By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
With about as much depth as an ornament on a Christmas tree, this is one holiday film that needs to be returned to the North Pole. “Red One” is an action/comedy romp designed to bring some yuletide enjoyment, but with a bloated budget of around $250 million, it fails to buy quality. The story is basic and predictable, the execution is poor, and the acting completely underwhelming despite having an all-star cast.
It’s a couple days before Christmas and St. Nick (J.K. Simmons) is making his rounds and final preparations for the big day. After a clandestine operation in the North Pole succeeds to kidnap Santa Claus, it’s up to the Head of Santa’s Security, Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson), to recover his boss before Christmas is ruined. Unfortunately, he must team up with a perpetual naughty lister named Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans), who is an adept tracker.
Together, they go on a globetrotting mission, following the scant breadcrumbs of evidence, leading them into confrontations with notorious Christmas haters like Krampus (Kristofer HIvju) and the Christmas witch Gryla (Kiernan Shipka). Fighting evil snowmen and shape shifters along the way, they come to learn the frightening motive behind Santa’s abduction, and it could permanently alter the holiday for the worst. Callum and Jack must set aside their differences to figure out how to derail the evil plot and save Christmas, but time is not on their side.
Veteran director Jake Kasdan has had decent success with big budget films in the past, such as the most recent “Jumanji” films, but “Red One” is a disappointing effort. It wants to be an entertaining Christmas classic; it wants to be a funny buddy action movie but succeeds at neither due in large part to a simplistic storyline that lacks creativity and cliched dialogue that barely elicits a couple of half-hearted chuckles throughout the two-hour runtime. As a result, the outcomes are completely obvious and the journey to get there is not entertaining enough to hold audience interest.
Kasdan creates moments of exciting action sequences and humor, but these moments are short-lived and too few and far between. He also seems confused on the age range this movie is designed for, with an overly basic holiday plot for young children to be able to follow, but with language, action, and scary images that cater more to an older audience. This lack of identity makes it difficult for anybody of any age to enjoy. At least “Red One” is a little better than “Jingle All the Way.”
Reportedly, $50 million of the $250 million budget went to Dwayne Johnson, making him the highest paid actor ever for one movie. This doesn’t appear to be money well spent, especially after multiple reports that his erratic behavior and constant absences caused significant delays in production. This is ironic, considering he accused Vin Diesel of the same thing during the filming of “The Fate of the Furious.” Be that as it may, Dwayne delivers a phone-it-in type of performance and offers no depth beyond the big, tough guy persona for which he’s known.
Speaking of lack of depth, his co-star Chris Evans, offers very little himself, providing a one-dimensional performance that is quite unappealing. Evans has never had much range as an actor, forcing him to rely on good writing to make a positive impact. Not only is the writing elementary, but his over-the-top New York accent also becomes distracting and annoying, making this a forgettable performance.
Oscar winner J.K. Simmons (“Whiplash”) is the most talented actor in the cast, but of course his character is in a comatose state for most of the movie. He sleeps like a champ though. Lucy Liu and Bonnie Hunt also have miniscule and unnecessary roles, while Kiernan Shipka plays a cookie cutter antagonist.
“Red One” may be covered in shiny wrapping paper, but it’s more decorative than anything, leaving a boring, empty box at its core. If you’re in the mood for an entertaining Christmas themed movie, you’re better off sticking with the classics like “Elf” or “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.”
This movie earns:
