Red Dawn is one of my favorite movies…the 1984 version that is. The 2012 remake of Red Dawn, while definitely upgraded for the times, both in story and tech, leaves a bit to be desired when it comes to actual characters and the way we, the audience, feel about them. Ironically, the day I sat down to review this movie was the same day the headlines were all ablaze with the news that North Korea was threatening nuclear war. Imagine my surprise when the opening credit montage was mirroring my MSN homepage. In the original movie it was Cuba conspiring with Russia to take over the USA, but now North Korea is the new (and only politically safe) enemy to pick on, although they are once again conspiring with Russia and seem to have some new EMP device that has knocked out most of our defenses. The premise is sound; perhaps more so today than in 1984, as much of our military forces are off fighting or at least patrolling overseas, leaving our county with minimal protection.
Jed Eckert (Chris Hemsworth) plays a Marine who has returned home on leave from Iraq. We get brief introductions of him, his younger brother Matt (Josh Peck), and his father (Brett Cullen) that barely sets the tone for a relationship that must endure all sorts of hardships the following day when America is invaded by the Koreans. The brothers are awakened by house-shaking rumbles and when they run outside the sky is dotted with hundreds of soldiers parachuting into Spokane Washington. Only when a jet screams past firing rockets and shooting down one of the enemy planes that spirals into the house next door do the boys panic and hop in their truck to escape the invasion. They are forced to leave behind Matt’s girlfriend, Erica (Isabel Lucas) but gather up a few other friends and are instructed by their father to seek refuge in the family cabin up in the woods.
These events loosely mirror those of the original film as do the ones that follow. They cabin is discovered and they are forced to relocate and take up arms as they form their own terrorist group known as the Wolverines (named after their school mascot). Jed is the only one with formal military training, but he gets everyone whipped into battle readiness in a quick montage so they become quite the thorn in Captain Cho’s (Will Yun Lee) side; enough that he has to summon in Russian Special Forces to help track down the Wolverines. Meanwhile, other Marines make it into Spokane and locate the boys and join forces for a daring op to steal a decoder device so they can monitor enemy transmissions.
The original Red Dawn was more drawn out, giving us time to feel the pain and struggle of our survivors. We watched them huddle their way through a frosty winter, scavenge for food, and execute carefully thought out attacks. Everything in this remake seems rushed, with montage after montage and one action sequence after another. Instead of raiding a truck for food like the original, in this version they raid a Subway for sandwich ingredients. Have movie audiences really lost all their patience that we have to have everything served in 90-minute chunks? There are a few pivotal points, some quite emotional, and others painfully obvious and even cliché but it all seems rushed. The film works and is enjoyable, but it’s a far cry from the original, lacking substance and an ongoing emotional connection.
Red Dawn looks incredible on Blu-ray with a stunning 1080p AVC transfer that is loaded with detail, gorgeous colors, realistic skins tones and textures, and seamless CG integration. Much of the film takes place in the woods and I was amazed with the level of detail and texture on the foliage and trees. Contrast is sharp and black levels are solid on the nighttime sequences, and there wasn’t a single glitch, pop, or blemish in the entire movie. The audio is equally as impressive, boasting a DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless mix with a focus on firepower yet never losing the balance of prioritized dialogue from the front-center. LFE is abundant on the opening attack and my room was shaking along with the boys’ house. Later when the explosions start happening my subwoofer definitely saw some action. Sound effects are spread nicely around the 3D space, and the music is perfectly blended into the mix to inspire the desired emotional response the script sometimes fails to deliver on.
Red Dawn may be packed with action but it’s certainly not packed with extras…unless you count a digital copy of the film. At least it’s an iTunes copy and it does look fantastic on my iPad but seriously…not one single extra? This is a major Hollywood movie. I’ve seen a lot more extras on a lot lesser films, and in this day and age where I can watch this movie on DirecTV the same day the Blu-ray is in stores or stream it somewhere else in a few weeks, there has to be some incentive to actually purchase and add a physical movie to your library. Red Dawn doesn’t offer a thing.
Red Dawn is a fun and rental-worthy action romp with an interesting political twist tweaked for our times and stripped from today’s headlines. I still favor the original with Patrick Swayze and recommend that as a must-own movie, but this one can probably wait for a Netflix night, a Red Box rental, or at least a $10 sale price. A 90-minute movie with no extras is not worth a full-price purchase no matter how good it looks and sounds.
