By: Corey Lack
Red was a movie released in 2010, starring Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Helen Mirren, and Karl Urban. Bruce Willis’s Frank Moses is a former member of the CIA who finds himself in the crosshairs of a black ops kill squad led by Karl Urban’s William Cooper. Cooper quickly finds out that Moses isn’t the former analyst that he’d been told he was and that he was labeled the titular R.E.D. or Retired, Extremely Dangerous. So, while Cooper goes full-throttle after Moses, Moses recruits former allies from his spy days to figure out why he suddenly has a hit on him and take the fight to the mysterious mastermind.
This is a great movie for anyone that likes action movies. The action sequences are awe-inspiring, but at the same time, not over the top for the most part. For example, the first time we see Moses fight, a squad of soldiers sneak into his house and he uses the darkness to take them out one-by-one before using a simple trick to draw their back-up out of hiding. It was simple, effective, and still amazing to watch. It reminded me a lot of the idea of taking characters from 80s action movies and seeing how they’d be years after the events we know them from.
The movie is also very funny especially when Malkovich’s character, the unstable Marvin Boggs is on the screen. He will frequently say or do something completely unexpected and it will seem like nonsense but then it’ll turn out to be right in the most entertaining way possible. Also, the dialogue between the characters is very entertaining, often talking about assassinations, past missions, and danger like they were discussing the weather.
In terms of plot, it’s pretty straightforward as Moses and his allies try to find out who is behind the attempts on their lives and why with only minimal subplots of Moses trying to get closer to Parker’s Sarah and Cooper trying to find out the truth of his orders.
I strongly recommend this movie. It is a fun and entertaining movie. The characters’ actors are perfect for their roles and play them well, the action is fun and keeps you on your seat, and the humor will make you laugh. I give this movie nine avocados out of ten.
