So much average

Sick Product of a Sick System

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Fighting fire with fire is the first thing that comes to mind when I think about Only the Brave. This movie had many elements, no pun intended, besides humongous brush fires. These infernos are deadly and to prevent them from entering populated areas is not a small feat. The leadership role Josh Brolin played was superb as he gave his squad great guidance and strategy. But no matter how much you plan something, things can go array when trying to deal with catastrophic winds, fire, and water. The same with earthquakes and so on, as we have seen many times in history. Much respect given to these guys who were an awesome team of hotshots, as they were called. Their heroism is clearly deserved, they fought the good fight in this must see film.

The amount of reviewers that find this movie stunning, the best movie they saw this year, incredible etc..., that's just the stunning fact to me. I don't say Only The Brave is a bad movie, because it isn't, but making it the best thing you ever saw is a step too far for me. I can get that you want to honor the memory of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, and I'm sure they deserve every single attention for their bravery, but the movie itself is just a bit slow. It's fine to show the camaraderie they had, but not for almost the entire movie. A bit more action would have made this movie better. The cinematography of the landscapes made it for me worth watching. I never heared of this story, as I'm not an American, so to me it was a complete surprise. It's a tragedy, their bravery should be honored and they should never been forgotten, but that doesn't make it the best movie ever. Maybe for fire geeks, I know they exist, this one will be in their top ten.

Not because it's so engaging. But because the movie will be in the middle of a fire and without warning the fire is over, the men are home and arguing with their women. It jumps from scene to scene without so much as a warning. I actually thought it was doing flashbacks for a bit because the scenes were so disjointed. So if you want to watch this movie and understand what is going on throughout you can't get up to get a drink or you will be lost.

Only the Brave is one of the most tragic, honest, gut-wrenching, spot-on movies ever made depicting the wildfire catastrophe killing 19 hotshots in '13. Joseph Kosinski proves that his latitude isn't limited to high concept Sci-Fi with Tron:Legacy and Oblivion on his belt but extends into dead serious, shocking human drama while still providing a deeply satisfying and honorable experience with a great looking, great sounding and perfectly written movie. Only the Brave is one of the best movies I've ever had the privilege to watch. It' s a shame it bombed at the box office and was only released on standard Blu Ray but that shouldn't deter anyone from experiencing it. I give it my very highest recommendation!