Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 30, 2018

'Only the Brave' is based on a true story, and discussing the film, its characters, and real life foundation necessitates spoiling the movie.

Only the Brave is a movie about firefighters, but it’s not a movie about firefighting. The film tells the story of twenty men, embodied in two, who find purpose and friendship amidst the burning-hot battle zones in which they must rely on one another to survive. They also battle blazes in their own lives, struggling to find meaning beyond their profession, in love, in reconciliation, and self-discovery. It’s a film about the fire that burns in men’s hearts, that made them heroes in life and in death. The film is based on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, an elite team of firefighters who lost a battle against nature in the Yarnell Hill Fire in June 2013.

Eric Marsh (Josh Brolin) is a veteran firefighter working out of Prescott, Arizona. He's earned clearance from city officials to train his unit to become certified as "hotshots," elite firefighters who are essentially the Navy SEALs of their profession. But his work consumes him, and it's putting a significant strain on his relationship with his wife, Amanda (Jennifer Connelly). He brings aboard a new trainee, a young man recovering from addiction and seeking direction named Brendan McDonough (Miles Teller), who has found new life with a new daughter and is seeking opportunity to provide for her in a stable setting while giving his life purpose.

Whether one is familiar with the story or not, a sense of doom lingers over the movie, but so too does a sense of hope. The film focuses on two characters, one a veteran of the fire world who finds himself caught between commitment to his profession and the men he leads and an increasingly uncertain future at home with a wife who needs a commitment from him, to choose their love over everything else. The other focal point is a young man, directionless and recovering from addiction, who finds purpose and, gradually, acceptance in family, both with his newborn daughter and her mother as well as the friends and brothers he makes on the team. The film takes its time to construct, explore, and define these characters as men, with finesse, purpose, depth, and tangible realism. The intimate exploration of their lives and, more importantly, their hearts and spirits makes the fire-hot intensity of the film’s third act burn all the hotter, hit all the harder, and mean so much more. The third act’s perils are underscored by a gentle, almost calming, but at the same time foreboding score that rightly leaves the attention on the men rather than the developing action around, because if there is anything the movie is not, it’s not an action film about fighting fires.

The film does require some patience. It's slow to build, effective to be sure and always compelling but the film's tonal subtlety and focus on characters proves dramatically rewarding, anyway, as the film approaches its climax and denouement. Suddenly everything in the film feels rewritten, more purposeful, a true depiction of the uncertainties of life and the importance -- the absolute, unflinching urgency -- to always keep things right, in perspective, to hug tighter, to love harder, to fight every day to be the best one can be. Because it can be over just like that. The film's finale, then, will leave the audience a wreck, grieving, attempting to cope with what's happened, not necessarily why -- the film is never really about what goes right or wrong during a fire fight -- but rather to whom and what it means to love and sacrifice. The performances are equal to the task of building the characters and the movie with remarkable depth and real-life transparency. Miles Teller is particularly wonderful as one of the most transformative individuals ever explored in film. His is remarkably well realized character growth, depicting the evolution of a man who suddenly finds purpose in life in his daughter and gradually finds purpose in life alongside his new brothers on the team. Josh Brolin and Jennifer Connelly shine as a middle aged couple struggling to sort out their love and align their priorities.

Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Only the Brave's Blu-ray is very strong, but the absence of a companion UHD release is very disappointing and a bit worrisome. The film did underperform at the box office but did earn critical acclaim. Add that it's a picture that would have unquestionably benefited from sharper resolution and more intensive and accurate HDR colors (though again it looks great on 1080p Blu-ray) and the omission is all the more disheartening, even as the film doesn't hold significant replay value. Hopefully its absence on the 4K format will be rectified in the future and is also hopefully a blip on the radar and not portending of a trend for the format's future.

The film begins with intense fiery reds and oranges that offer stout, deeply saturated colors, the first of many moments that most certainly would have been more on UHD. As it is, the image bears much fruit, yielding bountiful and brilliant colors reflected not only in hot fires but also diverse natural greens, red and yellow hotshots gear, and any other number of shades seen throughout the movie, all of which deliver with impressively steady vibrance and accuracy. Fine detail is additionally very well resolved. Complex facial hairs and pores present with density and depth. Clothing enjoys stout, intimate fabric textures. Environments are clean and sharp even at distance, whether grasses, trees and leaves, or sandy and pebbly Arizona terrain. Nighttime and low light black levels and shadow details are strong, and flesh tones appear true. The image did present more aliasing artifacts than one might expect to see. Shimmering on a roof at the 22:08 mark, a belt at 34:15, building façades at 1:16:27, a few other small examples throughout including car grills and textured safety gear, often present with enough intensity to distract from a particular shot. Otherwise, this is a very good top-end Blu-ray release.

Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Only the Brave's soundtrack may be limited to 5.1 channels in a basic DTS-HD MA lossless configuration, but the track certainly seems to fill in many gaps and approach the immersive qualities of those tracks with more channels at their disposal. The track produces a wonderful sense of musical wrap and immersion, good instrumental flow and clarity, and a quality low end support, whether considering light or intense score or intensive Rock riffs. The track dazzles with a tangible sense of space and power as choppers and planes maneuver through the stage. Swarming bees, rushing water, raging infernos, and other high-yield sound elements enter the stage with potent delivery, wide berth, and total saturation, as well as pinpoint clarity even through the most powerfully aggressive details. Atmospherics are nicely filling, particularly as heard in quieter scenes in woodland or arid desert areas. Dialogue is clear and well prioritized, even in a noisy bar during a key character sequence later in the film.

Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Only the Brave contains several extras. A digital copy code is included with purchase.

• Audio Commentary: Director Joseph Kosinski and Actor Josh Brolin deliver a modest track that's insightful and respectful, lightly funny in places but informative as to the technical details of the production as well as the integrity of the film's characters and narrative.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Blisters (1:11) and Eric Gets a Phone Call (1:02).
• Honoring the Heroes: The True Stories (1080p, 8:08): Cast and crew reflect on their reaction to the real story as it developed, initial resistance to the project, the importance of getting the movie and characters right, and more.
• Boot Camp: Becoming a Hotshot (1080p, 8:42): A closer look at Hotshots and the actors' physical preparations for the roles, training under real Granite Mountain Hotshot veterans.
• Behind the Brotherhood: The Characters (1080p, 7:20): The importance of honoring the real men the actors portray and getting the portrayals right, with the blessings of the real people who remain and the families of the victims.
• Music Video (1080p, 4:42): "Hold the Light" by Dierks Bentley Featuring S. Carey.
• Behind the Song: "Hold the Light" (1080p, 2:42): Bentley discusses what the song and the firefighters mean to him. He and Brendan McDonough also cover the song's lyrics.
• Previews (1080p): Additional Sony titles.

Only the Brave Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Powerful" is an overused word that's bandied about in response to a number of films, but it seems appropriate in summation of Only the Brave. The film does justice to and honors those who lost their lives. It can't possibly focus on all twenty men in just over two hours, but it still builds a sense of camaraderie amongst them, essentially making them one rather than a collection of individuals, and chooses to contextualize their humanity in the dueling stories of Eric Marsh and Brendan McDonough. The film is never about fire but instead men building their commitment, friendship, and loves against a backdrop of danger and pending disaster. It is indeed a powerful, unforgettable experience, not necessarily unique to cinema in that respect but nevertheless one of the most honest and complete depictions of man and heroism one is going to find in the medium. Sony's Blu-ray delivers top-notch video and audio with only minor drawbacks. The included supplemental content nicely compliments the film. Only the Brave may not hold replay value in the traditional sense of a more entertainment oriented cinema venture, but it's a movie that everyone should see. Only the Brave earns my highest recommendation.