In Red 2, Bruce Willis and the entire gang from the first film (except for Morgan Freeman and Karl Urban) reunite to stop the detonation of a lost nuclear weapon.
The first Red film was a complete surprise to both critics and audiences. It was a real sleeper hit because many dismissed it to be either another generic Bruce Willis movie or too goofy to be good. But it ended up being a lot better than anyone every expected. Talk about a real "Don't judge a book by its cover" scenario. Or in this case, "Don't judge a film by its trailer."
When you think about it, Red sounds like a comedic parody of The Expendables. Both films have all-star casts. The Expendables had an all star cast of legendary action stars while Red featured legends of acting in the supporting cast. But both films follow a similar plot. It is fascinating how much the two films parallel each other. You can't really say one copied the other because both came out the same year within a matter of two months of each other. But enough film facts, comparisons and other assorted movie jargon. On with the review.
What made the first film so much fun is found in its sequel. John Malkovich is still hysterical. His character is so fascinating and the backstory they gave him is just as funny as the actions he does in the film. Every time he's on screen he steals the show. He's like Kramer from Seinfeld. On Kramer isn't nearly as unpredictable as Malkovich. The script is infinitely superior to The Expendables because the banter the characters share isn't just a bunch of cliched action one-liners, plot exposition and Sylvester Stallone dialogue. While there is exposition, the characters actually get developed and the comedic dialogue is actually funny and not unintentionally funny like in The Expendables.
Joining the cast are Catharine Zeta-Jones, Byung Hun Lee and Sir Anthony Hopkins. Catharine Zeta Jones plays an old ex girlfriend of Bruce Willis's and she and Mary Louise Parker have some very amusing scenes trying to outdo the other to win over Willis's affection. Byung Hun Lee basically takes over Karl Urban's role from the first film as the guy who is sent to take out Bruce Willis. And while it is a ton of fun seeing him take out 10 fully armed cops with only his fists and a glass door he is handcuffed to, but it makes me wonder why they just didn't bring back Karl Urban? He was a pretty cool character and Karl Urban has been gaining more and more recognition lately. The only thing I have seen Hun Lee in was G.I. Joe: Retaliation and I personally wouldn't want to be remembered for that dreck. But regardless, he ended up growing on me by the end and was a ton of fun to watch. Anthony Hopkins played the main villain and he was a much needed improvement over Richard Dreyfuss from the first film. Hopkins is able to balance likable and sinister very well. I guess that happens when you played the world's most famous cannibal for three different films.
The only problem I had with the film was that it wasn't as surprising as the first one. When I saw the first Red, I was surprised at how different of an action comedy it was. When watching Red 2, it didn't really "shock" me as much because I kind of knew what to expect and what steps the story would follow. Yet I can't really fault the film for that.
Final Report: Even though it didn't feel as fresh and surprising as the first, Red 2 still has enough slick dialogue, cool car chases and enough John Malkovich to satisfy any action comedy fan. It is definitely worth renting.
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