Customer Reviews

Red (Special Edition)

5 star:		(198)
4 star:		(72)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(18)
1 star:		(31)

 

 

RED is the action-comedy about a small group of retired CIA field operatives (Retired, Extremely Dangerous...R.E.D.) who are targeted for elimination by nefarious government groups and must team up to fight off the threat and reveal the culprit.

RED is a silly but very fun movie. It is the sort of movie that would not work, however, if we didn't already have pretty strong impressions and feelings about its stars. If we didn't already think of Helen Mirren as the classy actress who won an Oscar for THE QUEEN...we wouldn't laugh simply at the sight of her wielding a machine gun. If we didn't mostly think of Morgan Freeman for playing God or the President or the silky-toned narrator of MARCH OF THE PENGUINS...we wouldn't chuckle at his antics. Quite frankly, if you enjoyed the trailers for RED, you'll enjoy the movie. They give you an almost complete sense of the tone of this film. If you thought the trailers looked merely silly and made you roll your eyes...then the movie will simply multiply that feeling.

Personally, I thought it was a lot of fun. The actors are clearly having a ball, and Bruce Willis (who doesn't really come across as old enough to be retired...especially when he can still win fistfights left and right) makes a good host. He's coasting here, but as movie-goers, we're so comfortable with Willis and his shaved head that it feels a little like we're just visiting an old friend. Mary Louise Parker (WEEDS) is his sort-of love interest, a call center worker he's been flirting with long distance but who now joins in on the escapades. She does a nice job evolving from meek to really enjoying the dangerous antics. Mirren and Freeman are fun. Brian Cox shows up as a retired Soviet agent, and he sparkles in his over-the-top accent. Richard Dreyfuss appears in a couple of scenes and chews scenery. You have to almost feel sorry for Karl Urban as the assassin on Willis' trail...he doesn't get to have much fun...but he acquits himself well. I can almost envision him doing well as the star of a straight-laced action series on CBS.

Best of all is the hilarious John Malkovich. He steals every scene he's in with amazing ease. As the craziest of the REDs, he gets to let his tendencies to overact mightily just run wild...and it all works. His facial expressions alone had the audience in stitches.

RED is not a classic film by any means. But I must say, the 110 minutes I spent with these guys was a complete, guilty-pleasure blast. Maybe I'm just the right age (46) to enjoy this particular cast goofing around...but I sure noticed a lot of happy looking teens and 20-somethings all around me. I think this film is set up to be a nice little hit (with room for sequels).

I mean, anything that features Dame Mirren, an elegant evening gown, and a .50 cal machine gun can't be all bad. Once you stop taking it seriously (something sure to happen early on), it's a riot.

The basic message is a boomer ego-stroke: "Don't mess with the old guys." Unfortunately, that's what happens. Retired CIA agents start dying at an alarming rate. It turns out that the decedents all worked on the one particular mission - one that Our Heroes worked on as well. So, when the hit men come after the hit men, the chase is on. And, as it progresses it reaches higher and higher into the halls of government. You know, the usual.

In this movie, the fun is all in getting there. Bruce Willis's wise-cracking plays well against John Malkovich's slightly deranged character, Morgan Freeman's easy-going character balances them both, and Helen Mirren adds a touch of class. Then there's Mary-Louise Parker's character, Sarah, in a role like Diaz's in Knight and Day only not as ridiculous. Keep your ears open for the one-liners. There were enough times I was the only one in the theater laughing that I might have been the only one listening, too.

OK, maybe this isn't one for the ages. It's a heck of a way to spend a Saturday night, though.

-- wiredweird

This movie has it all. It's got:

- Lots of action. Even though Bruce Willis is playing an older, retired guy, he's still got the goods. He's completely convincing. The rest of the cast delivers as well.

- Funny moments - While it's not a continual thing, there are plenty of funny and light moments, with a few of laugh out louds. Willis is the master of action flick funny, and John Malkovich was surprisingly hilarious. The rest of the cast contributed well as straight guys.

- Romance - Bruce Willis and Mary-Louise Parker really work. I don't want to ruin any surprises, but lets say it starts out and ends in a surprising way, and they had good chemistry.

- Character development - Surprisingly well done for an action flick. Each character was really defined, and you get to care about them.

- Suspense - It was really a good story, and well written. It was full of twists and surprises, with plenty of "edge of your seat" moments.

- Outstanding cast - The star power in this movie was blinding. These people really shined. They're not stars for nothing. Each person was fantastic in their role.

The beginning of the movie dragged just a bit, but once it took off, it really flew.

It was a really enjoyable movie. We recommend this movie highly, however please don't bring your young kids as one family in the theater did. There's too much violence for children.

October 2010. If movies about social networking sites and mishmashes are what passes for "A truly cinematic experience" nowadays, I guess you could count me out. That is, until I noticed that a movie I never saw any trailers for, and full of stars, called RED was out. Easily taken in before I read anything about its plot, I went and saw it. That blind watch I'm definitely proud of!

RED is cliched in terms of story- a retired agent has his house destroyed by a secret agency and makes for the next state, picking up some friends along the way in an all-out, over-the-top action adventure. But as cliche as it is, RED is also just fun. We have Morgan Freeman, Bruce Willis (in the tough guy role as usual), the chick from Weeds, Helen Mirren- all are fantastic. There's plenty of over-the-top action that's fun, it's hilarious, and overall it's a fun movie if all you ask for is just some pure escapist fun.

In the end, RED is definitely not art or Oscar material, but it is one of the most fun movies of 2010, and recommended for some pure entertainment!

Retirement sucks, as anyone can tell you. For former black-ops CIA agents, the inactivity would drive a person insane. Bruce Willis (Frank Moses) is suffering from that insanity. He's a loner, his house lacking all the essential necessities to make it a home, and he's bored out of his mind. He doesn't know how to blend into the neighborhood, pitifully viewing the landscape for what is expected. His desperation, his loneliness, and the inactivity of retirement leads him to tear up his retirement check and call an ever patient, equally lonely customer service agent in Kansas City. The conversations with Sarah (Parker) are the highlight of his month and, through these conversations, he attempts to become more 'normal'. Someone should tell Frank that a man reading a romance novel is not considered 'normal'.
This retirement that eats at Frank's nerves is shattered when a hit squad attacks his house in the middle of the night. Frank, as skilled as ever, kills the assassins. Decades of training leads him to believe they have tapped his phone lines, and he's off to Kansas to save his phone buddy Sarah. Her reluctance to be saved (imagine someone you've only ever spoken to being in your home when you come back from an excrutiatingly boring date!) causes Frank to kidnap her.

Sarah goes on a wild ride with Frank while he attempts to discover who is trying to kill him and why. He travels cross country to find the members of his old black ops team, who are all equally retired and bored to death. Meanwhile, the viewer discovers the CIA is the machine behind the attempt on Frank's life.

Morgan Freeman (Joe Black) is at his suave self, living in a retirement community and suffering from stage 4 cancer. John Malkovich (LSD paranoid Marvin) hides in tunnels and carries a stuffed pig under his arm. Helen Mirren proves that mature women can be sexy carrying a high powered rifle,and arranging flowers in a Better Homes and Garden style home. Her comment about taking an 'odd job on the side' still makes me laugh.

This is an all-star cast of superb actors that deliver an action-packed, fast paced, comedic, and highly entertaining film. The twists and turns are thrilling. I loved every moment of it and it proves that even the retirees have a magnetic bit of life still left in them.

"Red" (Retired Extremely Dangerous) is an action/adventure/comedy about four former CIA operatives who have never quite lost their addiction to adrenaline. During the opening credits, we observe a bored-looking Bruce Willis, who plays tough-as-nails Frank Moses, eating breakfast, working out, checking his mail, and chatting with a woman over the phone named Sarah Ross (Mary-Louise Parker) whom he would like to get to know better. It is Christmas season and every house is festively decorated. Suddenly, all heck breaks loose as a team of assassins closes in on Moses's house with enough firepower to destroy a city block. Who is targeting Frank and why?

Eventually, Moses teams up with his old buddies, Joe (Morgan Freeman), Marvin (John Malkovich), and the still sexy Victoria (Helen Mirren), all of whom are highly-trained former operatives with an encyclopedic knowledge of firearms and explosives. Since Frank has shown an interest in Sarah, she is dragged into the mess. They criss-cross the country trying to elude their pursuers and find out who is behind all of the mayhem.

This kind of satirical movie is extremely difficult to pull off. Director Robert Schwentke tries not to wink at the audience too much, and the old pros play their parts amusingly, only occasionally going too far over the top. The script by Jon and Erich Hoeber, based on a graphic novel, is insubstantial, and there are quite a few scenes of cartoonish violence. Since the screenplay is not exactly Shakespearean in scope, you will need to put your brain on hold. So, why should you see this film? If you have a free afternoon or evening and do not mind a bit of escapism, "Red" is an enjoyable diversion. Willis and his colleagues seem to be having a great time playing off one another and poking fun at the kind of character whom Bruce Willis portrayed so well during his salad days.

I love spy stories, but I was reluctant to see this movie in the theaters because I thought the comedic aspect of it would make it a disaster. Boy, was I wrong. This film, with it's awesome cast, is the perfect blend of comedy and action and a must-have for any spy fan. Definitely grab this one.

In the barren wasteland of fall movies "based on true stories" about social networking and such BS mish-mash movies, I was left with Jackass 3D and RED. I wanted to see Jackass initially, but I decided to wait for the DVD. I still liked the guys who maim themselves for my entertainment and wanted to support them, but the 3D aspect was a little much.

I was told by two people that RED was a great ride and very fun. I knew the people I was speaking with and I knew their views on movies. I went and saw it. Bruce Willis is very John McClane-ish and the movie was a blast!

Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich were great!

Karl Urban was a great addition. I look forward to seeing him in other roles outside of Star Trek again. Especially, the new Judge Dredd film.

Ernest Borgnine was a very welcome addition to the cast. It was good to see him acting again.

You want a fun 1980s/1990s action feel of a fun pop corn movie? Then go see RED.

We loved this movie! I previously rated it 5-stars! We missed it in the theatre and borrowed the Special Edition version from our local library. The SE has some great extras on it!

I have just contacted my 2nd Amazon seller, who sold me a NON-Special Edition copy! No extra features! No problem, you'll get a refund once you return the "wrong" version DVD! Yeah, Right! I'm wasting my time (and money) with vendors who don't give a crap whether I get the DVD I ordered or not! No, I don't get all my money back, because I no longer trust these sleazy vendors to claim I even sent their mistaken DVD back! So I end up paying for delivery confirmations!

Buyer Beware! Amazon used to have some decent 3rd party vendors. My experience says otherwise!

Yeah, I purchased two copies of this DVD, but I never got even one, and I'm out money! Screw me very much!

genre. A stellar cast of, shall we say, senior citizens? Led by Bruce Willis playing, Frank Moses, a wry, Retired Extremely Dangerous agent who still has his skill set. The CIA is trying to kill him, collegue, Morgan Freeman & others for some unpleasantness that occurred in Central America years ago. So they set out to find out who & why. Early on Frank acquires a younger girl friend played by Mary Louise Parker. She is unwilling at first but they are trying to kill her too so she becomes an enthusiastic participant. The trail led to the vice president who turns out to be a master-mind criminal. So it is decided to kill him & prevent him from becoming president. They enlist killer John Malkevich & retired assassin for hire Helen Mirren. I've never seen such a sexy senior citizen manning a machine gun. She's the #1 reason I went to see this movie. They all ourageously ham it up but they are so good the plot hardly matters. Massive mayhem ensues as the bodies pile up. The violence is a bit cartoonish & this will never be mistaken for art.
It is really escapist fare, highly entertaining & you get your money's worth as it runs 111 miutes, long for this type movie. I lost myself monentarily while watching it. It won't be long after it's run that it will be on dvd /blueray. Excellent.