Red One from Warner Brothers and MGM Studios is now in theaters everywhere. It stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Chris Evans, J.K. Simmons, and Lucy Liu and is every bit of the action adventure movie you would think of bringing together this experienced cast. Red One goes after the question: Can Santa Claus be cool again for older kids? And Red One answers with an emphatic yes.
As a father and a minister I have to say up front that this is not a movie for younger kids, nor is it in anyway a reflection of the true meaning of Christmas, which is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. This movie is about as far away from putting Christ in Christmas as you can be. It doesn’t even have the normal general Christmas movie themes of giving, love, family, or faith. Instead Red One has a different mission: showing how cool Santa Claus can be.
I saw the movie in 4DX with my daughter and if you have a chance do that, you should absolutely take the opportunity. Watching a movie in 4DX is like going to an amusement park. It is a fun ride combined with a fun film. My ten year old loved it and it made Santa cooler than she had ever seen him portrayed.
Red One pulls from the German mythology around Santa Claus including witches, monsters, elves, magic, and of course lists and gifts. The Rock and Chris Evans are exciting and entertaining as they battle bad guys, joke with each other, and try to save Santa who the surface looks like he can save himself. The acting is great as one would expect it to be, and the action is greater. If you are looking for a movie to enjoy with your older children this holiday season, this is a great time.
I would not recommend Red One as a Christian, I would not recommend it for my younger kids, but I would recommend it as an action fan. It has scary moments, a decent amount of profanity, and a lot of action violence but nothing unfamiliar to fans of superhero movies. Red One makes Santa and the ELF (you’ll get it if you see it) into superheroes and reminds us that we can’t judge a book by its cover or a person by their past.