'The Brave One' -- 3 stars

Guns & neuroses: 'The Brave One' blends a girl, a gun and a conscience

"The Brave One" is "Death Wish" with a guilty conscience, and while it may be a bit of a hypocrite as vigilante thrillers go, the internal contradictions of the thing make for a very interesting picture. Ever since Shakespeare toned up the revenge tragedy with "Hamlet," storytellers have been elevating genre pieces as provocatively as their talents allow. I'm not suggesting "The Brave One" (dull title) is Shakespeare or "Taxi Driver," but it's the work of first-rate filmmakers and actors doing everything they can to find the truth in the pulp and the bloodlust.