Review: The Brave One

  Hi, Musing Matt here. I am nearing the end of a semester of college and my, evidently, masochistic teachers have been piling on the work that they will eventually have to grade. Therefore, for the next few weeks, I may not be able to post as often as I would like. That being said, I hove found myself with a bit of free time this week. I would like to take this time to do something a little more traditional that I haven't done yet. A movie review. Now, as I have already stated, I am a busy college student and I have little time or money to go out to see a new movie. I do however have a very large movie shelf and I find that putting in a good movie helps me concentrate. So, today's review is going to be something from my shelf. I'm thinking one of my favorites, The Brave One with Jodi Foster.

  I find it interesting how many of my favorite movies have Jodi Foster in them. The Brave One, Silence of the Lambs, Inside Man, and Panic Room are all counted among my favorite movies and I'm pretty sure that a lot of that trend has to do with the fact that Jodi Foster is an amazing actress. For every movie she is in she turns in a brilliant and solid performance. The Brave One is no exception.

 Story (In terms of spoilers, I won't reveal anything that the previews did not show.)
  The story is about Erica Bain. She lives in the city and has a radio program. For her show she collects sounds around the city and talks about her experiences in the city. She also has a boyfriend and things are going pretty well for both of them. Do you see where this is going? Her life gets turned upside down when Erica and her boyfriend are attacked while out on a stroll in the park. They are both savagely beaten and by some miracle Erica survives but she wonders how much of her actually did. In the city, where she once felt comfortable, she is now gripped with a paralyzing fear that she doesn't understand. In some effort to master that fear and get some control back in her life she goes to a firearms store to buy a gun which she uses to fight back against the city she thought she knew. From that point on the movie amps up the tensity as every interaction with her and the gun speaks volumes about how she is changing as a character. This is not an action movie. Anyone who pops a bowl of popcorn will likely not touch it. At the movie's core it is a revenge movie and the filmmakers could have left it at that and the movie would still have been good, but they took it further to really explore how Erica has changed and how her actions have effected her and the city around her. These changes are explored in detail in act 2 of the movie and it all culminates in act 3 where the tension soars through the roof and anyone watching can not bare to look away.

  Starring opposite Jodi Foster is Terrence Howard as Detective Mercer who befriends Erica in while investigating the recent string of vigilante killings that have been happening around the city. This doomed friendship really adds to the tension but also serves to flesh out the characters, so the audience can get a better understanding of who these people are. Both performances are compelling and give the movie a richness that just would not have been there if anyone else was cast for these roles.
  This movie is just amazing. Its about how to learn from the tragedies we experience in life and not let them control us. If you haven't seen the movie do so. I highly recommend it.

Technical Stuff (I won't get into to great detail here this is mostly a platform for making recommendations)
  The Brave One was helmed by director Neil Jordan, who's filmography includes Interview with a Vampire, Michael Collins, and Breakfast on Pluto, and it seems he was the perfect choice for this material because he captured the intimacy of the story, characters, and the city itself.
  The score was composed by Dario Marianelli, who compose the scores of both Brothers Grimm and V for Vendetta.