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We had the trailer for Brave the Dark the other day and, as always, it looked interesting.
Brave the Dark stars Jared Harris, Nicholas Hamilton, Martin Jarvis, Tobias Segal, Sasha Bhasin, Jamie Harris, Searra Sawka, and Will Price. Damian Harris writes and directs, with Dale G. Bradley and Lynn Robertson Hay penning the screenplay.
The Story
The story for Brave the Dark is based on a true story:
Haunted by torturous childhood memories, Nate Williams finds himself engulfed in darkness. When his drama teacher, Mr. Deen bails him out of jail and takes him in, Nate must confront his past before it leads to his own destruction.
Nate (Hamilton) has had a rough upbringing, which is hinted at but plays out through the rest of the movie. He and some mates do a little breaking and entering, and he ends up in trouble.
One of his teachers, Stan Deen (Harris), goes to the police station to help him out. At first, it’s just a mild concern, but Stan sees there’s more to it. Nate has to return to school, finish his grades, and he will not go to jail.
Stan takes it upon himself to help Nate, including letting him stay at his house. Even though Stan is a nice guy, he’s battling his own demons from his past.
I won’t spoil the rest of the story, but it is good, although very dark. And I was not crying at the end.
The Cast
Someone said with the trailer for Brave the Dark, that Jared Harris is usually a sign of quality. I totally agree, Harris is a very underrated actor, he was even good in Mr Deeds.
However, I felt that in Brave the Dark that he wasn’t ‘phoning it in’, but Stan didn’t feel like a stretch for him. He seemed to be playing himself, a nice guy that everyone seemed to like and respect.
Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a bad thing; it was just that Stan seemed more like Jared. There is a lot of emotion in his character, and as I said, I was crying by the end.
Hamilton is the main focus of the movie, and he is good. Nate has been through some tough times in his life, and Hamilton is playing the ‘troubled teen’ very well. By the end of the movie, you find out exactly what happened in Nate’s past.
Again, I was crying by the end. His monologue is very moving.
Overall
As I said, I’m not going to go into details about the story; it is a little cliché in parts. There are the usual ‘ups and downs’ of a relationship like this. However, it’s about the characters and how the story unfolds. Again, seeing someone like Harris is always a good thing.
There is one scene where there is a tirade of swearing. I don’t know why, but this irked me. It reminded me of the scene in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, where Steve Martin goes off on one. I’m not a big one for swearing; I feel there are better ways to express oneself.
The swearing scene in Brave the Dark is played for ‘laughs’, as in, it lightens the mood of a very serious movie. I felt it was out of place, but that’s just me. Maybe I’m a prude in my old age?
Brave the Dark is not an easy watch. I had my issues growing up. I remember one time, when I was bout 8, my dad didn’t buy me a dinosaur I wanted. It still hurts to this day. This was peanuts compared to what Nate goes through.
It was a good reminder to appreciate where people come from and what they have been through to get to where they are today. Sometimes, people need the benefit of the doubt.
Some people, like Nate, just need kindness to give them something to sort their lives out. Kindness goes a long way; sticking with that kindness takes a lot, but it can be worth it.
I’m giving Brave the Dark a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars. It’s not my usual movie, but it was a good movie, just not one I would revisit. It is a feel good movie, though, once you get through the hard parts.
Brave the Dark will be on digital on the 15th of September.
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