of dynamism, which I appreciated.

The Audio: 3 stars

Similarly, the audio was perfectly acceptable for a documentary, and even through my three-channel soundbar, was immersive enough. I can't think of any moments that stand out especially in either a positive or negative manner from an audio perspective, other that really enjoying some of the music chosen.  The slightly different room sounds / tones in the various interviews with Levy really help remind you that this was something assembled over a long period of time: softer and warmer in his living room for instance, verses in some cavernous lobby, doing a meet and greet.

The Supplements: 2 stars

The majority of the Bonus Features are additional interview snippets from the likes of Blue Meanie, DDP, RVD, Tommy Dreamer, and Chris Jericho. They're at times heartwarming, like Jericho realizing how close he came to never getting together with his wife, and at time heartbreaking; Perry Saturn detailing the hardships he's gone through are tough to handle. But they're all fascinating.

• Bonus Interviews:
• Billy Corgan (3:37)
• Blue Meanie (6:02)
• Chris Jericho (3:36)
• DDP (6:20)
• Raven (2:17)
• RVD (16:47)
• Sandman (5:36)
• Saturn (7:27)
• Tommy Dreamer (7:16)
• Trailer (2:32)

Final Thoughts: 

Nevermore: The Raven Effect will appeal to a subset of a subset of people: wrestling fans might only have a passing familiarity with Raven to begin with, but if you're someone who is interested in wrestling as an art form, and not just the entertainment it produces, you could do a lot worse than hearing Scott Levy's story straight from the Raven's mouth as it were. Beyond that, his involvement with ECW allows for a really interesting idea of what ECW was at the time to form at the edges of this doc. If you're an aspiring wrestler, or someone interested in the craft of wrestling, Raven's story gives you plenty to admire, and plenty to avoid. Recommended.