Flashy, Fun & Shallow; RED Proves Age Doesn't Hurt Action

Rating: 7/10 (16 March 2011)

Just as Stallone did with THE EXPENDABLES, Bruce Willis proves he's not too old for action in RED. It seems 2010 was the year for off-the-wall action films, and while RED wasn't the best (that would be THE A-TEAM in my opinion), it definitely wasn't the worst. It's based on comic mini-series from Homage Comics, though pretty loosely from what I understand. I've never read the series so I couldn't tell you, but I enjoyed the film adaptation from director Robert Schwentke. The film centers on retired CIA agent Frank Moses (Willis) as he discovers the agency has marked him for termination. He snatches up Sarah Ross (Parker), his pension fund handler on whom he's got a crush, and hightails it out to find his old team members. With the CIA on his trail and a conspiracy unraveling from his past, Moses recruits some of his fellow retirees: Joe (Freeman) has cancer and is spending his final days in a retirement home, Marvin (Malkovich) lives in the swamps of Florida hiding from government satellites, and Victoria (Mirren) runs a bed and breakfast while taking the occasional contract on the side.
The movie's not bad, but it's nothing to get excited about. It's got some great action sequences, but the film falls into the same trap as many other modern action films. The characters never seem as if they're in any real danger, treating even the tightest of situations as a total joke and smirking their way through trouble. The film tries to jerk us back to reality for a moment halfway through the film with an unexpected death but it doesn't take long to jump back into the next action sequence. It's a flashy, fun, and completely shallow. The film comes off as more of a comedy than an action film, with plenty of jokes about the aging characters going toe-to-toe with their younger adversaries. My favorite scene in the whole film has Bruce Willis in a brutal fight with Karl Urban (as the CIA agent in charge of bringing Moses in) to the sounds of Aerosmith's "Back in the Saddle". It's the only fight that seems to have any weight behind as it appears the two are beating the crap out of each other. The rest of the fights are loud and devoid of suspense, but fun enough.
It's a shame the film isn't better because it looks like everyone involved is having a blast with it all. Willis hams it in and passes through every scene with a wry smile on his face, and Mirren seemed to enjoy the chance to join in on the mayhem (I'm sure she doesn't get too many offers for blowout roles like these at this point). Malkovich does crazy better than just about anyone, so he's perfect for the role of an ex-CIA agent who's mind has been warped from repeated secret LSD testing. The coolest part of the film is Brian Cox as a KGB agent who's passed his prime and longs for the good ol' days of the Cold War, and Karl Urban reminds us he has the potential to be one of the coolest modern action stars (I always thought he was pretty good in DOOM). All of this, and Richard Dreyfus in a supporting role, and the film still never rises past the point of eye candy. I loved watching it, but nothing about it stuck with me afterwards. There's always the chance for a sequel, and if RED is given another chance I hope the filmmakers will try to rise above forgettable action romp.