Red One - 💥💥

Director: Jake Kasdan
Writers: Chris Morgan

Release Date: 6th November 2024

Hot Rating: 💥💥

Synopsis:When the capturing of Santa Claus (J.K. Simmons) threatens to derail Christmas, Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson), Santa's security guard, teams up with a hacker Jack (Chris Pine) to save the day. 

Review: Despite parading a lot of familiar Christmas paraphernalia, Red One feels oddly sterile and dull. Its obsession with making Santa's workshop some sort of technocratic corporation sucks the Christmas magic from its story. The film tries to inject some festive cheer with action-comedy asides, like the visit to Krampus' lair, but these ultimately feel like padding on a rather wobbly action movie skeleton. Dwayne Johnson, as always, plays the stoic action hero with his usual charisma, but even a tested routine can't salvage this story. Chris Pine appears to be rehashing a bit of his Knives Out character, albeit with slightly more heart, but his performance feels lost in the film's chaotic mix of action and festive clichés. Red One is, ultimately, a disappointing Christmas offering that fails to capture the spirit of the season or deliver the action-comedy thrills it promises. Think more bah humbug than ho ho ho.

Image: YouTube