PEACE-LOVING TALK DJ TURNS VIGILANTE
Written: Sep 14 '07
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Excellent acting, direction and script
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: A tough look at a serious problem which can occur to anyone.
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| mike.holmes's Full Review: The Brave One |
I didn't see the other recent "vigilante" film "Death Sentence" because the reviews were universally bad. Very bad. Even though Kevin Bacon starred in that film, it didn't appeal to me in the least.
As Hollywood frequently does, another film of the exact sub-genre opened this weekend, "The Brave One" starring Jodie Foster ("The Silence of the Lambs", "The Accused", "Nell") and Terrance Howard ("Hustle & Flow", "Crash"). The previews for the film intrigued me and both of those actors are among my favorites.
While the concept of vigilante "justice" goes against my basic beliefs (for reasons that I will describe later), Director Neil Jordan ("The Crying Game", "The End of an Affair", "Michael Collins"), the screenwriters Roderick Taylor, Bruce Taylor, and Cynthia Mort, and most importantly the two lead actors manage to present a reasonable portrait of a person seeking justice.
THE PLOT
The trailer for this film tells much of the basic story. Erica Bain (Foster) is engaged to Dr. David Kirnani (Naveen Andrews-"Lost", "The English Patient") as the movie opens Bain is a "talk disc jockey" for a public radio station in New York (I heard Foster describe the station as "public" on an NPR interview.) She is a reasoned voice in a world full of chaos.
Bain and Kirnani take their dog on a walk through Central Park and are accosted by three wildly violent thugs. Kirnani dies and Bain is severely injured but lives.
After Bain recovers sufficiently to leave the hospital and get back to work, she decides that she has seen enough "injustice" in the city so she illegally purchases a 9mm handgun. Even the preview shows that Ms. Bain starts exacting revenge fairly early in the film.
While she is recovering and as she starts on her vigilante vengence trip, she meets one of the best detectives in the city, Detective Mercer (Howard). She interviews Mercer because she says she's interested in how he investigates cases. The two of them hit it off but as the film progresses, Mercer gradually suspects that Bain might have something to do with the recent killings of various thugs around the city.
That's all I'll say about the plot.
WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE FILM
Jodie Foster is simply one of the finest actors around. Extreme closeups of her face show a myriad of emotions that had be in total sympathy with her loss. Her change from "innocent bystander" or victim to vengeful killer had a definite Jeckyll & Hyde feeling without the change of appearance. Foster manages to convince us that she has truly evolved into this person who will no longer accept the status quo.
Howard is equally convincing as a policemen who is dedicated to his profession but willing to re-examine his own motives and methods.
What really sets the movie apart from the average film is the chemistry that those two characters exhibit throughout the film. This is in part due to their excellent acting and in part due to an intelligent script and thoughtful, finely paced direction.
There are only a few other characters who spend much time on the screen. Bain's boss at the radio station, Carol, is portrayed by the always excellent Mary Steenburgen ("Melvin and Howard", "Time After Time"). Here Ms. Steenbergen gives another convincing performance of a boss who is also a worried friend.
Cinematographer Philippe Rousselot ("A River Runs Through It", "Hope and Glory") provides a very realistic portrayal of the city and the violence which erupts during much of the film.
I mentioned that I have a problem with the whole concept of vigilante "justice". I've been an attorney for 35 years, specializing to a large degree in criminal law. I've been a prosecutor, a defense lawyer, and a judge. I know that there are flaws in our judicial system. But, I also firmly believe that if we allow the vigilante mentality to run rampant, we will devolve into a state of anarchy.
This issue is addressed in the film both directly and indirectly with snipnets of "call-in's" to Bain's radio show. The majority of callers endorse the vigilante killings but a few question the fact that the concept is even being talked about.
While I personally do not favor this taking of justice into one's own hands, I feel that all of the people involved in this film and most particularly Ms. Foster, do such a good job that I rate the film FIVE STARS.
Recommended:
Yes
Movie Mood: Serious Movie
Viewing Method: Other
Film Completeness: Looked complete to me.
Worst Part of this Film: Nothing
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Epinions.com ID:
mike.holmes
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Member: Mike Holmes
Location: Odessa, Texas
Reviews written: 1258
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About Me:
TO HONOR TED KENNEDY, CONGRESS SHOULD PASS A MEANINGFUL HEALTH CARE BILL
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