Losing a loved one can be the ultimate devastation. Some people mourn, some people turn to religion while others kill for revenge.

In “The Brave One” starring Jodi Foster and Terrance Howard, Erica Bain (Foster), a New York talk show host, turns to murder while Detective Mercer (Howard) tries to solve the several random murders happening throughout New York City.

The story unfolds when Bane and her fiancé David (Naveen Andrews) are taking their dog for a walk in central park. Three gangbangers capture the dog and refuse his release to Erica and David. The situation escalates as one gangbanger has a camera getting ready to capture the intense beating that will soon be thrown down.

David is beaten to death, while Erica is in a coma for three weeks. When she finally awakes she has to face a horrible new reality, life without her love.

Erica goes from optimistic romantic to a dejected lost soul. Like most, she mourns but the movie does not spend much time on her sadness. It jumps straight into her fears about the city she once loved. She soon returns to work only to be criticized by her own personal opinions derived from her experience. She refuses to just be another victim and decides to take corruption into her own hands.

She soon befriends Detective Mercer to try and get a look inside her case but mainly to see if any murder evidence can be traced back to her. When they befriend each other, Mercer is dealing with his own personal problems and finds some kind of comfort in being close to Erica.

The randomness of the movie portrays life in New York very well. In the movie, irony, just like in life, justifies most of the random and out of place instances that cause for an exciting drama. Plus, Howard and Foster make a dynamic duo during the entire cinema.

Although emotions are revealed throughout the story, it mainly focuses around Erica’s pain and lockdown personality. Through the ups and downs, the audience feels the turbulence as the end of the movie nears. Just like most movies, clues lead Erica back to her attackers.

The movie has the audience intrigued from the beginning, wondering whether it will be another trite “revenge” movie or something fresh. Even though it is slightly predictable, it captivates the audience with its gripping ending. This is a must see for anyone who loves to walk away from the theater thinking intensely about what they just watched.