SYNOPSIS: Based on the cult D.C. Comics graphic novels by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, RED is an explosive action-comedy starring Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren.
Frank (Bruce Willis), Joe (Morgan Freeman), Marvin (John Malkovich) and Victoria (Helen Mirren) used to be the CIA's top agents - but the secrets they know just made them the Agency's top targets. Now framed for assassination, they must use all of their collective cunning, experience and teamwork to stay one step ahead of their deadly pursuers and stay alive. To stop the operation, the team embarks on an impossible, cross-country mission to break into the top-secret CIA headquarters, where they will uncover one of the biggest conspiracies and cover-ups in government history.

REVIEW: When I first saw the preview for this movie I was hooked. We have Bruce Willis doing what he does best, John Malkovich acting a little crazy, Morgan Freeman (don’t need to add anything else to that), and Helen Mirren. Now you’ve got to admit that Helen Mirren is pretty hot for a mature woman. She looks great and she is very refined as well, after all she played the Queen. Now imagine that same woman wielding a high powered firearm and being a force to reckon with. That alone was worth seeing. So being hooked by the preview and now after watching the movie, I can say that it definitely lived up to my expectations. The movie is thrilling, intense, direct to the point, and a whole lot of fun. It’s got good action with excellent gun play, good humor, a decent story, and the best part is the incredible cast. It was truly a treat to see these big names work together in an action comedy. They all meshed together very well and at the same time they each shined just as bright as the next guy. I already told you how Helen stood out with her character, Bruce is as powerful, confident, and intimidating as ever with his role as Frank Moses, and Malkovich can be quite freaky as the not so mentally balanced Marvin. But that’s not all cause there is a supporting cast that did exactly that, help support the movie. You’ve got Karl Urban (CIA agent William Cooper) who seems to be in just about every movie you see, Brian Cox who seems to be in just about every other movie you see, Richard Dreyfuss contributes, and it was especially nice to see Ernest Borgnine as Henry the Records Keeper for the CIA. There was a particular performance that stood out a lot for me. I hadn’t really seen much of Mary-Louise Parker before but she made me notice her now. She was hilarious and she was sharp with her line delivery and banter. She was the bonus treat.

I had no idea that this movie was based on a cult DC Comic. When I saw that in the opening titles I knew we were off to a good start. But don’t think that this is some kind of superhero movie. This is more like a cross between James Bond and Burn After Reading. One interesting aspect is the trek throughout the country. There are some random and rarely used locations such as Cleveland, Kansas City, Pensacola, and Mobile along with some more typical ones like New Orleans and New York. But still, the most interesting aspect of this film besides the eye popping action and comedy is the cast playing these larger than life characters. Nothing bad can be said about any of the performances. Nothing bad can be said about Director Robert Schwentke either. Having directed such films as Flightplan and The Time Traveler’s Wife, this one fits nicely in his resume. And in case you don’t know why the movie is called Red, I don’t want to give it away but I will tell you that it’s an acronym and a very appropriate one for this context. It’s kind of funny too.