Released: 5th November 2021
Length: 118 Minutes
Certificate: 12A
Director: Rawson Marshall Thurber
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, Ryan Reynolds, Ritu Arya and Chris Diamantopoulos
Nowadays it’s common for larger projects to receive funding on streaming platforms and Red Notice is no exception. As one of the most expensive and high profile Netflix releases in recent years, the film is betting big on its cast members to reach success. Along the way, it forgot to be more than a half-baked blockbuster and stands as one of the weakest efforts in 2021.
The title refers to the most wanted criminals on Interpol’s database; we follow agent John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) who is on the hunt for Cleopatra’s three golden eggs. One is stolen from Rome as the film opens and it’s a race to snag the other two. After being framed for robbery, Hartley begrudgingly teams up with master thief Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds) to catch another equally skilled professional. Bishop (Gal Gadot) always seems one step ahead and what follows is a lot of bumbling back and forth around the globe with the law hounding the duo at every turn. The film’s snappy pace is perhaps its best feature; this kind of rapid globe-trotting is well suited to a heist film with the characters constantly running from place to place. Unfortunately this is let-down by a series of outlandish plot swerves that drag an already lacklustre story through the mud. The film’s final moments feel especially egregious with an abrupt one-eighty pivot and an unwanted cameo that will leave many audiences rolling their eyes. In effect, Red Notice embodies the no-effort 12A production, offering little of value or substance.
Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds; the trio is arguably the most profitable set-list in Hollywood right now. Placed front and centre on the poster, they sell the film on their individual personalities. Johnson is gruff and tough, Gadot is sly and seductive and Reynolds is constantly cracking jokes and pop cultural references. These are performances we’ve seen several times before and sadly Red Notice refuses to take them beyond their typecasts. From the moment they step into frame, you know exactly what their tone and mannerisms will be, making everything feel incredibly sluggish. The film is filled to the brim with comedic moments and winks to the camera, but very few of these land with the right impact. Reynolds is the worst offender here, endlessly rambling on with the same big mouthed exuberance that quickly wears thin. At the end of the day, none of the three actors are playing characters here; they play caricatures of themselves with aggressive conformity. By the third act, you’ll tire of their generic behaviours and tune out. Everyone else is bland and uninteresting; they’re merely tools to get the characters to their next destination or set piece.
Barring some awkward transitions from CGI to live-action, the money does show on-screen. Red Notice and its collection of car chases, high-tech espionage and escape scenes is tried and true with competent editing and appropriate music to boot. While the action is alright in itself, it doesn’t offer anything memorable. You’ll notice that the film borrows liberally from other action franchises; Fast and Furious, Indiana Jones, Mission Impossible, very little of what Red Notice does is original. It haphazardly mashes all of these elements together; in terms of sheer, mindless spectacle, the action of Red Notice delivers a hollow and mostly uninteresting flourish. It’s all very sanitised as well, never raising any tension or getting you invested in the characters. Even as a straightforward blockbuster, the film doesn’t do anything you haven’t seen so many times before. At least it doesn’t become deafening or incomprehensible.
Red Notice bungles its star-studded cast on a crime caper riddled with clichés and bloated set pieces. The ludicrous twists and constant quipping are bad enough but the way it coasts along on such a shallow set of characters is its greatest fault. It’s sure to be a popular release, but I recommend steering clear.
Rating: 1.5/5 Stars (Bad)
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