Red One Movie Review

Red One (2024)

Rent Red One on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: David Koepp (screenplay by)
Directed by: Jake Kasdan
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans, Kiernan Shipka, J.K. Simmons, Lucy Liu, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Nick Kroll, Marc Evan Jackson
Rated: PG-13
Watch the trailer

Plot
After Santa Claus is kidnapped, the North Pole's Head of Security must team up with a notorious hacker in a globe-trotting, action-packed mission to save Christmas.

Verdict
It's the save Santa Claus action edition. This does a fair amount of world building, but it's just trying to put a new spin on an old formula. While it does have a few surprises it mostly follows the rules. I'm most surprised that this didn't aim for a PG rating as I'd think that would be the target audience. This is a movie that's geared to targeting a wide viewership; a yoked Santa, Chris Evans, and the Rock all seem like a pointed attempt get attention for a movie that lacks any real stakes and emotional payoffs.
Skip it.

Review
This starts with a kid that doesn't like Christmas, revealing to his cousins Santa isn't real. It's mentioned his dad left, and I wondered if that played a part into his revulsion to Christmas. This movie is never that deep and doesn't explore the idea.

That kid is Jack (Chris Evans), a charismatic thief that's only in it for the money and is a deadbeat dad. It's a terrible character, and the only reason we don't hate him is that Evans is so incredibly likable. He breaks into a lab so that he can monitor seismic activity. That leads to the main plot; an attack on Santa.

This is an intriguing world. Santa's (J.K. Simmons) helpers look like they're from Lord of the Rings, Santa is ripped and likes to work out, there's a government organization that works in conjunction with Santa, and Santa and crew live in a domed village on the North Pole. Drift (Dwayne Johnson) wants to retire as lead bodyguard as for the first time the naughty list outnumbers the good list.

Dwayne Johnson, J.K. Simmons play Drift, Santa

When Santa is kidnapped the day before Christmas, it's all hands on deck. Drift teams with Jack, the only lead, to find Santa. I wondered how Santa could be kidnapped so easily. How do the kidnappers even find him in this large village they've never seen? How do they traverse this giant village without alerting anyone? This is a movie not at all concerned with details.

Jack, a level 4 naught lister, isn't Drift's first choice but he's the only lead. The government is happy to pay Jack double for anything he might know. That first takes them to a drug kingpin that was just a front. Then they locate Gryla (Kiernan Shipkin). I had never heard of Gryla, but she is an Icelandic Christmas witch that takes naughty children. This also introduces us to Santa's brother.

Chris Evans, Dwayne Johnson play Jack, Drift

The public demands new Christmas movies every year, and this is it. Drift and Jack must save Santa to save Christmas. The world building adds some interest, but this movie seems to exist to fill the quota. The casting is designed just to attract an audience. There's no heart to this movie. It's a collection of tropes with a fresh coat of paint. I'm surprised, this didn't aim for a PG audience. That seems like the ideal viewers for this as that age doesn't care about details or story as much.