Braven
Braven is a 2018 action thriller film directed by Lin Oeding and written by Mike Nilon and Thomas Pa'a Sibbett. The film stars Jason Momoa as Joe Braven, with Garret Dillahunt, Stephen Lang, Jill Wagner, and Brendan Fletcher. Principal photography began in December 2015 in Newfoundland, Canada. The film was released on February 2, 2018.
| Braven | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Lin Oeding |
| Produced by |
|
| Story by |
|
| Starring | |
| Music by |
|
| Cinematography | Brian Andrew Mendoza |
| Edited by | Rob Bonz |
Production company |
|
| Distributed by | Saban Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country |
|
| Language | English |
| Box office | $826,472[1][2] |
Plot
Logging company owner and family man Joe Braven (Jason Momoa), lives with his wife Stephanie (Jill Wagner) and their daughter Charlotte (Sasha Rossof). Braven's father Linden (Stephen Lang), who suffers from brain trauma due to a head injury, gets into a bar room brawl after mistaking a woman for his wife, requiring Joe to come to his aid and resulting in hospitalization for Linden. On Stephanie's suggestion, Joe and Linden decide to spend some time together at the family's secluded mountain cabin unaware that Charlotte was hiding in the back of the vehicle so she could tag along.
While transporting logs by truck, Joe's co-worker, a driver named Weston (Brendan Fletcher) is asked by Hallett (Zahn McClarnon), a drug trafficker, to recruit other drivers into Hallett's criminal activities, but Weston refuses. During the exchange, Weston loses control of his truck, causing a crash that displaces all the logs and cocaine from the vehicle. After they resolve to go to Joe's mountain cabin to store the cocaine there, Weston and Hallett are picked up by a police patrol car. Hallett relays the news of the crash to his employer, drug lord Kassen (Garret Dillahunt).
After Joe, Linden and Charlotte arrive at the cabin, Joe discovers the cocaine hidden in the shed so he hides Charlotte in a storage closet before being surrounded by Kassen's mercenaries and when Weston tries to act as a go-between, Kassen kills him. Unable to call for help because of lack of cellular signals at the cabin, Joe, armed with a bow and arrow, and Linden with a gun, kill some of the mercenaries during the ensuing standoff.
Needing higher ground in order to access a cellular network, Joe drives out of the house on a quad bike with the original cocaine bag and Charlotte, hidden under a blanket. Joe drops off Charlotte and instructs her climb to the mountain, where she calls her mother, who calls the sheriff. Circling back, Joe dispatches more of Kassen's men. Kassen finds the bag, but it is empty. Discovering where Joe sent Charlotte, Kassen sends one of the mercenaries, Ridley, to find her, though when Hallett enters the cabin, he is stabbed twice by Linden, who then retreats, and is later wounded by another mercenary, Essington.
Just before Ridley catches up to Charlotte, a bow-wielding Stephanie arrives and shoots Ridley with an arrow. A hand-to-hand fight ensues, during which she stabs Ridley before fleeing. Meanwhile, Joe returns to the cabin, where he dispatches Clay and kills Essington. Charlotte is picked up by the sheriff as Ridley continues to pursue Stephanie. Kassen takes Linden hostage and after Joe pleads for his life, Kassen fatally stabs him. Kassen shoots the sheriff and escapes the cabin, later retrieving the lost cocaine. Joe chases after him and after a knife fight in which Kassen bests Joe, Joe pushes Kassen off a cliff, killing him, before reuniting with Stephanie and Charlotte.
Cast
- Jason Momoa as Joe Braven, a soft spoken logger and family man, the protagonist of the film
- Garret Dillahunt as Kassen, the main villain of the film and the leader of the drug traffickers.
- Zahn McClarnon as Hallett, the secondary villain of the film and a drug trafficker, who is Kassen's right hand man.
- Stephen Lang as Linden Braven, Joe's father
- Jill Wagner as Stephanie Braven, Joe's wife
- Brendan Fletcher as Weston, Joe's co-worker
- Sasha Rossof as Charlotte Braven, Joe's daughter
- Sala Baker as Gentry, a mercenary
- Teach Grant as Essington, a mercenary
- Fraiser Aitcheson as Clay, a mercenary
- Steve O'Connell as Sheriff Cal Osser
- Tye Alexander as Deputy Glen Harris
Production
September 3, 2015, it was announced that Jason Momoa would star in the action thriller film Braven to be directed by Lin Oeding, based on the story by Mike Nilon and scripted by Thomas Pa'a Sibbett. Momoa would produce the film along with his partner Brian Mendoza through their Pride of Gypsies banner, along with Nilon and Molly Hassell.[3] On December 14, 2015, Garret Dillahunt joined the film to play the villainous role.[4]
Principal photography on the film began early-December 2015 in Newfoundland, Canada.[4]
Reception
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 77% based on 31 reviews, and an average rating of 5.88/10.[5] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[6]
References
- "Braven (2018)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- "Braven (2018)". The Numbers. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- Hipes, Patrick (September 3, 2015). "Jason Momoa To Star In Action Movie 'Braven' – Toronto". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
- Hipes, Patrick (December 14, 2015). "Garret Dillahunt Joins Jason Momoa In 'Braven'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
- "Braven (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- "Braven Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved April 10, 2018.