Fostering a Grudge
The Brave One
Review by Ross Anthony

Didn't I just see this film two weeks ago with Kevin Bacon in Death Sentence? Okay, that's not completely fair, Charles Bronson did it years earlier in Death Wish, and who know who did it before him.

Of course, if you've seen this type of film before, the predictability factor comes into play, but the bigger problem is that there just isn't a whole lot of depth to the main character. There could have been -- there even was the attempt. And perhaps Foster's voice over narration was yet another attempt, but it sounded cornier in its conciseness than profound.

Oddly enough, Terrance Howard's character (the detective) plays with great strength. I say "oddly," because he's not the main character and because the detective in the Kevin Bacon move played contrastingly flat. In fact, I'd say that Howard's detective partner (Nicky Katt), who has a total of 3 minutes screen time, gives the best lines of the film -- all comedic. The audience loved that guy. And I thought Howard was phenomenal as always; what little depth his character was given on paper, he magnified on screen.

On the whole, there were a few too many implausible moments that simply knocked me out of the movie. 1) Foster is terrified to go out, so she decides to buy a gun, she can't get one legally so she trusts some thug in a gun shop to take her to a dark alley to get an illegal one. 2) The same night she's attacked and gets to try out her new gun. (This on her first day of getting out from recovering from a previous attack). There's a couple more, but I'll stop there.

That said, the film does host some strong moments. There's a scene with Howard and Foster in a bar shot into a mirror where they're both rather scared for each other. Nicely acted, nicely written, nicely directed and shot. And there are more strong moments.

-- Book Contest --


  • The Brave One. Copyright © 2007.
  • Starring Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard, Naveen Andrews, Nicky Katt, Mary Steenburgen.
  • Directed by Neil Jordan.
  • Screenplay by Roderick Taylor, Bruce A. Taylor, Cynthia Mort.
  • Produced by Joel Silver, Susan Downey at Warner Bros/Village Roadshow.

Grade..........................B- (1.5/4)


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Copyright © 1998-2023 Ross Anthony, Author - Speaker - Solo World Circumnavigator In addition to reviewing films and interviewing celebs at HollywoodReportCard.com, traveling the world, composing great music, motivational speaking, Mr. Anthony also runs his own publishing company in the Los Angeles area. While traversing the circumference of the planet writing books and shooting documentaries, Mr. Anthony has taught, presented for, worked &/or played with locals in over 30 countries & 100 cities (Nairobi to Nagasaki). He's bungee-jumped from a bridge near Victoria Falls, wrestled with lions in Zimbabwe, crashed a Vespa off a high mountain road in Taiwan, and ridden a dirt bike across the States (Washington State to Washington DC). To get signed books ("Rodney Appleseed" to "Jinshirou") or schedule Ross to speak check out: www.RossAnthony.com or call 1-800-767-7186. Go into the world and inspire the people you meet with your love, kindness, and whatever it is you're really good at. Check out books by Ross Anthony. Rand() functions, Pho chicken soup, rollerblading, and frozen yogurt (w/ blueberries) also rock! (Btw, rand is short for random. It can also stand for "Really Awkward Nutty Dinosaurs" -- which is quite rand, isn't it?) Being alive is the miracle. Special thanks to Ken Kocanda, HAL, Jodie Keszek, Don Haderlein, Mom and Pops, my family, R. Foss, and many others by Ross Anthony. Galati-FE also deserves a shout out. And thanks to all of you for your interest and optimism. Enjoy great films, read stirring novels, grow.


Last Modified: Saturday, 15-Sep-2007 08:36:22 PDT