As someone who loves Halloween, I look at “Red One” and see ‘formulaic crowd pleaser’ produced by Amazon MGM. On the poster, you see JK Simmons (aka Spider-Man’s J. Jonah Jameson) as fit looking Santa Claus, with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Chris Evans, Lucy Liu and a large polar bear in red and green tactical wear. Christmas lore! Actors from big blockbusters! Action! Comedy! A talking bear! Reindeer! Throw it all in and hope for a hit.
Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans reluctantly work together to save Santa Claus in ‘Red One.’ PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES
We’re such a Christmas-loving populace, with the holiday starting in September when we hear Christmas carols in the mall, of course we’re getting this movie nine days ahead of the US. With all the carefully put ingredients, this could easily win over families trapped in malls.
But does it pass the Halloween Girl Test? I would certainly not seek out or watch this movie on my own, unlike what I did with Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things” or Celine Song’s “Past Lives.”
This is something, if it is at all to be enjoyed, it is to be enjoyed with kids or earnest, excited adults. Some of them possibly aided by a mojito in a take-out cup.
Chris Evans is Jack O’Malley, a childhood naughty lister and a mercenary hacker and tracker who works for the highest bidder. Dwayne Johnson is Callum Drift, Santa’s Head of Security. They have to work together to rescue Santa who has been kidnapped.
My favorite parts in the first half of the film involve Garcia the security polar bear who works for E.L.F. aka Enforcement, Logistics and Fortification at the North Pole. Mainly because he gets Jack to shut up. There’s not enough Garcia in “Red One.”
Things get several notches better when Krampus appears. Kristofer Hivju (“Game of Throne’s” Tormund) seems to be the only one having fun with his role in the movie. Krampus’ castle may be dark and gothic and his friends may be horned, disfigured and freaky but this is where the film is funniest.
If there would be a sequel, I think it should also have more Krampus, and instead of E.L.F. they could introduce O.R.K. or Operation Rescue Krampus. Except who would want to kidnap this Krampus? He just wants to mind his own business and throw small parties at home in the dark of winter. He also minimizes environmental waste, has fun without the use of gadgets and has gotten to a point in life where he knows which relationships are toxic and which ones are healthy.
Evans and Johnson phone in their performances and the script can get silly but there’s always a propensity to buy into even a little bit of the hokey this time of year.
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