Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Brave the Dark’ in Theaters, a True-Story Drama About a Troubled Teen And His Compassionate Teacher

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Sound of Freedom

Watch It or Skip It?

We start by referencing a key visual element of the movie - a young boy in plaid pajamas running alongside a cornfield at night. That boy is grown up and now attends high school, living as an orphan in a car in 1986, as the film opens. He participates in track just to have access to a shower. At nighttime, he often gets into mischief with his rough friends, and together they break into a store selling electronics and abscond with boomboxes and other gear. Downshifting suddenly, their joyful escape drives is foiled when local police show up and apprehend Nate at school, publicly humiliating him by leading him through the halls in handcuffs as the student body stares.

Christians are exemplary people. How about that!

So Mr. Deen saves Nate from that toxic situation, and from then on, he's determined to help the kid without expecting anything in return. For instance, he casts the kid in the school play knowing he's not the most talented actor, just to boost his confidence. Plus, Mr. Deen's actions towards Nate may also be motivated by his own loneliness. It's clear that he misses his mother who passed away a few months ago, and her belongings still linger in his room. The other teachers think Mr. Deen is being foolish - when they say, "Let the system take care of him," they seem oblivious to the fact that the system has already failed Nate in many ways. Mr. Deen does his best to provide emotional support to Nate, who's struggling with a lot of issues, including painful memories, bad habits, and a lost girlfriend.

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Would have a significant charm deficit.

Mr. Deen and Nate walked out of the courtroom, satisfied with a lenient sentence given by the judge:

You succeeded, I'm proud of you.

Nate: I didn't do anything wrong. I just stood there and kept my mouth closed.

Mr. Deen: Exactly!

None.

The movie doesn't quite live up to expectations, plodding along for nearly two hours. It mixes in some additional storylines from other installments, drags out the details of one side plot, and tries to piece together an interesting story, but it's still not bad. The movie's message of compassion and its consistent tone are positives, and having Jared Harris in the lead role helps to ground the story. However, Harris' character feels underwritten and lacking in depth. He's portrayed as an overly optimistic person, but it's unclear why the community has such high regard for him without any notable friendships to back it up, making his character feel like he needs some added complexity.

Scarcely scratches the surface of mediocrity.

This movie is a decent, realistic drama that doesn't have any major flaws, but it also isn't particularly impressive. You can still enjoy it, but don't expect to be completely blown away. STREAM IT with reasonable expectations.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film reviewer living in Grand Rapids, Michigan.