The hero in Red doesn't want revenge. He wants an apology. This isn't your ordinary vigilante film.
Comment
10/31/08
Red (2008)
69
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:26
Fresh:18
Rotten:8
Average Rating:6.5/10
Consensus: This vengeance film leans heavily on attack-and-avenge scenarios but performances by Brian Cox's and Tom Sizemore's take the stink out of any weaker scripting.
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: From its first scene, Red rivets you like a classic page-turner. Set in small-town America, Red derives its title from a 14-year-old dog that is the sole companion of Avery (Brian Cox), an older... [More]
Starring: Brian Cox, Noel Fisher, Kyle Gallner, Tom Sizemore
Director: Trygve Allister Diesen, Lucky McKee
Reviews for Red
Red is the best Ketchum adaptation to date, just edging out The Girl Next Door. It earns this achievement thanks to Brian Cox's amazing performance.
10/30/08
...a deliberately paced and downright thoughtful piece of work.
10/24/08
An elegant and deceptively straightforward dramatic thriller.
08/29/08
Top CriticA movie that's completely out of its tree.
08/29/08
A low-key but compelling thriller that refuses to follow the traditional vengeance movie template.
08/29/08
The movie's escalating series of tit-for-tat revenge ploys becomes a bit tedious even at 95 minutes, but Cox and a rich (if not always well-served) supporting cast that includes Tom Sizemore, Amanda Plummer, and Robert Englund keep it more than watchable.
08/28/08
A final quarter sentimental streak clashes with the masochistic pleasure of watching middle America close ranks against a victim who can't even bark in his own defense.
08/16/08
Begins promisingly and then swerves into absurdity.
08/08/08
What makes this movie worth seeing is the acting, which is superb throughout.
08/08/08
Along with Shotgun Stories, Felon, and a few other recent 'indie pulps,' Red is part of a wave of low-budget genre films that turn injustice into an abstract force ripping decent folk apart.
08/08/08
Once Avery's mission assumes a Freudian dimension, the allegory loses its moral force and changes from a meditation on justice, power and inequality into a gory melodrama.
08/08/08
Top CriticAs Diesen fades out with a pat, artificially full-circle ending, we still appreciate how Red danced on the edge of the Movie-of-the-Week abyss and, thanks to Cox and the careful tending of Jack Ketchum’s original novel, never fell in.
08/08/08
The lesson to be taken away from Red is that, after some killin', the only thing that can make someone feel better is a new puppy.
08/06/08
Somewhere along the line someone should have taken a long, hard look at the excesses of the ending and changed course.
08/06/08
This powerful, elemental drama hits all the buttons, probably to a fault, but it’s helped along by fine performances all around.
08/04/08
The film's climax ultimately seems less an example of its protagonist's irrational fury than of cockeyed storytelling.
08/03/08
It’s Brian Cox’s powerful but low-key performance and an abiding respect for animals that can’t defend themselves that invest this simple, straightforward narrative with an understated passion that is unforgettable.
07/30/08
This movie has a humungous amount of problems, but I think that its absolute worst sin is that it’ll make you think that the Jack Ketchum novel is some sort of Oprah’s book of the month reject.
07/22/08
Animal lovers may or may not like the way that the principal character gets revenge on a young man who killed his dog.
07/10/08
Latest News for Red
July 20, 2008:
Trailer & Poster review 
More...
July 01, 2008:
Edinburgh 2008: What to Watch
We share twenty of the best films screened at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, currently running in the Scottish city. More...
June 18, 2008:
RT's First Critical Consensus Award to be Presented at Edinburgh Film Festival
A panel of leading film critics will present the Rotten Tomatoes Critical Consensus Award 2008 to one of a shortlist of films playing at this year's Edinburgh International Film... More...
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