RED

February 8, 2011 (DVD rental)

I wasn’t quite prepared for the silliness of RED, but I also didn’t realize it was going to be so much fun. It’s FUN! RED is a straight-up action comedy, heavy on both counts, and features incredibly selfless performances by all of the major players. As retired government operatives, Bruce Willis and Helen Mirren are the most notable, Morgan Freeman is his usual charming self, and John Malkovich is his best maniacal self. Added to the mix is Karl Urban as a rigid CIA agent charged with hunting down the others, and he is truly a fantastic adversary. The first act of the film is just great silly fun as all of the players are introduced and the setup is described. But then the story really gets down to business, and RED becomes an explosive action movie of the best sort. When everything finally wraps up, you can’t help but walk away with a great big smile on your face and a desire to see all of these characters again. Personally, I think Helen Mirren’s character should be given a franchise all her own. She’s glorious in this movie. But then again, there’s not a single wrong note all around. RED is the kind of movie that just pulls you out of your own reality and takes you for an extraordinary ride.