RED ONE
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans, J.K. Simmons, Lucy Liu, Kristofer Hivju, Bonnie Hunt, and Kiernan Shipka
Director: Jake Kasdan
ADRIANO
I think the thing constantly ruining Dwayne Johnson movies is his absolute lack of a sense of humour, and Red One, a terrible holiday action-comedy, takes itself so numbingly seriously that it sucks out any fun it could've had. As an action movie, the movie looks ugly, and the set pieces are bland and horrifically thought-out. As a comedy, there's really only one joke being told throughout (Chris Evans' character loudly reacting to weird stuff). The only semblance of enjoyment I got out of this was simply because I love Christmas so much. Plain and simple: Red One is a disaster.
AMARÚ
Luckily, there’s a bit of heart in Red One between Dwayne Johnson and J.K. Simmons because the story is cliché, melodramatic, surface-level kid’s fodder. Luckily, the creature design and mythological lore is really cool, because the uncanny valley CGI made the saccharine levels rise to ridiculous heights. Luckily, Johnson and Chris Evans sometimes understood that silliness, and could play it to a charming tone, because the horrific villain was mustache-twirling levels of Power Rangers television cheese. Kids may like this, adults may tolerate it, and luckily, there’s just enough that’s watchable to get through unscathed.
KATIE
I felt I had to give Red One at least one reel, since I did laugh out loud a couple of times and Chris Evans hits all the right notes as the cynic with a heart of gold. There are also some serviceable action scenes, but, overall the visual effects are disastrous, the plot doesn’t make sense, and it overstays its welcome. I’m not sure who this is for, since it feels like a kid's film but is littered with bad language and crude jokes, which makes the empty sentimentality feel even more devoid of Christmas magic.
PRESTON
Before the critic within me gets to critiquing, it is important to remember what Red One is and who it’s for. Director Jake Kasdan’s unique take on Santa is, first and foremost, a children’s movie, even if the high use of language is confusing. He includes some cool historical figures in international folklore with Krampus (Kristofer Hivju) and Gryla (Kiernan Shipka). Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans lead the film competently, but lack the back-and-forth chemistry that would have made it much more successful. Ultimately, Red One is a bland, but altogether entertaining Christmas film that won’t be entering the yearly Holiday movie rotation.
