The Brave One [Blu-ray]
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Movie Reviews of The Brave One [Blu-ray]
Movie Review: The Stranger Within Comes Out
Summary: 4 Stars
Prior to seeing The Brave One, I saw a lot of preconceived opinions that the movie would be Death Wish 2007...a la Jodie Foster. And that's not too far off plotwise.
We all know what happened in 1974's Death Wish, right? In Death Wish some hoodlums put the hurt on Charles Bronson's family and Bronson goes Medieval on New York City's bad guys with a roll of quarters in a sock and a gun.
Well Death Wish didn't win any big awards, but it was certainly a cult classic that holds up to this day. On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised to see Jodie Foster nab a nomination (from the MTV Movie Awards at minimum) for her role as Paul Kersey...er...um...I mean Erica "Pain" Bain.
Foster really is a great actress and she makes you feel the agony that she is going through after the loss of a loved one. She also does an A-list job of taking a personality from Princess Leia to The Dark Side of the Force.
Terrence Howard (who's in more movies in 2007 & 2008 than anyone I think) plays a cool, enjoyable to watch detective with his own mini side-story. But the key is that all of the side stories--and there really aren't that many--take a back seat to the primary script. The script that drew so many to the simple concept of Death Wish. The vigilante on the loose.
The story is well-told and focuses on Foster's acts of retribution as much as the moral dilemma of being brutally violated, then taking severe action against the violating crowd, but questioning yourself and being questioned by the public for your response to the original attack committed against you (Hey, remind you any current events?).
Director Neil Jordan keeps the action real enough in The Brave One so as to make you think you've got a window into something-that-is-really-happening. There are a couple of over the top sequences...especially in the last 15 or so minutes...but otherwise, the emotion, suspense and tense situations will keep you in your seat and thoroughly entertained for its full 2 hour runtime.
The Brave One was definitely worth the trip off the couch and out to the theater. At minimum, don't miss it when it comes out on DVD.
Movie Review: The Stranger Within Comes Out
Summary: 4 Stars
Prior to seeing The Brave One, I saw a lot of preconceived opinions that the movie would be Death Wish 2007...a la Jodie Foster. And that's not too far off plotwise.
We all know what happened in 1974's Death Wish, right? In Death Wish some hoodlums put the hurt on Charles Bronson's family and Bronson goes Medieval on New York City's bad guys with a roll of quarters in a sock and a gun.
Well Death Wish didn't win any big awards, but it was certainly a cult classic that holds up to this day. On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised to see Jodie Foster nab a nomination (from the MTV Movie Awards at minimum) for her role as Paul Kersey...er...um...I mean Erica "Pain" Bain.
Foster really is a great actress and she makes you feel the agony that she is going through after the loss of a loved one. She also does an A-list job of taking a personality from Princess Leia to The Dark Side of the Force.
Terrence Howard (who's in more movies in 2007 & 2008 than anyone I think) plays a cool, enjoyable to watch detective with his own mini side-story. But the key is that all of the side stories--and there really aren't that many--take a back seat to the primary script. The script that drew so many to the simple concept of Death Wish. The vigilante on the loose.
The story is well-told and focuses on Foster's acts of retribution as much as the moral dilemma of being brutally violated, then taking severe action against the violating crowd, but questioning yourself and being questioned by the public for your response to the original attack committed against you (Hey, remind you any current events?).
Director Neil Jordan keeps the action real enough in The Brave One so as to make you think you've got a window into something-that-is-really-happening. There are a couple of over the top sequences...especially in the last 15 or so minutes...but otherwise, the emotion, suspense and tense situations will keep you in your seat and thoroughly entertained for its full 2 hour runtime.
The Brave One was definitely worth the trip off the couch and out to the theater. At minimum, don't miss it on DVD.
Movie Review: (3.5 STARS) "Death Wish" with Jodie Foster ... Sort Of: Great Acting, Not So Great a Story
Summary: 4 Stars
It's a revenge story set in New York City. It sounds like a female version of "Death Wish" at first sight, but things are more complicated as "The Brave One" stars Jodie Foster as Erica Bain, whose terrible experiences in the park turn her from a radio talk show host living happily into a one-woman vigilante squad. Among many A-list actresses that you can think of, Jodie Foster would be the most unlikely one to be seen in such a revenge story.
But she is, and she is very good as you expect. The film gives Erica several occasions (pretty conveniently, I am afraid) to use her weapon, but the strength of "The Brave One" directed by Neil Jordan lies not only in suspense surrounding her "missions," but in how crimes (including Erica's) change her personality. Violence is depicted as it is, not glorified in any way and what she does is also often described as nasty and Jodie Foster is excellent showing her character's changes.
So far the film is great. Neil Jordan also emphasizes the relations between Erica and the police detective (Terrence Howard), which is another merit. Unfortunately, however, reliable supports like Mary Steenburgen and Jane Adams (especially the latter) has virtually nothing to do.
But I was disappointed with the final 20 minutes where the film becomes something different (though I cannot tell exactly how here). All I can say is that "Death Wish" is often accused of being a crowd pleaser, but "The Brave One" looks as if it wants to please us more. Very realistic depictions of crime and its victims are turned into a concluding sequence which is simply unbelievable in more than one way.
Please see it for yourself if you want to know what I mean. I can assure you Jodie Foster gives strong acting yet again and I am sure that much of the film's power comes from her if not the script itself.
Movie Review: The Brave One
Summary: 4 Stars
`The Brave One' is best described as a crime thriller with a twist, the twist being that you root for the person committing the crimes. Jodie Foster plays Erica Bain, who is a DJ who gets beaten in a robbery, her fiance is killed at the same time and due to post traumatic stress turns vigilante. That is the story in a nutshell, but there are more twists and turns to the plot than my description would suggest and which I won't elaborate on to prevent spoilers. I've never been a huge fan of Foster, but her performance in this film was surprisingly good and you really get a sense of her characters fears and motivation for justice that impelled her actions. This film felt quite slow at times, but I was still kept engaged throughout. Some of the violence was quite upsetting and/or graphic, mainly the attack at the start of the film and this was a particularly hard hitting scene. This film uses some clever direction to enhance some scenes, like interspersing a love scene with a hospital scene, which made the brutality of the damage caused by the attack all the more powerful in counterpoint to the tenderness in the love scene. Overall, if you like crime films this should be right up your street and for a stellar performance from Foster this is the place to go. Not truly amazing, but a good film never the less.
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Movie Review: The Brave One
Summary: 4 Stars
New York City talk show host Erica (Foster) is on the brink of marrying David (Andrews). She is very happy. Then one night, they are attacked. David dies and Erica lives. Unfortunately, she is an emotional wreck. Just getting the courage to leave her apartment is a challenge. Once out, she buys a gun - for protection and revenge. When a few dead bodies start showing up, Detectives Mercer (Howard) and Vitale (Katt) are at a loss to what kind of a person they are dealing with. Erica's friend ship with Mercer complicates things for her as well. As the police close in on her, Erica must decide of revenge is really worth it.
"The Brave One" is an interesting movie that doesn't provide any easy answers. Jodie Foster gives an excellent performance as a character who is both vengeful and sympathetic. Howard and Katt are both good in supporting roles as the detectives. "The Brave One" is the type of movie to provoke a discussion on what is right, and by giving no real answer it makes itself more interesting. This is not a movie for everyone, but it is worth seeing.