A Review of ‘Brave the Dark’: A satisfying yarn of a lost teacher-student duo searching for the light
An empathetic high-school teacher attempts to set a wayward student on the right track while helping him assimilate a painful childhood.
‘Brave the Dark’: A satisfying yarn of a lost teacher-student duo searching for the light
Cast: Jared Harris, Nicholas Hamilton, Will Price, Jamie Harris, Martin Jarvis, Tobias Segal, Sasha Bhasin, Johnath Davis, Scottie DiGiacomo, Kimberly S. Fairbanks, Searra Sawka, Ava Wrubel, Cole Tristan Murphy, Banks Quinney, Elise Hudson, Shannon Destiny Ryan, Kathy Patterson, Meredith Sullivan
Critic’s Rating 3 Stars out of 5
Director: Damian Hill
Duration: 1 hour, 50 minutes
Genre: Drama
Language: English
Release: 2023
What’s it about?
An empathetic high-school teacher attempts to set a wayward student on the right track while helping him assimilate a painful childhood.
Review:
Based on a true story, Brave the Dark makes for quite a touching human drama about dealing with personal tragedy by reaching out to another suffering soul. Though not boasting the most original of plots and a tad schmaltzy at times, this film does succeed in tugging at the viewer’s heart and even jerking a tear or two. The premise of a troubled teen engaging in malfeasant activities and succour arriving in the form of a compassionate mentor, might seem a little too obvious. But intriguing flashbacks of the youngster’s childhood assure one’s attention and curiosity. This, while posing the question whether denying a traumatic past is the only effective way to process it.
Brave the Dark begins with high-school student Nathan Williams (Nicholas Hamilton) practicing running track - perhaps the only noble activity he pursues in his small-town Pennsylvania surroundings. Nathan is a jealous boyfriend to his classmate Tina (Sasha Bhasin) and having fallen in with bad company, has turned to juvenile delinquency. This undesirably behaviour lands Nathan in jail, prompting his concerned class teacher Mr. Stan Dean (Jared Harris) to come to his aid. We learn that the boy had passed through a succession of foster homes and that even his living grandparents are reluctant to care for him. With prolonged jail time on the cards and a bleak academic future for Nathan, the sympathetic Mr. Dean assumes custody of the young man.
Now back at school and living under Mr. Dean’s roof, Nathan still struggles with memories of an unsettling childhood which is adversely impacting his present. From the flashbacks, we gather that as a toddler, he was caught in the crossfire of warring parents and struggled to make sense of the conflict. These thoughts have beleaguered Nathan psychologically, making it hard for him to trust people – even those closest to him like Mr. Dean. It doesn’t help either that he is surrounded by cynical school staff, fellow-students and their parents. Will this dismal scenario lead Nathan to furthering his destructive behaviour? Or will the well-connected and resourceful Mr. Dean come through for him? Plus, one wonders whether Nathan’s recurring memories are actual or fabricated.
Though always holding the audience’s attention, the film is occasionally slow-moving while some of the drama seems coerced. However, Harris and Hamilton as the main characters, pull off a credible on-screen relationship, augmented by realistic dialogue and some pretty powerful scenes. But the supporting roles, especially that of Tina and Nathan’s grandparents, could have been fleshed out to a more compelling degree. Still, the over-arching themes of courage in the face of adversity and guidance amid unrelenting chaos, as well as surrogate parenthood, all make for an affecting cinematic experience.
Director and co-writer Damian Harris has covered similar territory about distressed teens - in his 2008 celluloid venture Gardens of the Night and the lighter The Rachel Papers in 1989. From these efforts, as well as this one, it is evident that Harris knows how to convey the psyche of unhinged teenagers in a fairly convincing manner. However, this project could have done with more levity to offset instances of self-conscious drama. Also, the period detail of the mid-1980s is not as copious as those who have lived through the time would fancy. Still, effective cinematography, editing and music are adequate enough to compensate. Plus, the duality of running in the film, figuratively and literally, is used in a curious way. This, while ensuring that periodic amounts of light are shed as our protagonists... brave the dark.
