Review of Red (1996) by Xgary X — 30 Jun 2014
A retired CIA operative is targeted for elimination and so he reunites with his former colleagues to strike back at the assassins. RED is a comic strip action film based on a DC Comics series about ex-spies who come out of retirement and teach the new young whipper-snappers how it's done.
The tone is very light-hearted despite the amount of fire power on show and it embraces the concept of "geriaction" wholeheartedly. I must admit I was expecting something a little more substantial considering the heavyweight cast however, as RED is little more than an episodic series of shoot outs combined with a few quips about ageing.
The quality cast do keep the story entertaining enough, although it is slightly cringe worthy watching an actor of Malkovich's calibre gurning and prat-falling like an elderly Howling Mad Murdoch; in fact the whole film feels very much like an extended episode of The Aged-Team.
It's all very slight and rarely laugh out loud funny leaving RED feeling like nothing more than a sitcom with a body count. Despite the big names involved here, The Losers was very similar and slightly better.
This review of Red (1996) was written by Xgary X on 30 Jun 2014.
Red has generally received very positive reviews.
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