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'Death Wish' for the thinking woman as Jodie Foster turns vigilante

By Chris Betros

Jodie Foster PHOTO BY SACHIKO FUKUZUMI

TOKYO — The ancient Romans had a saying: “Fiat justitia, ruat caelum” — let justice be done, though the heavens fall. It’s a theme that director Neil Jordan and actress Jodie Foster examine in great detail in their provocative film, “The Brave One.”

Foster plays a radio talk show host Erica Bain, known as the Street Walker, whose show centers on observations made while wandering the streets of New York. One night, though, three lowlifes kill her fiancé and leave her battered in Central Park (filming it as well). Frustrated at the lack of justice, she becomes a vigilante. With her illegally bought 9-millimeter pistol, she caps a convenience store robber, then some subway punks and a few other miscreants. As her exploits begin to capture the public’s imagination, Erica has to not only face up to what she is turning into, but also stay one step ahead of a sympathetic police detective (Terrence Howard), whom she actually interviews on her radio program one day.

Making her 12th or 13th visit to Japan (she wasn’t sure), Foster, 44, was ready, willing and able to discuss such complex issues as the psychology of revenge, the power of a gun and vigilantes. “What Erica does is wrong,” Foster said of her character. “Each shot that she fires represents the sacrifice of a piece of her soul, and yet you empathize with her as you follow her on her journey. No matter how you feel intellectually about vigilantes, you become just as compelled as Erica. Hopefully, what audiences see is that violence corrupts everybody, not just the victim, but those around them.”

Vigilantism on the streets of New York has been examined before in films (“Death Wish” and “Taxi Driver,” in which a younger Foster starred) as well as in real life (1984 subway shooter Bernhard Goetz), but the protagonists have almost always been men. “I guess that women who are victims of violence don’t go out and start killing strangers,” said Foster. “I understand why some people are comparing Erica to Travis Bickle (‘Taxi Driver’). But New York is an entirely different place now. Erica is an entirely different character. She is intelligent, philosophical, and she knows what is happening. Characters who struggle with morality have always attracted me.”

Director Jordan said that what attracted him to the project was being able to explore a character who has lost herself in today’s world which is bent on revenge. “As she spirals out of control, she becomes brave enough to face the darkest and most troubling parts of herself and recognize what she has become,” he said.

Foster, who describes herself as “not much of a political person,” said she has thought a lot about guns since making the film. “When you put a gun in your pocket, it changes everything – how you walk, the way you see the world, how you react to your surroundings. It does give you a sense of power, but the flip side is a monstrous side because if you depend on the power of a gun for whatever purpose, then someone has to die sooner or later.”

Could she ever cross the line and become a vigilante? “I’m sure that deep down, there is a nagging part of us all that would like others to suffer for the pain we feel, and yet I don’t think I could cross that line. I’m not a particularly brave person in real life. I’m lucky I get to experience on the screen what I might do in those circumstances.”

In fact, Foster said she is more likely to blow away a computer. “The only time I lose my temper is with inanimate objects. I have a real problem with electronics. I can’t ever make them work. It drives me crazy,” she said.

October 20, 2007

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Jodie Foster
bebert   (Oct 23 2007 - 11:23)	Rate | Report

Well, I guess one can concede
Beelzebub   (Oct 26 2007 - 11:55)	Rate | Report

Jodie Foster
cujo   (Oct 26 2007 - 22:40)	Rate | Report

It's a great catharsis
Beelzebub   (Oct 29 2007 - 10:57)	Rate | Report

Beelzebub
Zorro   (Nov 14 2007 - 11:52)	Rate | Report

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