Entertaining and well-acted

Rating: 9/10 (19 July 2011)

First, let me say this: I LOVE Bruce Willis. I grew up watching him in the series Moonlighting and the Die Hard movies. His comedic talent is off the charts and his "bad boy with good heart" personality is so sweet and...well, hot :) And the dude has proved he can act in "serious" dramas, too, although it's a known fact that comedies are usually more difficult to get right than dramas.
In RED, Bruce that we know and love, the bad boy with a golden heart, makes a return, in the company of some awesome supporting actors! The story is nothing new (but what story is, really?), but well told, and extremely well acted. I loved the direction in this one, the way the different cities they traveled to were introduced, and the soundtrack is spot on! Also, fight scenes do not overshadow the telling of the story, but fit right in with the pace of the narrative.
I also saw The Expendables a few weeks ago, but I must say, RED is so much better. Both movies play on the same idea of veteran agents, but RED is so more finely tuned and complex and funnier, and the chemistry between actors is so obvious. Who knew that Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Hellen Mirren can make such great action movie heroes! Mary Louise Parker is so good in the role of the ingénue who goes from a boring 9 to 5 office job to this crazy CIA man-hunt without even blinking! I loved it!
All in all, it's a great movie. Just kick back, relax, and let Bruce&Co show you how it's done :)