Screenwriter
Dale G. Bradley
Director
Damian Harris
Producer
Grant Bradley
Derek Dienner
Dale G. Bradley
Genre
Drama
Distributed by
ngel Studios
Release dates
October 6, 2023 (Heartland)
January 24, 2025 (United States)
Running time
122 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$200,000[1]
Box office
$4.4 million[2]
Brave The Dark Movie (2025 Film) Summary
Growing up, I remember my dad saying, “You know, that was just a good movie,” after the credits rolled on films like “Brave the Dark.” You didn’t need to consider it. Watching it transports you back to the harsh, gossamer era of the inspiring teacher films of the 1990s: your “Goods Will Hunting,” “Misters Holland’s Opus,” and “Dead Poet Society.” The melancholy and complexity of those more bittersweet masterpieces aren’t quite conveyed here by filmmaker Damien Harris; that would take something more difficult than what Christian film firm Angel Studios wants to provide their captive audience of evangelicals. Even though it almost drowns itself in sentimental platitudes, the essentials are functional.
“Brave the Dark,” which is based on a true story that its subject (Nathan Deen) co-wrote, follows the developing relationship between a tough teen named Nate (“It’s Nicholas Hamilton), a handsome but troubled orphan who has kept the fact that he lives in his car from his peers, and a good-hearted rural Pennsylvania high school teacher named Stan Deen (Damien’s brother Jared Harris, stalwartly chewing his way through a dodgy Midwestern accent). He wears a leather jacket, runs track and field to get the free showers, and hangs around with the wrong crowd, which gets him into trouble when he is arrested for breaking and imprisoned alone. Deen contacts Nate’s grandparents out of care for the youngster, but they are uncaring and just serve as a painful reminder of an undisclosed previous tragedy involving his late mother. Stan decides to take Nate under his wing instead of removing him from school, offering him lodging and board as long as he puts in the effort to graduate.
The teacher-student relationship ultimately proves to be therapeutic and transforming for both of them, as is customary for these sorts of movies: the unstable Nate starts to flourish in a nurturing setting, while the lonely Stan finds meaning after the death of his mother. Images of a blood-splattered toddler being cleansed and a terrified mother hanging over a bridge are among the flashbacks that hint at Nate’s earlier tragedies, which culminate in the film’s depressing yet uplifting ending. There are no surprises in “Brave the Dark,” which plays all the Hallmark hits of a simple weepie. Damien Harris frequently obstructs scenes and shoots characters from an almost fearful distance, allowing the film’s budget to show through in flashbacks that are clumsily color-graded or suspiciously green-screened. However, he is a competent director who understands how to get the most out of his small cast.
As always, Harris gives his characters a weary conviction that helps make Stan seem a little more complex than the feel-good Ned Flanders type the screenplay assigns him. Simply put, he is a saint—the type of kind person with a pot belly who appears to have been sent here to serve as an example of self-effacing goodness for young people. Indeed, if there were more Stans in the world, it would be a better place. Harris’ embarrassed shrugs and wry smiles, as well as his aw-shucks manner of a man who is simply content to be helping people and tells creaky dad jokes with all the gusto of your amusing uncle at Thanksgiving, are what give the film its pleasures.
Considering that Hamilton is a twinkled James Dean whose greatest transgressions are playing hooky and moping, he makes the most of what he has. (And, hey, hanging out with a bunch of criminals who smoke smokes!) Although he and Harris find it difficult to develop a strong relationship, they each carry their parts with great weight when acting alone. (An unattended Nate begins dancing to music while painting the set for Stan’s most recent performance in one scene, which almost makes this an evangelical “High School Musical.”)
Angel Studios appears to be judiciously shifting away from the right-wing provocations of QAnon-adjacent action films like their smash “Sound of Freedom” in favor of more treacly, family-friendly, wholesome fare with “Brave the Dark,” much like their previous entry “Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot.” Even while it’s easy to wonder about the intentions of a studio founded on the ideological objective of preaching to the evangelical choir, they are feel-good stories based on real acts of unsung compassion that are rather difficult to criticize. However, “Brave the Dark” hardly ever falls victim to that type of proselytizing: in a flashback, a crucifix is conspicuously displayed on a car’s rearview mirror, and at the film’s darkest moments, Harris’ Deen clasps his hands and shuts his eyes in a moment of not-quite-prayer. That’s all. Instead, it is a film about a good samaritan in real life and a good one at that. The goal of Angel Studios is to make pictures that “amplify light,” so if they stick to straightforward plots like this, I might really start to believe them.
Brave The Dark Movie (2025 Film) Production
From 1967 until his passing in 2016, Stan Deen taught drama and English at Garden Spot High School in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In 1967, he established the Garden Spot Performing Arts (GSPA).[4] Dale G. Bradley, Nathaniel “Nate” Deen, director Damian Harris, Lynn Robertson, and John P. Spencer wrote Brave the Dark. The actual Garden Spot High School in Lancaster County, where Nathaniel Deen and Stan Deen both attended and taught, as well as the home where they both resided, served as one of the filming locations. The period of filming in 2021 was late summer to early autumn. In October 2021, dramatic footage was shot against the Poplar Neck Bridge close to Lancaster.
Brave The Dark Movie (2025 Film) Reviews
Julian Moore
I haven’t seen a better film this year than this one. I could identify with Nate, so it got to me. This film reminded me of many of the memories I had forgotten about my difficult upbringing. We need more people like Mr. Dean, so I believe that everyone should see this film. I had a “Mr. Dean” while I was living in a foster home who helped me get by, taught me how to be a decent person, and helped me grow closer to God. I will always be thankful to God for bringing him into my life, as well as to him for helping me. According to what I’ve read in the other reviews, I was more interested in the message and the tale they were attempting to tell than I was in the performance. Like Mr. Dean, we should all try to assist those in our immediate vicinity who are in the most pain. Thank God for this wonderful film.
Ann Boyd
Another excellent film from Angel Studios was Brave the Dark. In addition to the excellent performances, the plot had to be told. The suffering of others is so frequently disregarded in today’s society. Mr. Deen, the main character, was not to be deterred by his coworkers, who thought Nate was a hopeless case. Nate persisted and developed into an exceptional man as a result of Mr. Deen’s assistance. This friendship lasts a lifetime. The world needs a lot more, Mr. Deens.
Melanie Harkcom
This film exceeded my expectations by a wide margin. I just went to see it because I wanted to visit areas I know and the movie was filmed close by. Stan Deen was completely unknown to me. But the plot was nicely written and engrossing. I thought the performance was superb, and I loved how Nate’s memories progressively showed the audience the horror he had endured as a young child. I was reminded of The Holdovers by this film. It made me cry, which is quite a feat. I suggest seeing it.
Sabine Miller
Among the greatest films I’ve recently seen. This one struck near to home because many of us have those skeletons in the closet. The numerous flashbacks make it a little challenging to follow at first, but everything comes full circle. You missed the topic about the showers since some people are talking about them and don’t understand. Some people are discussing the behavior of teenagers at school, which wasn’t particularly out of the ordinary during those years. While some educators would have pursued us, others chose not to.
