Brave the Dark

Brave the Dark is one of the most curious films to come along in recent years. It’s ostensibly based on a true story, yet the plot is 100% formulaic. We’re supposed to be inspired by the journey its protagonist takes, although the screenplay is filled with false, manipulative moments that produce the exact opposite result. The plot deals with trauma, but the filmmakers lack so much as a basic understanding of how trauma works. In every conceivable way, the picture manages to undermine itself. It would almost be fascinating if it wasn’t profoundly dull.

Stan Deen (Jared Harris) is a high school teacher in a small town right outside Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He discovers that one of his students, the troubled Nate Williams (Nicholas Hamilton), has been living in his car. Mr. Deen strives to help Nate, even offering him a place to stay. What he discovers is that the kid has a series of tragic events in his past – events that have put him on a course of self-destruction. His focus becomes getting Nate to see his own potential so he can turn his life around.

The possibility of inspiration exists within that premise. However, Brave the Dark doesn’t bother to look for any of it. The film instead shamelessly, robotically follows the template of Good Will Hunting, right up to the scene where Nate finally reveals the nature of his trauma and Mr. Deen heals him by saying, “It’s not your fault.” Trauma isn’t necessarily caused by blaming oneself for something, and it most definitely isn’t cured by being absolved. When the movie offers such a simplistic depiction of its own subject, how is any thinking audience member going to be moved?

That is actually the least of the problems. The screenplay is poorly written and riddled with cliched dialogue. Similarly, the lazy quality of the writing makes Nate’s transformation unconvincing. We never really believe him as being profoundly troubled in the first place; his eventual change happens because the script needs it to, not because we’ve witnessed him go through the process of correcting his life’s course.

Director Damien Harris (The Wilde Wedding) lacks a sense of pacing. Scenes run on too long or are irrelevant to the core plot, causing the film to drag badly. With a thin script and sluggish direction, Brave the Dark fails to build genuine drama. Poor performances compound the issue. Hamilton isn’t credible as the traumatized teen, whereas Harris gives Mr. Deen such an unnecessarily quirky personality that he seems to have wandered in from a broad comedy.

The end credits provide obligatory photos of the real Stan Deen, who does indeed seem to have been a special teacher. Those pictures are more compelling than the actual narrative. Perhaps a documentary about his life and career would have been a more appropriate means of honoring him.


out of four

Brave the Dark is rated PG-13 for domestic violence/bloody images, suicide, some strong language, teen drinking, drug use, and smoking. The running time is 1 hour and 52 minutes.


© 2025 Mike McGranaghan