![]() ![]() ![]() These people aren’t cardboard do-gooders they’ve got complicated pasts, and they’re haunted by regrets, and they have wants and needs and real dimension. Once “Only the Brave” takes a turn that makes its characters more vivid, it becomes clear that that the genuine life-and-death stakes of a firefighter’s life will intrude upon the story what starts out as old-fashioned and rah-rah becomes, by the final scenes, genuinely devastating and intensely poignant. And while Brendan follows the familiar plot thread of the callow youth becoming a man, he faces conflict once he realizes that being a firefighter is turning him into the kind of absentee dad he swore he’d never become. Amanda, for instance, is no shrinking violet or blandly supportive wife she constantly challenges her husband, all in the name of keeping their relationship alive over issues he would frequently rather not discuss. In an era where the words “based on a true story” can give seasoned filmgoers a sinking feeling, however, this is a film where the complications and messiness of reality add genuine heft to the drama. Even in these politically divided times, red and blue audiences alike can agree to root for the first responders and against the flames. See Photo: 'Deadpool 2': Ryan Reynolds Shares First Look at Josh Brolin as CableĪnd given that this is a men-who-are-good-at-their-jobs movie, with the firefighters showing their exemplary abilities before and after they achieve “hot shot” status, and a film where the fires themselves seem both vivid and deadly, “Only the Brave” could easily have coasted on bravado. Stream only the brave movie#But as the story builds, these characters become richer and more complicated - and the stakes become more deadly - resulting in a movie with a delayed but no less potent dramatic punch.ĭirector Joseph Kosinski (“Tron: Legacy,” “Oblivion”) and writers Ken Nolan (“Black Hawk Down”) and Eric Warren Singer (“American Hustle”) set up characters we think we know, from Eric Marsh (Josh Brolin), the tough-but-fair superintendent who always seems to know more about fires than everyone around him to Amanda (Jennifer Connelly), Eric’s veterinarian wife who rescues horses and frets about her husband’s safety while he’s putting himself in harm’s way to Brendan (Miles Teller), a drug-using screw-up who tries to get his life together when a recent fling results in his becoming a dad. And sometimes, movies like “Only the Brave” also find ways to stray from the path we’re expecting them to take.īased on Sean Flynn’s GQ article about the first municipal fire department to become an elite “hot-shot” squad sent in to extinguish huge and deadly forest fires, this film starts out so safely square (and square-jawed), that it feels like a World War II movie about a colorful squadron heading to Normandy. I hope this film will be available on DVD in the near future.Wind, humidity and any number of other factors can transform a forest fire in unpredictable ways. However, the writer-director has earned my respect for preserving this part of history on film. The film was truly a labor of love for everyone involved, and it shows, because obviously the film will never be a huge commercial success. ![]() It makes their valor that much more incredible. I know what a touchy thing it is for Soldiers when someone tells them that they are heroes, because they were doing their job, but the men this film depicts truly were American heroes, risking and in many cases sacrificing their lives in defense of a nation that had turned against them and their families. ![]() It's a shame that the film didn't get a wide-spread release because every American should know about the sacrifices the men of the 100th IN Battalion / 442nd RCT made to protect our nation and bring freedom to the people of Europe. Given the low budget, the director truly did an amazing job. The courage of the men whose action this film recounts is extremely humbling and I got teary-eyed more than once while watching the film. I was fortunate enough to see this playing on a big screen on the beach in Waikiki. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |