Monday, September 22, 2008
By: Tex Massacre
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This afternoon Tex sent in his review of Magnolia Pictures' Jack Ketchum adaptation, RED, which arrives on DVD October 28th. In the film a couple of kids kill just for fun a dog named 'Red', the trusty hound of an old gent. The owner finds out who they are, and tries to bring them to justice by informing the authorities. However, this amounts to nothing, so he decides to dish out his own brand of retribution.
Revenge thrillers used to be all the rage in the 1970’s. Spurred on by DEATH WISH and STRAW DOGS these fantastical, empowering action dramas eventually metamorphosed into twisted Grindhouse bastards like I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, and later into sleazy 1980’s oversexed super-trash opuses the likes of GATORBAIT II: CAJUN JUSTICE. Gone was the storytelling. Gone was the reason that one man or one woman was pushed to the very limits of their senses—nudged over the cliff of sanity by circumstances beyond their control. By the new millennium even past testosterone fueled epics like ROLLING THUNDER and FIRST BLOOD offered more subtlety than incarnations like COLLATERAL DAMAGE could ever hope to offer. But this year, two films have surfaced that give revenge thriller aficionados a glimmer of golden hope. The first film, THE BACKWOODS is a STRAW DOGS rehash starring Gary Oldman, set in Spain in the 1970’s. The second is another backwoods tale (this time modern) that—if nothing else—promises to up the storytelling ante.
Based on Jack Ketchum’s novel, RED is the tragic tale of one man—Avery Ludlow (Brian Cox) who, while fishing one day with his old dog Red is fell-upon by three teenage miscreants. When the boys demand money and Avery can only offer them 20 or 30 bucks the leader, Danny (Noel Fisher) shoots old Red to death. After burying his friend (a gift from his late wife, who also died tragically) Avery decides to visit the parents of the boys involved (Tom Sizmore and Ashley Lawrence on one side and Amanda Plummer and Robert Englund on the other). Finding no luck there, he considers legal avenues but also finds that Danny’s father’s ties run deep and no one will prosecute a case that essentially amounts to damaged property and cruelty to animals. Avery is looking for justice in a world that has none to offer. Unable to let the matter rest, Avery’s obsessive quest for the truth will ultimately lead both sides down a road of death and destruction.
RED is a very careful film—careful because, its central idea—that the death of a treasured family pet would be the impetus to murder—is somewhat far fetched. How this delicate matter is handled is all in the reaction of Avery Ludlow. Ludlow is not Charles Bronson gunning down Manhattan street punks in some twisted form of vigilante justice. He is trapped in a situation that is rapidly turning out of control. The issue here is that the other side is doing the steering. Avery might be the antagonist pushing Danny and his Father’s buttons but he is cautious, never breaking the law himself. His is goading Danny into doing that. But Avery is ill-prepared for the consequences of his action. And consequences are exactly what RED is about. Every action in the film has a distinct and—in due course—violent reaction. A powder keg set off by the life spark of a beloved animal—and the whole thing’s going up in flames.
Despite the impressive supporting cast including Sizemore, Englund, Plummer, Kim Dickins (DEADWOOD) and Richard Riehle (THE LOST), RED is a one-man show. And Brian Cox gives a tour de force performance, selling the sometimes overwrought melodrama and delivering an on-screen characterization that sets RED miles above its low-budget roots. As Avery, Cox’s motivations are never in question and when the horrors of his past are revealed in a sequence that might have been too much information and too obvious pandering to the audience, we never—for a single second—doubt his sincerity. It’s a text book lesson to filmmakers about what a truly great actor can bring to a part—a part that glues the film together after a fractured production history.
Exactly what happened on the set of RED is still open to speculation. The film adapted from Ketchum’s novel by screenwriter Stephen Susco (THE GRUDGE) was at the outset being helmed by genre favorite Lucky McKee (MAY). At some point in the production—and this is where things are unclear—the film ran out of money and McKee was fired. How much of the principal photography was in the can is the considerable question. Production was halted for 6 months before Norwegian filmmaker Trygve Allister Diesen was brought into to complete the film. The question of how much material was covered by McKee is paramount because for all intents and purposes the film bears his distinct tonal stamp. It’s a horror film with little overt horror. Its situations and characters are trapped in a downward spiral that ultimately leads to their—and others—doom. You can see that streak of tragedy flow right through SICK GIRL, MAY and ROMAN. For whatever reason McKee was removed from the set and whatever effort Diesen made to make the film his own, RED still feels very much like “A Lucky McKee Film”.
With adaptations of THE LOST and THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, author Jack Ketchum is fast moving from cult celebrity to mainstream source material for motion pictures. RED might be one of the most accessible Ketchum novels brought to screen thus far. But, it’s still a testament to McKee’s prowess behind the lens for securing such an exceedingly able cast to bring Avery Ludlow’s life to the viewing audience. And as a viewing audience you’d do well to check out the film. It’s not a bloodbath of blown off limbs and vigilante justice, but rather a massacre of emotion on screen. In 2005, I suggested David Cronenberg’s A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE as one of the top 10 horror films of the year. RED shares a lot in common with that masterful film as well. Including—I might suggest—the promise of inclusion in this year’s list.
8/10 or 4 Skulls
Source: Tex Massacre
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