It seems facile to say, as two HE readers have, that big-name female actresses should think about steering clear of Joel Silver projects following this weekend’s shortfall performance of The Brave One.

Jodie Foster‘s vigilante film, nicely directed by Neil Jordan, is an emotionally developed, decently written effort. This in itself place it heads and shoulders above Silver stinkers like Gothika (in which Halle Berry starred and suffered), The Reaping (Hilary Swank vs. Biblical plagues) and The Invasion (which failure of which underlined Nicole Kidman‘s lack of commercial potency).

Still, if you were an agent repping a major female actress and she was offered the lead in a Silver film, wouldn’t you give it a bit more thought now than you would have six months or a year ago?