Red One (2024) Movie Review

The holiday season is upon us, and nothing gets you the spirit of the season more than watching the latest Christmas film to immerse yourself in the joyous and cheerful mood of the holidays! Red One, the latest high-action comedy film directed by Jake Kasdan, brings together an all-star cast led by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Chris Evans, and Lucy Liu in a wild holiday-themed action-packed adventure. The movie provides a unique twist on the Christmas genre that combines traditional Christmas folklore with supernatural elements with the perfect dose of comedic mayhem and eruptive action.

The film’s plot is centered around Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s character Callum Drift, who is the right-hand man to Santa, also known as Red One, who assists him in preparation for Christmas Day and serves as his bodyguard for hundreds of years. After working alongside Santa for many years, Callum decides to resign as he feels doubtful that humans are unable to change and, overtime, becomes materialist and unappreciative of the Christmas spirit and Santa’s hard work.

Chris Evan’s character Jack O’Malley is a rebel that lives life by cheating and stealing to get by and has a penchant for being pessimistic, especially for Christmas. When he makes a deal to give information to an anonymous source for an exchange of money, he soon finds himself in hot water as the exchange leads to the kidnapping of Santa Claus right before Christmas. Which leads to Jack being tracked down by Lucy Liu character Zoe, who is the Director of the Mythological Oversight and Restoration Authority, to get Jack to confess what happened and if he knows the whereabouts of Santa. Once Callum learns of the news of Santa’s kidnapping, he springs into action to figure out what happened and try and save Santa, but he can’t do it alone, which makes him have to team up with Jack to save Santa and, most of all, save Christmas.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Chris Evans characters in the film have incredible chemistry and the best comedic scenes. Jack and Callum had moments in which they did not see eye to eye as well as expressed doubt in each other’s ability, but they worked perfectly well throughout the film in order to piece together where Santa was and who was responsible for his kidnapping, and at the end they each taught each other valuable lessons and the importance of Christmas. Red One is unlike any other Christmas movie, as there is the perfect mixture of comedy, action, and, best of all, a modern twist on the Christmas genre. It is definitely a must-watch this holiday season! Check out Red One out in theaters on November 15th!