Drewtos

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Red Dawn Review by Drewtos

Red Dawn is the new movie from first-time director Dan Bradley. It stars Chris Hemsworth (Thor, Cabin in the Woods) and Josh Peck (Drake & Josh) and is a remake of the 1984 film of the same name. Its about a group of teenagers who try and defend and take back their town from invading North Korean soldiers.

Some people may believe the premise to this film is absurd and unrealistic and it may turn off some viewers, but its best to just take this movie for what it really is; a fun action movie. Red Dawn’s story is pretty simple and straightforward. The acting is passable for a film of it’s type. Its very light on character development making most of the cast very expendable. Very few to no tears are shed for the deaths of some of these characters. Chris Hemsworth, who is currently best known for his role as Thor, does a decent job with the material he’s given. There’s nothing special to what him and most of the cast are doing, but they aren’t “phoning in” their performances either.

The actor who deserves the most credit would be Josh Peck. Most people may know him from the hit Nickelodeon sitcom, Drake & Josh. For me, seeing him play his goofy character in that TV show and then play a more dramatic role here really showed me how versatile Peck can be and how much potential he has as an actor. His character is probably the most developed of the bunch. Unlike most of the characters, his character seems to have the biggest overall change from beginning to end. I would like to see Peck in future dramatic roles.

The movie missed the boat on story and character development but where it really shines is the action. Overall, I found the action very entertaining. From some well directed gun fights to some awesome explosions I felt Red Dawn hit all the marks it was aiming for, which isn’t surprising considering first-time director Dan Bradley has had a long-standing career as a stunt coordinator and second unit director on such films as The Bourne Ultimatum, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and Spider-Man 2, just to name a few. His direction definitely kept me entertained throughout.

There’s really not too much more to say about Red Dawn. Like I said before, take it for the simple, fun action movie its trying to be and you may be entertained. Unfortunately, I have never seen the original so I can’t compare it. Perhaps, fans of the original may hate this movie. I do not know. I say Red Dawn isn’t quite worth the ticket price to see in theaters. Maybe a cheap matinee. You’re best waiting to rent it on Blu-ray when it is eventually released. I give Red Dawn a B-.

Red Dawn hits U.S. theaters Wednesday, November 21st. Will you be checking it out?