Red Dawn: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Chris Hemsworth and Josh Peck star in this remake of the 1984 film. Jed Eckert (Hemsworth) is a U.S Marine that is back at home on leave from Iraq visiting his brother Matt and father Tom. After a random blackout one evening they wake up to something they could never imagine. The North Korean army has started to invade the U.S. including their suburban neighborhood. Immediately they go on the run with a group of kids within the area to avoid being captured. It’s not until their father gets taken and killed that they have no other choice but to grant his last wish…Fight at all costs.
My first rule that I try to abide by when watching a remake is to treat it as a movie on its own and not to refer back to the original. I loved and hated the start of the film. The beginning started very strong and was full of action and explosions within the first 10 minutes or so which if you’re a lover of action you’re definitely going to be happy about. On the other hand I did feel like because everything happened so quickly it didn’t give enough time to really establish the characters and make you connect with some of the supporting cast. I really did like all of the action sequences though and it was so fast paced that the moment you thought things were going to slow down they suddenly picked back up again. Hemsworth’s American accent bothers me every time I hear it (it’s just not that believable to me) but his presence and stature are what made the character. Peck, in my opinion has come a long way since his days on Nickelodeon. The dramatic moments he had I actually liked and gave the film a bit more meaning. Other than that the film to me had no real story besides the invasion itself. There was a bit of a romance side story but that too didn’t fully reach its potential. The ending left the film with no real closure and but it did leave it wide open for a possible sequel. It’s a shame, this film had so much potential to be a really great remake but instead it ended up just being mediocre. Don’t get me wrong, it was definitely entertaining, just not entertaining enough to really impress me. I suggest you give it a watch but it might be good enough for a rental.
Special Features:
There are none! This was one thing that really surprised me. There was not even a single featurette or deleted scenes. I was a bit disappointed in this aspect of this release.
Red Dawn is available on Blu-ray and DVD NOW from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
