The Brave One

Review

What could impel Jodie Foster and director Neil Jordan to whisk us back to the bad old days of Death Wish and Ms. 45? Were their credit cards maxed out? Were their kneecaps about to be broken? In The Brave One, Foster plays a radio host who delivers meditative monologues about our precious but too-ephemeral metropolis, only to find her romantic notions of identity shattered along with her skull when she and her fiancé are mugged by sniggering predators in Central Park. After she recovers (in body if not soul), she can’t seem to leave her apartment without being set upon by rapists and murderers. Lucky the lady has a gun � Homicide detective Terrence Howard�an avid listener of her weird radio spiels�faces an ethical decision: bust her or let her do what the law won’t let him do�blast the scum off the face of the Earth. You probably think I’m oversimplifying�that Foster and Jordan are too thoughtful, artistically ambitious, and politically progressive to make a movie that would have Bernie Goetz rolling his eyes. But Foster’s feminist victimization complex seems to be looping around to meet Nixon and Agnew. Next she’ll be hunting Commies for the FBI. — David Edelstein

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New York Magazine Reviews

• David Edelstein's Full Review (9/17/07)

Featured In

• An Interview With 'The Brave One' Actress Jodie Foster (9/3/07)